Kathy Kinney From ‘The Drew Carey Show’ Is Now 67 And Reads Books To Kids As Mrs. P

Kathy Kinney played Drew Carey‘s nemesis, Mimi, for many years on The Drew Carey Show. While it is probably the role she is most remembered for, she continues to act and created a website for children. Kathy is now 67 and looks back on her career, recognizing now what the character Mimi gave to her.

Kathy appeared on The Drew Carey Show with bright blue eyeshadow and over-the-top outfits from 1995 until 2004. Years later, Kathy realized that while she wasn’t much like her character, she did learn an important lesson while playing her.

Kathy Kinney is an actress turned author

She revealed, “It was about me playing this woman who had the biggest, best self-esteem in the world, you know. And the space between who I really was and who Mimi the character was, became much smaller until we sort of merged. Now, I don’t wear blue eyeshadow—in fact, I’m really happy to not wear any makeup at all anymore. But I think, you know, everybody should be allowed or given the gift to play someone as vivid as her, because it certainly changed my life for the better.”

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During her career, she has also appeared on Newhart, My Name is Earl, The Secret Life of the American Teenager, and more recently, American Housewife and Stumptown. In 2008, Kathy co-created a website for children and became the Irish character Mrs. P. The website reads, “MrsP.com was created with the goal of giving kids the wonderful experience of having a trusted, skilled storyteller read them classics of literature. Rather than simply presenting an audiobook, Mrs. P recreates the look and feel of ‘story time,’ a magical ritual many kids might not otherwise get to enjoy.”

In addition to reading books, she has co-authored a few of her own. Kathy has written several self-help books with her friend Cindy Ratzlaff including Queen of Your Own Life: The Grown-Up Woman’s Guide to Claiming Happiness and Getting the Life You Deserve. They have also created calendars, inspirational cards, and more to help others feel their best.

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