Daniela Ruah

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Daniela Ruah
Daniela Ruah - Monte-Carlo Television Festival.jpg
Ruah at the 2012 Monte-Carlo Television Festival
Born Daniela Sofia Korn Ruah
(1983-12-02) December 2, 1983 (age 40)
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Nationality Portuguese
Occupation Actress
Years active 2000–present
Spouse(s) David Paul Olsen (m. 2014)
Children 1

Daniela Sofia Korn Ruah[1] (Listeni/dəniːɛlə ruːə/; born December 2, 1983)[1] is an American[1] actress best known for playing NCIS Special Agent Kensi Blye in the CBS police procedural series NCIS: Los Angeles.

Early life and family

Ruah was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Portuguese citizens Dr. Moisés Carlos Bentes Ruah and his wife, Katharina Lia Azancot Korn.[1] Her father was a resident in Otolaryngology (Ear, Nose, and Throat) in the Boston University–Tufts University program. When Ruah was five years old, her father completed his residency and the family returned to Portugal,[2] where her parents divorced. She attended an international, English-medium school.[3]

Ruah's father is from a prominent Portuguese Sephardic Jewish family.[1] Ruah's maternal grandfather was an Ashkenazi Jew who was born in 1922 in what is now Wrocław, Poland.[1] Ruah's maternal grandmother, Vera, was born in Lisbon, Portugal; Vera's father (Ruah's great-grandfather) was of Sephardic Jewish and Spanish ancestry, and Vera's mother (Ruah's great-grandmother) was a Ukrainian Ashkenazi Jew from Odessa.[1][4] She is the great-grand niece of the captain Artur Carlos de Barros Basto.[5] She also has distant ancestors from São Tomé and Príncipe.[1]

Ruah attended St Julian's School in Carcavelos, near Lisbon. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from London Metropolitan University.[6]

She was an active member of the Portuguese Jewish community[2] in Lisbon, of which her father's second cousin, also a physician, was the head. In 2003, the Jewish Telegraph Agency (JTA) ran a piece about an annual gathering of Jewish young people from 32 countries sponsored by European Union of Jewish Students. Ruah, then 19 and still living in Lisbon, was one of the students the JTA interviewed. She said, "I've never been around as many Jews in my entire life. Here, you don't feel the need to explain to people who you are. I am meeting people who eat kosher for the first time ever."[7]

Career

Ruah started acting in Portuguese soap operas when she was a teen. Her first acting role came at the age of 16, when she auditioned for the soap opera Jardins Proibidos ("Forbidden Gardens") and won the role of Sara.[8] Ruah kept working on diverse projects while she was finishing high school. At the age of 18, she moved to London to study at the London Metropolitan University, where she earned a First in Performing Arts. She got extremely good grades while in school, and became the best well known movie and sports star. Ruah returned to Portugal to pursue her acting career. She was the winner of the celebrity dancing competition Dança Comigo (the Portuguese version of Dancing with the Stars)[7][9] and got main roles in television series, short films, and theatre.[10] In 2007, she moved to New York to study at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute.[10]

Ruah stars as Special Agent Kensi Blye in NCIS: Los Angeles, which first aired on September 22, 2009. The series is now on Season 7, which premiered on September 29, 2014. In 2011, Ruah portrayed Kensi Blye in a guest appearance on the series Hawaii Five-0.[11]

In April 2013 Ruah made her debut at Hayworth Theatre in LA as Catherine in "Proof", a play by David Auburn.[12]

Personal life

She has a distinguishable birthmark in her right eye, called the Nevus of Ota. Her left eye is hazel, giving her eyes a unique appearance as the other one is brown/blackish. Ruah speaks three languages fluently—Portuguese, English, and Spanish.

Ruah announced in September 2013 that she was expecting her first child, a boy, with her then fiancé David Paul Olsen, the elder brother and stunt double of Ruah's NCIS: Los Angeles co-star Eric Christian Olsen.[13] Ruah gave birth to a son, River Isaac Ruah Olsen, on Dec 30, 2013.[14][15] On June 19, 2014, Ruah married her fiancé David Olsen in Portugal.[16][17] As of March 2015, she lives in Los Angeles, California.[18][19] On April 18, 2016, Ruah announced that she and Olsen are expecting their second child.[20]

Filmography

Films
Year Title Role Notes
2012 Red Tails Sofia
Brave (Portuguese Version) Mérida Animated Film
Short Films
Year Title Role Notes
2006 Canaviais Margarida Portuguese short film
2008 Blind Confession Woman
2009 Safe Haven Angela Bowery
Midnight Passion Sophie
2011 Tu & Eu Sophie Asians on Film Festival Award for Best Ensemble Cast - Short Film
Television
Year Title Role Notes
2000–01 Jardins Proibidos Sara Main Cast
Portuguese soap opera broadcast by TVI
2001 Filha do Mar Constança Valadas Main Cast
Portuguese soap opera broadcast by TVI
Querida Mãe Zezinha Portuguese television film broadcast by SIC
Elsa, Uma Mulher Assim Mónica Portuguese miniseries broadcast by RTP
Season 1, Episode 11
2004 Inspector Max Verónica Botelho Portuguese TV series broadcast by TVI
1 episode, "Marcas do Passado"
2005–06 Dei-te Quase Tudo Rita Cruz Main Cast
Portuguese soap opera broadcast by TVI
2006 Dança Comigo Herself Portuguese version of Dancing with the Stars broadcast by RTP
Winner of the first season
2006–07 Tu e Eu Daniela Pinto Main Cast
Portuguese soap opera broadcast by TVI
2008 Casos da Vida Rita Portuguese TV series broadcast by TVI
1 episode, "Passo em Falso"
2009 Guiding Light Gigi Season 1, Episode 15628
NCIS Kensi Blye 2 episodes, "Legend (Part I)" and "Legend (Part II)"
She was part of a guest cast including Chris O'Donnell, LL Cool J, Barrett Foa, Peter Cambor and Louise Lombard
2009–present NCIS: Los Angeles Series regular, 168 episodes
Portuguese Golden Globe award for Newcomer of the Year
TV Action Icon Award 2011 of Celebrity & Stuntwomen's Awards
Nominated-Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Action Actress.[21]
2011 Hawaii Five-0 Crossover with NCIS: Los Angeles
Episode: "Ka Hakaka Maika'i"

References

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  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.. Celebritybabies.people.com. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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