Career
Clarke appeared on the daytime soap opera Days of Our Lives as Faith Brown (where her father was a senior cast member), and starred on Soldier of Fortune, Inc. for both of its seasons. She also guest starred on Xena: Warrior Princess as the Amazon chieftain Velasca, Firefly as the brothel madam Nandi, Charmed as the Siren, and has had six appearances on CSI where she played the dominatrix, Lady Heather. She also appeared in the Seinfeld episode "The Muffin Tops", playing Jerry's girlfriend who likes anything hairless.
She appeared on the Fox drama The O.C. as Julie Cooper, a cunning socialite who marries for money. Her character in the show is mainly portrayed as a manipulative, morally wrong woman, but as the show progresses you begin to understand why she makes her choices. She was originally billed as a guest star in the first few episodes, and due to fan response was offered a series regular contract; Clarke accepted the role and her character became an integral part of the show's storylines. As well as starring on The O.C., she has appeared on HBO's hit series Entourage as a fictionalized version of herself, married to Malcolm McDowell's Terrance McQuewick. Clarke also appeared as the Devil's girlfriend in The CW's 2007 series Reaper. She also auditioned for the role of "Number Six" on SCI-FI's smash hit Battlestar Galactica but the role ultimately went to Tricia Helfer. In 2010, she appeared on the CW show The Vampire Diaries as Kelly Donovan. Other projects included a TV movie, She Drives Me Crazy, which was produced by her former The O.C. co-star Kelly Rowan. She appeared as a guest star on Chuck, another series from The O.C. creator Josh Schwartz. She plays Amanda, a series regular role, on The CW's drama Nikita.
She has also lent her voice to several voice acting projects, voicing Alexa in The Animatrix: Matriculated, Sofia Ivanescu in the video game Mission Impossible: Operation Surma, Madame Macmu-Ling in Avatar: The Last Airbender and Charlene in King of the Hill.
Clarke has also volunteered as an actress with the Young Storytellers Foundation.
Read more about this topic: Melinda Clarke
Famous quotes containing the word career:
“He was at a starting point which makes many a man’s career a fine subject for betting, if there were any gentlemen given to that amusement who could appreciate the complicated probabilities of an arduous purpose, with all the possible thwartings and furtherings of circumstance, all the niceties of inward balance, by which a man swings and makes his point or else is carried headlong.”
—George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)
“A black boxer’s career is the perfect metaphor for the career of a black male. Every day is like being in the gym, sparring with impersonal opponents as one faces the rudeness and hostility that a black male must confront in the United States, where he is the object of both fear and fascination.”
—Ishmael Reed (b. 1938)
“My ambition in life: to become successful enough to resume my career as a neurasthenic.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)