Actress Deena Freeman was born in Palo Alto, California, to an industrial engineer father and a humorous housewife mother. She began her acting career in high school, performing with a professional acting company called "The Theatreworks". Deena gained recognition for her portrayal of Ducky Daddles, a duck, in "Story Theatre", as well as her impression of Crab the dog, in "Two Gentlemen of Verona". She appeared in numerous productions, including "Ah Wilderness!" alongside Zelko Ivanek, "Vanities", and many others. After graduating from San Francisco State University, she pursued her graduate studies at the University of California, Irvine.
Deena relocated to Los Angeles to pursue a professional acting career. Within a short period, she landed a leading role in a pilot for ABC, titled "In Trouble", alongside Nancy Cartwright and Lisa Freeman. Following the pilot, Deena was cast as a regular on "Too Close For Comfort", playing the role of Ted Knight's rebellious niece, April. She went on to guest star in numerous popular shows, including "Newhart", "The White Shadow", "Crazy Like a Fox", and many others. In a special episode of "Golden Girls", Deena had the honor of playing Bea Arthur's daughter, Kate.
Deena continued to work in television commercials, representing various brands such as McDonald's and the vintage soft drink Tab. She was honored at the Screen Actors Guild awards ceremony for her body of work in commercials. As a voice-over actress, audiences recognized her from films like "Monster's Inc", "Buzz Light Year", and "The Incredibles". Most recently, she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Houston International Film Festival for her role as the overbearing Jewish mama in "Banana Bread", and also appeared on the hit sitcom "Melissa and Joey" on ABC.
Deena married producer/writer David Brandes and has two daughters, Aviva Brandes and Noa Brandes, who are also actresses.
