Ellen’s Anatomy

Actress Ellen Pompeo tells us about the hurdles and life-changing experiences that prepared her for her coveted role on the hit drama series Grey’s Anatomy.

When she was just a child, Ellen Pompeo’s Italian grandfather nicknamed her “Straciatella,” which loosely translates to: “little rags,” or “strings.” He called her by this endearment because she was so thin as a child.

But now, as the title character Meredith Grey on the hit TV show Grey’s Anatomy, Pompeo is known as a beacon of style, health and beauty.

Pompeo wasn’t discovered as a teenager by an agent and directed into modelling, then into TV commercials before going to Hollywood to make films and TV shows. Pompeo was actually in her late 20s bartending at the Soho Bar and Grill in New York City when the agent that wanted to put her in commercials spotted her.

After a couple of commercials for Citibank and L’Oréal, and a couple of TV appearances on Law and Order, Pompeo decided to roll the dice and head for Los Angeles to try her luck there. Once there, she was quickly cast in the small film Moonlight Mile.

[View with PicLens]

That lead to meetings with bigger directors for roles in much bigger films. She was quickly cast as Ben Affleck’s secretary in the big-budget comic book adaptation Daredevil, but most of her scenes ended up on the cutting-room floor. She was also cast as Jim Carrey’s girlfriend in the remarkable film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, ­but once again, all her scenes ended up being edited out of the final film. “It was pretty depressing at the time,” says Ellen. “To be all excited about being in a big, high-profile film, only to have it come out and you are nowhere to be found. But the positive thing about that was that I ended up meeting lots of influential casting people that ended up casting me in things that did make it to the screen.”

Pompeo continued to work in television, appearing in episodes of Friends and a few more Law and Order episodes, while showing up in big-screen films like Steven Spielberg’s Catch Me if You Can, and the comedy hit Old School.

Then came that fateful day in 2005, when she auditioned for the lead role in Grey’s Anatomy. She won the role, and shot the pilot, then had to wait to see if the show would turn into a series. While waiting, she was offered a large role in Clerks II, but turned it down because she had a gut instinct that Grey’s Anatomy would be picked up. She was right.

The series has gone on to win numerous Golden Globe and Emmy awards, as well as being a rating champ almost since it debuted.

Pompeo has been rewarded with a seven-year contract on the show, and a salary that is estimated to be in the neighbourhood of $200,000 per episode.

Yet, the flip side of Hollywood stardom has been tough on Pompeo. Pompeo has always been very thin, and stands at 5’7 and weighs 100 lbs. “I am constantly being asked about my weight,” she says. She has one of those super-fast metabolisms that actually requires her to eat around 3,000 calories a day, just to stay the weight that she is. In an effort to keep her weight up and the rumours of her down, she has hired a trainer to help her put on some weight in the form of muscle. “It really makes me angry to see things written about me that suggest I have an eating disorder – it simply is not true,” she exclaims. “If anything, I was always paranoid that I would turn into an over-eater. I grew up in an Italian household, so the love of food and gathering for big dinners was instilled in me from early on,” she says.

In fact, Pompeo met her husband in a gourmet food market in New York City. Pompeo shared her love of good food with record producer Chris Ivery, and before long, they found themselves married. Ironically, Pompeo and her husband actually grew up less than 10 miles from each other just outside Boston!

With everything going well for Pompeo, she is thankful for all she has. “I know how lucky I am to be doing Grey’s Anatomy – I’ll stay with it as long as they want me!” Enjoying her marriage and working hard on the show, Pompeo has learned that balance is the key to staying focussed. “Being successful in this business involves some trade-offs,” says Pompeo. “It gives you lots of things, and it takes away a few things. But that is largely a matter of choice. If you choose to stay grounded, you will.”