Connelly in 2009, photo by Prphotos
Birth Name: Jennifer Lynn Connelly
Place of Birth: Cairo, New York, U.S.
Date of Birth: December 12, 1970
Ethnicity:
*father – Irish, Norwegian
*mother – Ashkenazi Jewish
Jennifer Connelly is an American actress and model. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for A Beautiful Mind (2001). She is also known for her roles in the films Once Upon a Time in America, Phenomena, Seven Minutes in Heaven, Labyrinth, Etoile, The Hot Spot, Career Opportunities, The Rocketeer, Of Love and Shadows, Mulholland Falls, Inventing the Abbotts, Dark City, Waking the Dead, Requiem for a Dream, Pollock, Hulk, House of Sand and Fog, Dark Water, Little Children, Blood Diamond, Reservation Road, The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008), He’s Just Not That Into You, Creation, The Dilemma, Stuck in Love, Winter’s Tale, Aloft, Noah (2014), Shelter, American Pastoral, Only the Brave, and Top Gun: Maverick, and on the series Snowpiercer.
Jennifer is the daughter of Ilene, an antiques dealer, and Gerard Karl Connelly, a clothing manufacturer. Jennifer’s father was of Irish and Norwegian ancestry. Jennifer’s mother was Jewish, of Russian Jewish and Polish Jewish descent, and had been educated at a yeshiva. Jennifer was raised mostly in Brooklyn Heights, New York City, with a few years in Woodstock, upstate. Her family was secular by the time she was born.
Jennifer is married to English actor Paul Bettany. She has a son with her former partner, photographer David Dugan; and two children with Paul.
Jennifer’s maternal grandfather was Jacob “Jack” Schumann/Schuman (the son of Meyer Schumann/Schuman and Yetta/Yette Gottlieb). Jacob was born in Pennsylvania, to Russian Jewish parents. Meyer was the son of Hellel Schumann and Sarah Gottlieb. Yetta was the daughter of Victor Gottlieb and Chaya Chenyu.
Jennifer’s maternal grandmother was Leah/Leona “Lee” Bernzweig (the daughter of Benjamin Bernzweig and Sophia/Sophie Rubin). Leah was born in New York, to Jewish parents from Galicia (Poland). Benjamin was the son of Moshe/Moses Bernzweig and Rachael Hannah. Sophia was the daughter of Dora.
Sources: Interview on Inside the Actors Studio, 2004 – https://www.youtube.com
Genealogy of Jennifer Connelly (focusing on her mother’s side) – https://www.geni.com
Jennifer’s maternal grandfather, Jacob “Jack” Schumann/Schuman, on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Jacob “Jack” Schumann/Schuman on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Jennifer’s maternal grandmother, Leah/Leona “Lee” Bernzweig, on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Leah/Leona “Lee” Bernzweig on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
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