Lauren Holly

By Jack Garner
Democrat and Chronicle

(Jan. 9, 1997) -- Lauren Holly, relaxed and radiant, is sitting in a posh hotel suite in Los Angeles, talking about her latest movie, the high-energy action flick, Turbulence.

She's also had a lot of turbulence in her own life of late, thanks to a high-profile marriage to comedy superstar Jim Carrey, an event that triggered a feeding frenzy among the supermarket tabloids.

But although you can take the girl out of the Finger Lakes region, you can't take the Finger Lakes region out of the girl.

Holly was born 33 years ago in Geneva, N.Y., where her parents still live, and has spent a lot of time in the Rochester, N.Y., area. In fact, if you think you might have spotted the celebrity newlyweds strolling down a Rochester street, it's possible.

"One of my best friends lives with her husband and baby in Rochester, and we visit them," Holly says. "Jim and I just get in and get out, and nobody knows it.

"My father, Grant Holly, teaches English literature at Hobart and William Smith. My mother, Michael Ann Holly, teaches art history at the University of Rochester and chairs the department. Yeah, her name is Michael, and it is my middle name, as well."

So it's no surprise that Holly was raised in an academic environment with very little TV and lots of discussion about books. For college, she chose upscale Sarah Lawrence and, to the delight of her parents, planned to go to law school.

So imagine Holly's shock when, after deciding instead to pursue an acting career in New York City, her parents embraced the idea.

"But looking back," she says, "they were always about freedom of thought and making your own decisions. So I think they were glad.

"You are always a bit different than your parents, and my parents tend toward a more Bohemian lifestyle. I grew up with plants and books and making tea in front of a wood-burning stove.

"Then you'd go into my room, and it was the neatest room in the house. My clothes were hung in the closet, arranged by color. I was very ordered.

"I think they liked the fact that I finally relaxed a little bit and followed my instincts.

"My parents always gave me confidence that whatever I chose to do, I could do it well," she said. "If I came downstairs and told my parents I was going to learn to play the piano with my big toe, they'd tell me, `You are going to be the best big-toe piano player and will probably play at Carnegie Hall.' "

Instead -- and almost as unlikely -- Holly is Hollywood's latest female action hero.

"I wanted to do something physical," she said. And as someone who's labored in supporting roles, she jumped at the chance to carry a picture in a lead role.

Now that Turbulence is opening, "There's a little bit of terror involved," she admits. In the film, Holly stars as an airline stewardess who must save the day after a psychotic killer (Ray Liotta) kills the pilot and co-pilot and takes over a 747.

"What I like about my character is that I'm just an ordinary girl, thrown into an extraordinary situation."

The same thing can probably be said about her private life. A former high school cheerleader (Geneva High School, class of '81), Holly has come a long way in a short time professionally.

But nothing matches the public impact of her marrying Carrey, the manic star with the $20-million-per movie paycheck. The couple met when Holly co-starred in Dumb and Dumber in 1994. A long courtship followed -- reportedly with a brief cooling-off period. The two were married Sept. 23.

"Yeah, it's bizarre," she says of the circus that now swirls around them. But she insists she manages to keep both feet on the ground. "I still keep in contact with people I grew up with, my old friends.

"I'm really close to my family, and that keeps me grounded. My family and Jim's family are quite similar, and we grew up within a few hours of each other." (Carrey is from nearby Ontario, Canada.)

But as her career and private life continue to skyrocket, Holly also notes that she has "had tremendous tragedy in my life -- that I won't elaborate on -- in two cases that I would wish on no one.

"Sometimes I worry that because I suffered in the past, I'm now given (success) so I can help my family . . . But if that were somehow the case, I'd give it all up to go back to before."

Though she would say no more, presumably she's talking, in part, about the death of her 14-year-old brother, Alexander, in a fire.

"I think you have to keep perspective. Whenever I have really joyous moments or I'm really overwhelmed by everything that comes my way, there is always a catch. I have certain memories that are really hard."

Holly says she views her small-town roots as both a plus and a minus. "Being raised in a small town with loving family and friends, I tend to be very open and friendly. I'm trusting. We didn't have a lot of crime; our door was usually unlocked. I'd go to the grocery and know everybody there. It was a great way to grow up as a kid.

"But now I'm finding I need to be a little more guarded."

As for her future with Carrey, Holly says they've both pledged to try to make their work schedules coincide as much as possible. "And he has decided that after his next project, he's going to take a year off and be the good guy while I work."

Of course, the public persona of Jim Carrey is an off-the-wall, manic comedian. What does Holly know about him that we don't?

"He's probably the sweetest romantic there is," she says, "and he will rub my feet whenever I ask him to."