Constance Zimmer

A television actress with a repertoire of characters who broadly blend likeability, smartness and a certain amount of sass, Constance Zimmer's meatiest roles were in season three of David E. Kelley's courtroom comedy-drama "Boston Legal" (ABC 2004-08), as studio executive Dana Gordon in Hollywood satire "Entourage" (HBO 2005-11), and as Washington Herald reporter Janine Skorsky in David Fincher's American adaptation of the classic British political thriller "House of Cards" (Netflix 2013). Born in Seattle, Zimmer spent much of her childhood in Santa Monica and Newport Beach, CA, and studied acting as a high school student and then at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Pasadena. Her earliest acting jobs were in commercials, followed by small guest roles in established television shows ranging from sitcoms such as "Ellen" (ABC 1994-98) and "Seinfeld" (NBC 1989-98) to dramas including "Chicago Hope" (CBS 1994-2000) and "The X-Files" (Fox 1993-2002). Her television work eventually brought her to her first co-starring role as office assistant Penny Barrington on the workplace sitcom "Good Morning, Miami" (NBC 2002-04). Her subsequent role as flirtatious lawyer Claire Simms in "Boston Legal" helped the series land a joint award from the Screen Actors Guild for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series. Her recurring role on "Entourage" as the once and future girlfriend of agent Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven) brought her talents to an even wider audience. In 2013, her meaty dramatic role in the political drama "House of Cards" provided a darker contrast to the lighter roles with which she had been most associated.