Award-winning actress Rhea Perlman was born on March 31, 1948 in New York City. A graduate of Hunter College, she began her acting career in 1972, when she played a bit role in the film Hot Dogs for Gauguin. Most of her early acting projects were roles in films and television movies, such as Swap Meet, Like Normal People and Love Child. She also took on guest roles on television, including stints on Saturday Night Live and a recurring role on Taxi.
Perlman is, however, best known for her role in the much-loved and –acclaimed sitcom Cheers. She was part of the cast from its premiere in 1982 to its end in 1993, playing the role of Carla Tortelli, a waitress at Cheers who always expresses disdain for almost everybody, notably fellow waitress Diane Chambers (Shelley Long), and later, to her boss Rebecca Hoew (Kirstie Alley) and regular customer Cliff Calvin (John Ratzenberger). Throughout her eleven-year run on the show, she received ten Emmy nominations for best supporting actress; she won the awards in 1984, 1985, 1986 and 1989. Her character also appeared in the unsuccessful spin-off series The Torellis, which centered on the lives of her ex-husband, Nick (Dan Hedaya).
Perlman’s next regular television project was Pearl, a sitcom which premiered in 1996. She played the title role—a middle-aged widow named Pearl Caraldo, who enters a university as a night student. It only lasted one season because of low ratings. She also starred in films such as Canadian Bacon, Matilda, 10 Items or Less, Love Comes Lately and Cat Dragged In. She also appeared in other television shows and movies, frequently as a guest, notably an appearance in an episode of Frasier in 2002, where she reprised her character in Cheers along her other co-stars.
Perlman is married to fellow actor Danny DeVito, who she met during production for Taxi. The couple have three children.