Trivia: Born in New York City on August 8th, 1968 and raised in Fairfield, CT, prolific film and television actor Michael Weatherly got his start on an episode of The Cosby Show before moving on to carve out an impressive career on screens both large and small. While many television viewers would recognize Weatherly from walk-on roles in such popular television series as Charmed and Ally McBeal, it was the actor's controversial age-disparity romance with Dark Angel co-star Jessica Alba that got tongues wagging around Tinseltown back in 2001. He could be seen opposite Alba on that sci-fi program throughout its two-season run (2000-2001). Later, Weatherly portrayed actor Robert Wagner in the made-for-television drama The Mystery of Natalie Wood before revealing a deeply personal secret about his onscreen girlfriend in Her Minor Thing. In 2003, Weatherly landed his most regular television role to date, as a Naval criminal investigator on NCIS.

Trivia: Born in the Windy City on January 17, 1975, the prolific Puerto Rican-American thespian Freddy Rodriguez cut his acting chops at Chicago's Lincoln Park High School, where he headlined a number of time-worn stage classics, including The Crucible, Twelve Angry Men, and To Kill a Mockingbird. He married his high school sweetheart, Elsie, and slid effortlessly into a cinematic career soon after graduation, taking his first official onscreen bow at the age of 19, as the younger version of Billy Wirth's prison parolee Terry Griff in the sobering and gritty 1994 drama The Fence. That feature lacked wide distribution and slipped by many, but no matter, for two highly coveted spots in A-list features followed the next year. Rodriguez portrayed Anthony Quinn's son, Pedro Aragon, Jr., in Alfonso Arau's lush 1995 romantic melodrama A Walk in the Clouds, and Vietnam vet Jose in The Hughes Bros.' period piece Dead Presidents, the Menace II Society follow-up about a young African-American man who drifts casually into a crime-infested life in the late '60s.Countless spots in films of equal weight followed, including Can't Hardly Wait (1998), Payback (1999), and Chasing Papi (2001), but Rodriguez made his most enduring mark on the small screen, where he became a familiar face on a number of hit series. He appeared in three 1999 episodes of Party of Five, as Albert, the man who mugs Sarah and later rips her off, despite her vain attempts to befriend him. The spot was short-lived, but productive; the added exposure eventually led to Rodriguez's most prominent role. He entered the mind's eye of cable devotees everywhere by becoming a permanent fixture on the HBO/Alan Ball production Six Feet Under, a jet-black comic series about the Fisher family, proprietors of a Los Angeles mortuary. As Federico Diaz, a gentle, emotionally sensitive mortician-cum-partner, Rodriguez proved popular with audiences and helped to sustain the series throughout its five-year run. He followed this up with yet another minor role, on the Emmy-award winning NBC series Scrubs, as Nurse Carla Espinosa's (Judy Reyes) brother. The part entailed only fleeting, intermittent appearances, but left a memorable impression nonetheless.Rodriguez temporarily reemphasized his silver screen work beginning in 2006, with tertiary roles in several prominent features. These include Valentin in Poseidon (2006), Wolfgang Petersen's disappointing remake of the 1972 Irwin Allen disaster pic The Poseidon Adventure; Reggie, a character restricted to only using half of his body, in M. Night Shyamalan's seventh feature, Lady in the Water; and a fleeting role as Jose in Bobby, Emilio Estevez's docudrama on the assassination of presidential hopeful Robert F. Kennedy by Sirhan Sirhan in 1968.In 2007, Rodriguez returned to television in a recurring role as sandwich vendor Giovanni "Gio" Rossi on the enormously popular Ugly Betty. He stayed on with the show into its third season in 2008, while also starring in and executive producing the holiday comedy Nothing Like the Holidays. Regular television work continued with a featured role on the short-lived CBS series Chaos and voice work on the animated sci-fi series Generator Rex.

Trivia: Was working for a French back, selling derivatives, when she was relocated to New York; she saw the play Appointment with a High-Wire Lady and decided to quit and become an actor. Got her Equity card for a one-night performance of Speed-the-Plow. Appeared in a series of AT&T commercials. Made her Broadway debut in Hand to God in 2015, earning a Tony nomination for her performance.

Trivia: Born in Germany and raised in Clarksville, TN. Starred as the character Mimi Marquez in international and Broadway stagings of Rent. Appeared as a dancer in Beyoncé's "Work It Out" music video. Hobbies include painting.

Trivia: Parents work as producers for television and her grandfather was an actor. First acted at the age of 5 as the lead in a local production of Annie and performed in more than 60 plays while growing up. Began studying at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute at the age of 16. Received five production grants from New York University, allowing her to write, direct and perform in six original short films and two plays during her time studying there. Won the Audience Award in Comedy at the National Film Festival for Talented Youth for her 2015 film Anchovies.

Trivia: Started singing in church while growing up in southern Illinois. Made his Broadway debut as Simba in The Lion King in 1997. In 2008, originated the role of Benny in the Broadway production of Lin-Manuel Miranda's In the Heights. Worked as a composer for Sesame Street for more than 15 years, during which time he won a 2011 Daytime Emmy award for co-writing the song "What I Am" performed by Will.i.am. Released his first solo album, In the Name of Love, in 2011. Starred in three Broadway shows over the course of six months, including Bronx Bombers, After Midnight and Holler If Ya Hear Me in 2014. Originated the role of George Washington in the widely-acclaimed Broadway production of Hamilton in 2015. Wrote songs for LL Cool J, Ne-Yo, Mario and Sean Kingston. Has been an avid supporter of Autism Speaks since his son was diagnosed with autism.

Trivia: Supporting actor, onscreen from the late '80s.

Trivia: The frequently glamorous African-American actress Tawny Cypress built her career from the very late '90s onward. Her first major role was the minor character Melissa in the Richard Gere/Winona Ryder sudser Autumn in New York (2000). She went on to appear in a variety television programs in both guest parts (NYPD Blue, Law & Order: Criminal Intent) and recurring roles (Third Watch, All My Children), but it wasn't until 2006 that she truly gained mainstream attention. That fall, she took on the role of Simone Deveaux on the prime-time fantasy drama Heroes, a series that soon became a massive hit. She remained with the show for one season, and then could be seen on the New Orleans-set police drama K-Ville in the fall of 2007, playing Ginger "Love Tap" LeBeau, the only main character who was a female officer.

Trivia: Started acting in the fifth grade.Explored her Irish roots while working in The Second Girl.In 2011, was nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress (Resident Play).Worked together with her husband Matt Dellapina in the comedy series Adult Ed.A member of The Actors Company Theatre.

Trivia: British-born actress Cara Seymour entered into a budding film career after establishing herself on-stage in both England and the United States. In the U.K., her performance in Now and at the Hour of Our Death earned her a Time Out award; in New York, she won an Obie for her work in Mike Leigh's Ecstacy and a Drama Desk nomination for her work in Goose Pimples. The actress made her film debut in the 1999 independent drama A Good Baby, and, in 2000, appeared in two acclaimed and highly individual films, Dancer in the Dark and American Psycho. Seymour was also featured in two of the most eagerly awaited films of 2002, Adaptation and Gangs of New York.

Trivia: American actress Mercedes Ruehl was the daughter of a much-travelled FBI agent, who finally settled in Silver Spring, Maryland. After attending Catholic College in New Rochelle, Ruehl began her career in regional theatre, taking odd jobs during the many dry spells between engagements. For several years, it looked as though she'd be a permanent employee of the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company. In the late 1970s, Ruehl began chalking up New York stage successes, notably I'm Not Rappaport. She won an Obie for the off-Broadway The Wedding of Betty and Boo and a Tony for Lost in Yonkers. In films since 1979's The Warriors, Ruehl worked steadily but in relative anonymity until winning the Best Supporting Actress award for The Fisher King (1992). Ruehl wasn't able to fill houses as star of the lukewarm film version of Lost in Yonkers (1993), though she still is a most welcome supporting presence in such films as The Last Action Hero (1993).