Missi Pyle

Missi Pyle (born November 16, 1972) is an American actress and singer. She has appeared in films such as Galaxy Quest, Josie and the Pussycats (2001), Home Alone 4 (2002), Bringing Down the House (2003), Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), The Artist (2011), Gone Girl (2014), Captain Fantastic (2016), and Ma (2019). Pyle has also appeared in television series including The Mentalist (2010), Cleaners (2013–2014), Jennifer Falls (2014), Another Period (2015–2018), Bordertown (2016), The Soul Man (2016), Mom (2017), Impulse (2018–2019), and Dirty John (2020). As a singer, with actress Shawnee Smith, Pyle is half of Smith & Pyle, a country rock duo.

Early life and education Missi Pyle was born as Andrea Kay Pyle on November 16, 1972, in Houston, Texas; to Linda and Frank Pyle. and raised in Tennessee. Circa 1995, she was conferred Bachelor of Fine Arts, actor training program, from University of North Carolina School of the Arts, and studied drama at the Oxford School of Drama. performed with Bitches Funny, an all-female Los Angeles-based sketch comedy ensemble.

Pyle has guest starred on many television shows, including Heroes, Mad About You, Boston Legal, Frasier, The Sarah Silverman Program, and 2 Broke Girls. She started her film career with a minor role in As Good as It Gets, starring Helen Hunt and Jack Nicholson. After her breakout role in Galaxy Quest, Pyle had supporting roles in Bringing Down the House (for which she and Queen Latifah were nominated for an MTV Movie Award for Best Fight), Josie and the Pussycats, Home Alone 4, Exposed, Big Fish, Along Came Polly, Soul Plane, Stormbreaker, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. She was the female lead in BachelorMan and appears in Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story. Pyle had a brief appearance in 50 First Dates and starred in A Cinderella Story: Once Upon a Song.

Pyle played Jake's elementary school teacher Ms. Pasternak on Two and a Half Men. However, the role was recast in 2009 for undisclosed reasons. Pyle returned to the series in the same role in 2011 and again in the series finale "Of Course He's Dead" in 2015.

In 2008, Pyle starred in the Broadway play Boeing-Boeing opposite Christine Baranski, Mark Rylance, Greg Germann, Paige Davis and Rebecca Gayheart. The play closed in January 2009.

Pyle was scheduled to ring the closing bell for the trading day at the New York Stock Exchange on September 29, 2008, to promote Boeing-Boeing, but backed out minutes before the close of trading so as not to associate herself with ending a calamitous day of financial turmoil which resulted in the Dow Jones Industrial Average losing 778 points, the largest point loss ever in a session during the 2008 financial crisis. She watched from the floor as an NYSE staffer pushed the button and gaveled the end of trading instead.

Pyle was part of a country music group with actress Shawnee Smith called Smith & Pyle. They met while filming an ABC comedy pilot titled Traveling in Packs. The band started after Smith invited Pyle to join her in attending the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. While stuck in traffic, Pyle talked about her dream to be a rock star and Smith agreed to form a band with her. Their first album, "It's OK to Be Happy", was released digitally through iTunes and Amazon.com in July 2008. The debut album was recorded in Joshua Tree, California at Rancho De La Luna and was produced by Chris Goss. The two actresses have also become business partners and formed their own record label called Urban Prairie Records, under which "It's OK to be Happy" was released. According to an interview Smith did with pretty-scary.net in August 2008, a Smith & Pyle television or webisode series might be in the works. Smith also mentioned the idea of a series on Fangoria radio with Dee Snider. Currently there are three videos posted on YouTube that show the making of the record. They also have a 10-minute "making of" video on Vimeo called Smith & Pyle: Desert Sessions.

Personal life Pyle married Antonio Sacre, in May 2000. Pyle and Anderson appeared in "Grizzly Dogs", the October 22, 2010, episode of Dog Whisperer, in which they sought the help of Cesar Millan to rehabilitate their dog. Pyle confirmed their breakup in 2013. She has a daughter, Zooey. In 2026 she publicly came out as queer while on the Shut Up Evan podcast, stating that she is “cool with whatever gender” and that she is now “looking for a person or persons”.

Filmography

Film

Television Year Title Role Notes1999 Mad About You Beautiful Woman Episode: "The Final Frontier: Part 2" The Drew Carey Show Stacey Episode: "Drew's Reunion" Friends Hillary Episode: "The One with Ross's Teeth" 2000 Battery Park Suzanne Episode: "Walter's Rib"2001 Ally McBeal Marcia Hooper Episode: "Reach Out and Touch" The Wayne Brady Show Various 6 episodes Roswell Windy Sommers Episode: "Control" The Tick Stacy Waxman Episode: "Arthur Needs Space"2002 Philly Charise DuPree Episode: "Mojo Rising" Home Alone 4 Vera Murchins TV film 2003 Frasier Shannon Palmer Episode: "Maris Returns" 2004–2015 Two and a Half Men Miss Dolores Pasternak 4 episodes 2005 My Name Is Earl Shelly Stoker Episode: "Broke Joy's Fancy Figurine" 2006–2008 Boston Legal Renee Winger 3 episodes2007 Heroes Hope 2 episodes The Wedding Bells Amanda Pontell Main role 2007–2010 The Sarah Silverman Program Scarlett Lacey 4 episodes2008 In Plain Sight Teri Ranzino / Treena Morris Episode: "Never the Bride" Pushing Daisies Betty Bee Episode: "Bzzzzzzzzz!" 2008–2011 American Dad! Tracy / Drunk Girl / Sorority Girl Voice; 2 episodes 2009 Numbers Janet Galvin Episode: "Ultimatum"2010 Grey's Anatomy Dr. Baylow Episode: "The Time Warp" Rizzoli & Isles Merch owner Episode: "I Kissed a Girl" The Life & Times of Tim Receptionist / Marcy / Nancy (voice) 4 episodes2010–2011 The Mentalist Karen Cross 2 episodes $#*! My Dad Says Katie Palmer 2 episodes2011 Up All Night Kaye Episode: "Mr. Bob's Toddler Kaleidoscope" Family Guy Kitty Hawk Woman (voice) Episode: "Amish Guy" 2012 Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 Angie Beckencort Episode: "Whatever It Takes..."2013 Newsreaders Rebecca Lionwek Episode: "Auto Erotic" 1600 Penn Sarah Harlan Episode: "Frosting/Nixon" 2 Broke Girls Charity Channing Episode: "And Not-So-Sweet Charity" Warehouse 13 Lily Abbott Episode: "The Big Snag" The Mindy Project Nancy Episode: "Mindy Lahiri Is a Racist"2013–2014 Inside Amy Schumer Various 3 episodes The Exes Sabrina / Julie 2 episodes2014 The Crazy Ones Melora Episode: "Dead and Improved" Jennifer Falls Dina Simac Main role Partners Biffy Saint Murray Episode: "Let's Have a Simple Gwedding" Infomercials Jan Jeremy Episode: "Goth Fitness"2015 Hot in Cleveland Canadian Joy 2 episodes Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Trudy Malco Episode: "Granting Immunity" Z Nation Bernadette Episode: "Rozwell" Where the Bears Are Maggie Dexter 3 episodes TripTank Woman / Crap Girl / Anna (voice) 3 episodes 2015–2018 Another Period Celery Bellacourt / Celery Savoy Recurring role2016 Bordertown Gert Buckwald (voice) Main role The Soul Man Alicia Recurring role Sing It! Marcy Main role Lady Dynamite Carol Simples Episode: "A Vaginismus Miracle" Major Crimes Tina Walker Episode: "Off the Wagon" Mary + Jane Librarian Episode: "Girl on Gurl" Notorious Callie Connors Episode: "Kept and Broken"2017 Dropping the Soap Lily 2 episodes The Catch Chloe Jackson Episode: "The Bad Girl" Mom Natasha Recurring role, 5 episodes One Mississippi Cassandra Night Episode: "Who Do You Think You Are?" 2017–2018 Disjointed Mary Jane 2 episodes 2018 The Goldbergs Madame Charbenaux Episode: "1990-Something" Impulse Cleo Coles Main role 2019 Drunk History Christa Gruhle Episode: "Love" Bob Hearts Abishola Liz Episode: "Square Hamburger, Round Buns" The Unicorn Ava Episode: "Wade Delayed" Ghosting: The Spirit of Christmas Chrissy TV film To Tell the Truth Celebrity Panelist Season 4, episode 11 2020 Dirty John Karen Kintner Recurring role (season 2; The Betty Broderick Story) 2021 Mr. Mayor Nicole Episode: "Hearts Before Parts" Star Trek: Lower Decks Cardassian Interrogator (voice) Episode: "Strange Energies" A Tale Dark & Grimm The Rain / Widow Fischer (voice) 4 episodes Y: The Last Man Roxanne 5 episodes The Big Leap Tonya Lovewell 2 episodes 2022 The Great NorthMs. McNamara / Limes (voice)3 episodes ArcherDr. Malory Lacania (voice)Episode: "Out of Network" A Hollywood Christmas Theresa Frost TV film Celebrity Beef Herself Episode: "Critical Designer vs. Critically Acclaimed" 2023 Doogie Kameāloha, M.D.Ms. CrawfordEpisode: "A Hui Hou (Until We Meet Again)" Harlan Coben's ShelterHannah7 episodes 2024–2025 The Sex Lives of College Girls Tracey Baker 2 episodes 2026 9-1-1: Nashville Victoria Vamp Episode: "Small Potatoes" 2026–present Sterling Point Denise Ballantine Main role

Web Year Title Role Notes 2012 Greetings from Home Sue 12 episodes 2013–2014 Cleaners Eileen Main role, 18 episodes 2016The Lottery Teresa Yaw Short film

Appearances

Stage credits Year Title Role Notes 1996 900 Oneonta Burning Jewel Circle Repertory Theatre September 15–22, 1996 2008 Boeing-Boeing Gretchen Longacre TheatreSeptember 9 – October 7, 2008 2012–2013 Bare Sister Joan New World StagesDecember 19, 2012 – February 3, 2013

Discography

Albums It's OK to Be Happy, Smith & Pyle (2008)

Singles "One Night Stand", Smith & Pyle (2010) "Rafael", Smith & Pyle (2010)