Photo: Rob DiCaterino / CC BY 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Cara Buono is my favorite kind of performer: the dependable craftsperson who makes everything around her better. A Bronx kid who went through LaGuardia High School and Columbia University, she brings a writer's intelligence to her acting, and indeed she writes and directs as well. I think that is why her Karen Wheeler in Stranger Things lands so well; she plays an ordinary suburban mother with enough interior life to feel like a real person rather than scenery. Decades in the business, from Mad Men to Netflix, without scandal or stagnation is its own quiet achievement. Hollywood runs on actors like her, and I wish they were celebrated more often.
Overview
Cara Buono (born March 1, 1971) is an American actress. She made her film debut in Gladiator (1992) and received recognition for her roles in various television shows including CBS Schoolbreak Special (1991), Law & Order (1996–2024), Mad Men (2010), and starred as Karen Wheeler in the Netflix series Stranger Things (2016–2025).
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Cara Buono
- Name (Japanese)
- カーラ・ブオノ
- Reading
- かーら・ぶおの
- Born
- March 1, 1971 (age 55)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Pisces / Boar
- Origin
- The Bronx, New York, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- screenwriter / film producer / television actor / film actor / film director
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School
- University
- Columbia University
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Stranger Things | — |
6. Links
Screenwriter — see all → · Film producer — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-11
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.