Anna Chlumsky turns 30 this year. That might come as a shock to those who remember her as the kid star of the film My Girl way back in 1991. Fans still recognize the former Oak Park resident from that film, but a lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then.
According to Tribune reporter Mark Caro’s article last Wednesday, Chlumsky gave up acting, graduated from the University of Chicago and pursued food writing and book publishing.
Then she got back in front of the camera for last year’s In the Loop, a critical success and a hit at the Sundance Film Festival. She’s also landed a few TV appearances and off-Broadway stage roles, and occasionally she gets recognized, only now it’s just as likely for In the Loop.
Caro quotes her director from that film, Armando Iannucci, who said, “What’s interesting about Anna is she did the child acting and then very consciously decided to go into the outside world and get a dose of reality and go to college and get a 9 to 5 job, and then she’s able to bring that experience back into her acting.”
Her dad, Frank, writes a food column for Wednesday Journal.