Frances Louise McDormand  won the Academy Award for Best Actress in
1996 for her role as police chief Marge Gunderson in the Joel and Ethan
Coen film Fargo. She won a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her
performance this year in Good People. McDormand was nominated for the
Academy Award For Best Supporting Actress three times for her role in 
Mississippi Burning (1988), Almost Famous (2000), and the film North
Country (2005). She has also been nominated for four Golden Globes,
three BAFTA Awards, and an Emmy Award. Frances McDormand has
been married to director Joel Coen since 1984. 

McDormand in Blood Simple (1984), the directorial debut of Joel and
Ethan Coen

Frances in Fargo