Lauren Tom

Lauren Tom is an Obie Award-winning actress, known for her roles as a dutiful daughter in the film The Joy Luck Club and as Mai on the series Men in Trees. Viewers may also recognize her from her recurring role as Ross’s girlfriend on the classic sitcom Friends.  She has also appeared in the feature films Bad Santa, In Good Company, When a Man Loves a Woman, Mr. Jones, With Friends Like These, Catfish in Black Bean Sauce and Manhood.  Tom’s other television credits include a series regular role on Dag as Delta Burke’s secretary Ginger Chin, and on Grace Under Fire with Brett Butler. She also did a recurring stint on the series Barbershop.  On Broadway, she has appeared in A Chorus Line, Hurlyburly and Doonesbury, and has worked with directors such as Peter Sellars and Joanne Akalaitis at the Goodman and Guthrie Theatres, the La Jolla Playhouse and the Kennedy Center. Her one-woman show, 25 Psychics, an engaging, humorous look at her quest for inner peace, premiered at the United States Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen. The show received Dramalogue Awards for Best Performance and Best Direction.  Tom’s other voice work can be heard on the animated series King of the Hill, Codename: Kids Next Door, Teacher’s Pet, Rocket Power, Max Steele, Batman, Superman, Kim Possible, American Dragon, the home video sequel Mulan II, and the hit feature, Kung Fu Panda 2.  She has also published personal essays in Brain, Child Magazine, East West Woman, Strut and Freshyarn.com.