Mary-Louise Parker is such a hands-on parent she worries about vacationing without her kids. She’s only taken a trip twice without them, and secretly surfs the web in the middle of the night in search of the perfect getaway.
“The Four Seasons website is my porn,” the Weeds star, 47, says this week during the Conde Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards held in NYC. “I can be found at 1 in the morning clicking on hotels in the dark. I click on Bora Bora, Seychelles and Maldives – there’s two in Maldives, it’s beautiful. I really want to go so badly. The beds are delicious and the bathrooms are pristine and elegant, and there’s always some little extra something that makes you want to go back.”
It’s no wonder she dreams of the hotel chain. The last time she stayed there, she had an unforgettable time with her son William, 7, whose dad is ex Billy Crudup, and daughter Ash, 4, who is adopted.
“I went to the Four Seasons in Nieves last year, and that was really amazing,” she says. “That hotel is really beautiful, and they were so nice. Honestly, I felt like everyone who works there –and I worked in the service industry – sometimes there’s this quiet hatred towards people that you’re working for, but they just all seemed so happy to be there. They loved their jobs. It just made the trip different. They were so lovely to my children. It’s not a good vacation for me if my kids aren’t having a good time.”
Most recently, though, she loaded her kids up for a good old-fashioned road trip.
“I just love planning trips for them,” she says. “I just took them across the country in an RV. It was amazing. We went to truck stops and camped in an RV. The kid on my show, Hunter Parrish, who plays my son, his parents – his father drove, and his mother’s a good friend of mine, too. It was just his parents, my kids and me. It was wonderful.”
How’s this for super mom? Just before she presents an award at the event, she baked six pies after picking apples all day.
Indeed, her children put a smile on her face.
‘Today my son ran after me at the apple tree, and he said [New York accent] ‘here sweetheart, let me carry your apple bucket, my little Gummi Worm,’” she tells me. “He’s so romantic.”
Hi all, my name is Chanel and I’m the new owner of Mary-Louise Parker Central. For my first update on the site I’ve added pictures of Mary-Louise at various 2011 events.
Mary-Louise Parker, best known for her leading role in Showtime’s “Weeds,” stars in “Disco Ghetto,” the new music video for Jesse Malin and The St. Marks Social. Directed by Abigail Honor of Persona Films and Harry Greenberger, the video premiered on RollingStone.com.
Parker plays a down-on-her-luck waitress who — after a trying day on the job — dreams of nothing more than a night of escape and frivolity at the disco. Paul Bearer of “Sheer Terror” appears as a mean diner; Paul’s scenes with Mary-Louise Parker include her spitting in his coffee and him drinking it (all in one shot, no VFX), as well as Paul being strangled by hosiery. With disco being the theme of the song, it also became the leitmotif of the video’s production design, from flashy gems on guitarist Johnny Martin’s cap to Jesse Malin’s disco ball necklace.
The video was shot over two days in February 2011; production took place on location in New York City’s East Village at vegetarian restaurant Kate’s Joint and the famous club, The Bowery Electric. The video was shot on RED One, the hi-end digital cinema camera, with Yan Vizinberg serving as Director of Photography. Read more… »
Mary-Louise Parker doesn’t lament the summer movies that don’t list her name in their credits.
“Sure, there are moments where there simply isn’t time to work on a film,” she says. “But I console myself thinking the role on ‘Weeds’ is so good, and you can’t find that type of material often in most features these days.”
Her Showtime series pops up again Monday for a new season. She’s back as Nancy Botwin, a woman who sells pot as a way to make mortgage payments. Last season ended with Nancy facing jail time. This season picks up a few years later.
Q. Do you prefer your series to movies like “Red” where you romanced Bruce Willis?
A. I’d rather do a few killer pages on a TV series than be in a film where the writing is just so-so. My last film I was falling and rolling down a hill thinking, you know, it’s actually much easier to do that six-page monologue. Words don’t make you ache and want to take a bath.
Q. Can you reveal any plot secrets on “Weeds” this season?
A. I don’t want to give it away, but Nancy is still dealing with the law. It gets pretty crazy. Crazier than it has been for a while, which is what I love about the show. It’s always unpredictable.
Q. What do you tell your kids about the show?
A. My oldest knows the show has to do with drugs, but he doesn’t know what the word means. I just avoid the whole thing and say drugs are just something people might use, but not us, so what do you want for dinner?
Q. Are your kids interested in joining the family business?
A. All day long, people are putting on shows at my home. All I hear is, “Ladies and gentlemen, turn off your cell phones.”
An updated list of participants has been announced for the Roundabout Theatre Company’s 2011 spring gala, to be held at the Roseland Ballroom on Monday, March 14 beginning at 7pm. As previously reported, Emmy Award winner Alec Baldwin will receive the Jason Robards Award for Theatrical Excellence at the event, which will be directed by Scott Ellis.
The festivities will include a musical tribute at 9pm, with performers including Jane Krakowski, Bebe Neuwirth, Andrea Martin, Jason Danieley, Melissa Errico, LaChanze, Sherie Renee Scott, Marin Mazzie and Karen Ziemba. The event will also feature special appearances by Anne Meara, Jerry Stiller, and Mary-Louise Parker.
Baldwin has appeared on Broadway in A Streetcar Named Desire, Loot, and the Roundabout’s Twentieth Century. He also starred in the company’s Off-Broadway production of Entertaining Mr. Sloane. He received an Academy Award nomination for The Cooler and has won two Emmy Awards for his work on NBC’s 30 Rock.
Tickets start at $1500. All proceeds from this event benefit Roundabout Theatre Company’s Musical Theatre Fund.
The big guns come out Monday June 27th with the one-two punch of the Emmy nominated “Weeds” and the critically acclaimed “The Big C.” Mary Louise-Parker and her “Weeds” crew will be entering season seven, while Laura Linney’s “The Big C,” will begin its sophomore run. Both shows will unveil thirteen new episodes and air at 10:00pm and 10:30pm EST, respectively.
To find which channel Showtime is on your local cable provider, click here.
S06E03 will air tonight, don’t forget to watch it!
Season 6, Episode 3 – A yippity sippity
In an effort to make money and stay ‘under the radar’, Nancy, Andy, and Silas acquire scab laborer jobs at an upscale Seattle hotel. Meanwhile, Shane is left to care for baby Stevie. Back at Ren Mar, Doug finds unexpected guests.
Mary-Louise Parker Plans Fun Vacations For Kids 
