Jane Kaczmarek Joins NBC's 'Whitney'

Jane Kaczmarek has joined the cast of NBC's Whitney, according to a report from Reuters.

Kaczmarek made her Broadway debut in 1991's Lost in Yonkers; however, she is best known for her work on the long-running sitcom "Malcolm in the Middle," for which she received seven Emmy nominations as well as three Golden Globe nominations. She went on to lead TNT's "Raising the Bar" until the show's cancellation in 2009, and provides occassional voice work for "The Simpsons."

Kaczmarek will play the mother of the title character, played by Whitney Cummings.

Whitney Cummings is a Los Angeles based comedian, actress and writer. As a comedian she recently appeared on the "Comedy Central Roast of Joan Rivers," appears regularly on "Chelsea Lately" and wrote, co-executive produced, and performed stand-up on the comedy series "Live! Nude! Comedy!" for Showtime. In 2007 she was named one of Variety's Top 10 Comics to watch and in 2009 she was named one of Entertainment Weekly's "Comedy Stars of Tomorrow." As an actress she recently co-starred in "Made of Honor" with Patrick Dempsey and MTV's "Punk'd."