Jennifer Westfeldt (born February 2, 1970) is an American actress, screenwriter, director, and producer. She is best known for co-writing, co-producing, and starring in the 2002 indie film Kissing Jessica Stein, for which she received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best First Screenplay and a Golden Satellite Award for Best Actress - Comedy or Musical. She is also known for writing, producing, starring in, and making her directorial debut in the 2012 indie film Friends with Kids, which was included on New York Magazine's Top Ten Movies of 2012 list, as well as NPR's Top 12 of 2012. Westfeldt's television work includes series regular and recurring roles on Grey's Anatomy, 24, Queen America, and Notes from the Underbelly, among others, and guest-starring turns on This Is Us and Girls. She recently completed a four-season arc as Pauline Turner Brooks on TVLand's series Younger, created by Darren Star. Westfeldt made her Broadway debut in 2003 in the revival of Wonderful Town opposite Donna Murphy, for which she received a 2004 Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical, a Theater World Award for Outstanding Broadway Debut, and a Drama League Award for her role as Eileen Sherwood. Other notable stage credits include the world premieres of Nell Benjamin's The Explorers Club at Manhattan Theater Club, directed by Marc Bruni; Nicky Silver's Too Much Sun at The Vineyard Theater opposite Linda Lavin, directed by Mark Brokaw; and Scott Z. Burns' The Library at The Public Theater opposite Chloe Grace Moretz, directed by Steven Soderbergh. Early life and education Westfeldt is the daughter of Constance Perelson, a therapist, and Patrick M. Westfeldt Jr., an electrical engineer. Her stepfather is Michael Perelson, also a therapist. Her older sister is journalist Amy Westfeldt. Westfeldt grew up in Guilford, Connecticut, where she attended Guilford High School. She then attended Yale University, where she received a B.A. in Theater Studies. While at Yale, she starred in numerous plays and musicals and sang in the a cappella group Redhot & Blue. Her family is a part of the Swedish nobility, with the original name Wästfelt (see Wästfelt/Westfeldt). Career Upon graduating from Yale University with a B.A. in Theater Studies, Westfeldt started her career as a New York-based theater actress, starring in dozens of regional and Off-Broadway productions, including the long-running Off-Broadway musical The Fantasticks. In 1997, she was cast as a series regular on the