Known as: Jane
Seymour
Birth Name: Joyce Penelope Wilhelmina Frankenberg
Date of Birth: February 15, 1951
Birth Place: Hillingdon, UK
Height: 5' 4''
Nationality: British
Claim to fame: as Solitaire in Live and Let Die (1973)
Occupation: Actress, Producer
Jane Seymour was
born on February 15 1951 in Hillingdon, England as Joyce Penelope
Wilhelmina Frankenberg. Her parents are John Frankenberg and
(Dutch) Mieke Frankenberg - van Trigt. She has two younger sisters,
Anne and Sally.
Jane began training
ballet at the age of three. At thirteen she made her professional
debut
with the London Festival Ballet. Later she went to the Arts
Educational Schools In
London to train dance, music and theatre. She suffered from
knee injuries during her first
performance with the famous Russian Kirov Ballet, putting an
end to her ballet career.
'As a girl I was
determined to become a dancer. The trouble was that I'm the
wrong build. I have a long back and shorter legs, whereas ballerinas
need the reverse. (..) I injured my cartilage in jazz dance
and I had to give up ballet. It was only a matter of time
anyway, because of my build, but I was devastated. Fortunately,
going to the school I
did, I was able to do more acting classes. Looking back, injuring
my cartilage did me a big favour. It was probably the best thing
that ever happened to me because it led to
becoming an actress and everything that has come with it.' -
Hello magazine July 15 2000
She changed her name
in Jane Seymour because she thought Frankenberg sounded too
much like Frankenstein, Frankfürter or Frankenburger. She
first tried 'Joyce Franks' but
that was said to be too common, then she wanted to try her mother's
maiden name,
but that was said to be unpronouncable, then her agent came
up with Jane Seymour and
it stayed that way.
Jane was determined
to make it as an actress and went to the US. Her breakthrough
came with her role as Solitaire in the James Bond movie 'Live
and Let die'. Over the years she won an Emmy (for Onassis) and
two Golden Globes (for East of Eden and Dr. Quinn) and she has
been nominated several times.
Jane is involved
in several charity organistations like Unicef, City Hearts,
Make-A-Wish
Foundation and Childhelp USA. She also paints and writes children's
books (This One
and That One) with her husband James Keach.
James Keach (1948)
is her fourth husband. They married May 15 1993. Her ex-husbands
are: Michael Attenborough ('71-'73), Geoffrey 'Jeep' Planer
('77-'78) and David Flynn ('81-'92).
Jane has four children:
Katie Flynn (January 7 '82), Sean Flynn (July '85) and the twins
John (named after her late father and her dear friend Johnny
Cash) and Kristopher (named after her dear friend Christopher
Reeve) Keach (November 30 1995). Her
stepchildren are Kalen Keach and Jennifer Flynn.
Jane resides in Malibu,
California and in her 16th century manor 'St. Catherine's Court'
near Bath, England.
