Rene Marie Russo (born February 17, 1954) is an American film actress and former fashion model. Russo, an Italian American,[1] was born in Burbank, California to Shirley Balocca (a workwoman and barmaid) and Nino Russo, a sculptor and mechanic who left the family when Rene was 2. Russo grew up with her sister, Toni, and their single mother. She attended Burroughs High School (where her classmates included director Ron Howard), but eventually dropped out in the tenth grade. Due to financial cons