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Profile/Bio
Irene’s mother was a Russian-German descendant, with a mix of at least two Native American tribes -- Cherokee and Osage. Her father a Nordic stew of Scots-Irish, French, and Scandinavian. "Miracle" is Irene's real surname, by the way -- very likely descended from McGarricle or McMerkel, though "Miracle" is the name that went west with the covered wagons.
This rather global pedigree disposed her to exploring and understanding the world from an early age -- traveling, first, as a teenager with her academic father through central and South America, and Africa; later working as a ballet instructor in Kenya.
Her film career began nearly by accident, after she narrowly escaped an explosion of civil unrest in Africa and suddenly found herself in Rome, keeping company with the likes of Michelangelo Antonioni, Bernardo Bertolucci, and Federico Fellini.
It was shortly after this time that British producer David Puttnam chose Irene for the female lead in the international hit film MIDNIGHT EXPRESS (1978). Her performance won her a Golden Globe Award for Best Newcomer.
Among the films she has performed in, MIDNIGHT EXPRESS -- an explosive and controversial movie -- and Dario Argento's INFERNO, a classic Italian Giallo film, have become cult classics in their own right.
Irene has written/directed Dawnland and is now in pre-production for her new film, “Guest of The King”, based on Jon Cole's best-selling memoir, Bangkok Hard Time.