Trivia: One of the most versatile and charismatic actresses that Hollywood has to offer, Holly Hunter has made a name for herself with smart, strong portrayals of dependably eccentric women. Born March 20, 1958, in Conyers, GA, Hunter was raised on a farm as the youngest of seven children. With the encouragement of her parents, she began acting at a young age, landing her first starring role as Helen Keller in a fifth grade play. Hunter went on to receive theatrical training at Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University, after which she moved to New York to pursue her acting career. Following her off-Broadway debut in 1981, the fledgling actress enjoyed a serendipitous twist of fate in the form of being stuck in a stalled elevator with playwright Beth Henley. The chance meeting led to a collaboration between the two women, first with the stage production of The Miss Firecracker Contest and then with Hunter's 1982 Broadway debut, Crimes of the Heart. Meanwhile, Hunter had made her onscreen debut in the 1981 horror flick The Burning, a film remarkable both for its high schlock quotient and its casting of a similarly obscure young actor named Jason Alexander. After moving to Los Angeles in 1982, Hunter appeared in some made-for-TV movies before being cast in a supporting role in 1984's Swing Shift. The same year, she had her first collaboration with Ethan Coen and Joel Coen in Blood Simple, making something of a limited appearance as a voice on an answering machine recording. More obscure film and television work followed until 1987, when thanks to a starring role in the Coens' Raising Arizona and her Academy Award-nominated turn in Broadcast News, Hunter finally got her share of the limelight. The praise she received led to more acclaimed work in 1989; the actress won raves for her parts in three different films: the screen adaptation of Henley's Miss Firecracker; Steven Spielberg's Always, a romantic drama with Richard Dreyfuss; and the made-for-TV docudrama Roe vs. Wade. Following her second collaboration with Dreyfuss in Once Around (1991), Hunter once again garnered a wealth of critical appreciation for her work in three 1993 films, two of which resulted in her being nominated for Academy Awards as both Best Supporting Actress and Best Actress in that same year. Hunter's performance in The Firm won her a nomination for the former and her portrayal of a mute Scottish woman entangled in a treacherous affair with Harvey Keitel in Jane Campion's The Piano won her the latter. Unfortunately, over the next couple of years, Hunter found herself starring in vehicles that ranged from underrated to dreadful, with Home for the Holidays (1995) at one end of the spectrum and the thriller Copycat (also 1995) at the other. Her work in David Cronenberg's Crash (1996) did win her strong notices, but it was swallowed by the controversies surrounding the film, and her appearance as a sardonic angel in A Life Less Ordinary suffered a similar fate. However, the actress rebounded the following year with her portrayal of a recently divorced New Yorker in Richard LaGravenese's Living Out Loud. Starring alongside Danny DeVito, Queen Latifah, and Martin Donovan, Hunter won overwhelmingly positive reviews for her performance, convincing critics and audiences alike that she was back in the saddle again. Hunter rounded out the 1990s with a minor role in the indie drama Jesus' Son and as a housekeeper torn between a grieving widower and Kiefer Sutherland's little-seen character-driven drama Woman Wanted (1999).Hailing in the new millennium with a memorable performance in the Coen Brothers O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), the talented actress took top billing in the same year's television production Harlan County War, a powerful account of labor struggles among Kentucky coal-mine workers. Hunter would continue her small screen streak with a role in When Billy Beat Bobby and as narrator of Eco Challenge New Zealand before returning to film work with a minor role in the 2002 drama Moonlight Mile. The following year found Hunter drawing favorable reviews for her role in the otherwisecritically maligned redemption drama Levity. In 2004 she voiced the mom of the superhero family The Incredibles. She had a well-respected run on the small-screen as the star of Saving Grace, a drama about an ethically challenged cop who has a very unconventional guardian angel watching over her. In 2012 she returned to the silver screen with a crucial role in Diablo Cody's directorial debut Lamb of God.

Trivia: Hailed by many critics as one of the most brilliant and versatile actors of his generation, Robert Downey Jr. chalked up a formidable onscreen track record that quickly launched the young thesp into the stratosphere. Although, for a time, Downey's stormy offscreen life and personal problems threatened to challenge his public image, he quickly bounced back and overcame these setbacks, with a continued array of impressive roles on the big and small screens that never sacrificed his audience appeal or affability.The son of underground filmmaker Robert Downey, Downey Jr. was born in New York City on April 4, 1965. He made his first onscreen appearance at the age of five, as a puppy in his father's film Pound (1970). Between 1972 and 1990, he made cameo appearances in five more of his father's films. The actor's first significant role, in 1983's Baby, It's You, largely ended up on the cutting-room floor; it wasn't until two years later that he began landing more substantial parts, first as a one-season cast member on Saturday Night Live and then in the comedy Weird Science. In 1987, he landed plum roles in two films that capitalized on the Brat Pack phenomenon, James Toback's The Pick-Up Artist, (opposite Molly Ringwald), and Less Than Zero, for which he won acclaim playing cocaine addict Julian Wells.Through it all, Downey cultivated an enviable instinct for role (and script) selection. His turns in Emile Ardolino's classy reincarnation fantasy Chances Are (1989), Michael Hoffman's Soapdish (1992), Robert Altman's Short Cuts (as the Iago-like Hollywood makeup artist Bill Bush), and Richard Loncraine's Richard III (1995) wowed viewers around the world, and often, on those rare occasions when Downey did choose substandard material, such as the lead in Richard Attenborough's deeply flawed Chaplin (1992), or an Australian media parasite in Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers (1994), his performance redeemed it. In fact, critics deemed Downey's portrayal as one of the only worthwhile elements in the Chaplin biopic, and it earned the thesp a Best Actor Oscar nomination, as well as Golden Globe and British Academy Award noms.Around this time, Downey's personal life took a turn for the worse. In June 1996, the LAPD arrested the actor (who had already spent time in three rehabilitation facilities between 1987 and 1996) on counts including drug use, driving under the influence, possession of a concealed weapon, and possession of illegal substances, a development which struck many as ironic, given his star-making performance years prior in Less than Zero. A month after this arrest, police found Downey Jr. unconscious on a neighbor's lawn, under the influence of a controlled substance, and authorities again incarcerated him, taking him -- this time -- to a rehab center. A third arrest soon followed, as did another stint in rehab. His stay in rehab didn't last long, as he walked out, thereby violating the conditions of his bail. More arrests and complications followed -- in fact, the actor had to be released from rehab to make James Toback's Two Girls and a Guy -- but he still landed a few screen appearances and won praise for his work in Mike Figgis' One Night Stand (1997) and Altman's otherwise-disappointing Gingerbread Man (1998). In addition, he starred in one of his father's films, the offbeat Hugo Pool (1997). In 1999, he had three films out in theaters: Friends and Lovers, Bowfinger, and In Dreams. He delivered a particularly chilling performance in the latter, as longhaired psychopathic child murderer Vivian Thompson, that arguably ranked with his finest work. But Downey's problems caught up with him again that same year, when he was re-arrested and sentenced to 12 months in a state penitentiary. These complications led to the actor's removal from the cast of the summer 2001 Julia Roberts/Billy Crystal comedy America's Sweethearts and his removal from a stage production of longtime friend Mel Gibson's Hamlet, although a memorably manic performance in Curtis Hanson's Wonder Boys made it to the screen in 2000. Downey's decision -- after release -- to pursue television work, with a recurring role on Ally McBeal, marked a brief comeback (he won a 2001 Best TV Series Supporting Actor Golden Globe for the performance). Nevertheless, series creator David E. Kelley and the show's other producers sacked Downey permanently when two additional arrests followed. During this period, Downey also allegedly dated series star Calista Flockhart.In 2002, a Riverside, CA, judge dismissed all counts against Downey. In time, the former addict counseled other celebrity addicts and became something of a spokesperson for rehabilitation. He starred as a hallucination-prone novelist in The Singing Detective in 2003, and while the film didn't achieve mainstream success, critics praised Downey for his interpretation of the role, alongside Oscar winners Adrien Brody and Mel Gibson. The same could be said for Gothika (2003), the psychological thriller that placed him opposite Hollywood heavyweight Halle Berry. In 2004, Downey appeared in Steven Soderbergh's portion of the film Eros.Downey achieved success throughout 2005 with appearances in George Clooney's critically lauded Good Night, and Good Luck -- as one of Ed Murrow's underlings -- and he paired up with Val Kilmer in Shane Black's directorial debut Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. He continued balancing more mainstream fare, such as Disney's Shaggy Dog remake, with challenging films such as Richard Linklater's rotoscoped adaptation A Scanner Darkly. That same year, Downey wrapped production on Hanson's Lucky You, the story of a card shark (Eric Bana) who faces off against his father (Robert Duvall) at the legendary World Series of Poker, while simultaneously attempting to woo a beautiful singer (Drew Barrymore).Downey continued to show his versatility by joining the casts of Zodiac, David Fincher's highly-touted film about the Zodiac Killer, and the Diane Arbus biopic Fur, with Nicole Kidman. A supporting role in Jon Poll's 2007 directorial debut Charlie Bartlett followed. The biggest was yet to come, however, as 2007 found Downey taking on the roles that would make him an even bigger star than he'd been in his youth, as he took on the leading role of sarcastic billionaire and part-time super hero Tony Stark in the big screen adaptation of the comic book Iron Man, as well as self-important actor Kirk Lazarus in the comedy Tropic Thunder. Both films turned out to be not just blockbuster successes at the box office, but breakaway hits with critics as well, and in addition to major praise, the actor also walked away from 2008 with an Oscar nomination for his performance in Tropic Thunder.After Iron Man premiered, Marvel studios decided to move forward with a film empire, and Downey's Tony Stark became the anchor of the series, starring in his own Iron Man trilogy and appearing in many other films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe like the Avengers (2012) and its sequel Avengers: Age of Ultron (2014). Downey still found time to appear in side projects, like The Judge (2014), which he also produced.

Trivia: A dark-haired, earthy beauty and a versatile actress, Anne Bancroft has actually had two film careers. The first, which took place during the 1950s, was generally undistinguished and featured her in films that usually failed to fully utilize her talents. The second, which began in the early '60s, established her as an actress of great acclaim in films like The Miracle Worker and granted her screen immortality with roles such as that of the iconic Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate. A first generation Italian-American hailing from the Bronx, Bancroft (born Anna Maria Louisa Italiano) was four years old when she began taking acting and dancing lessons. Billing herself as Anne Marno, she began appearing on television in 1950. Two years later she signed a contract with Fox and launched a six-year career in second-string Westerns and crime dramas that began with Don't Bother to Knock in 1952. By 1958, Bancroft had enough of Hollywood and turned her attentions to Broadway, where she spent the next five years. She proved her mettle as a serious dramatic actress by winning a Tony for Two for the Seesaw in 1958. Two years later, she won her second Tony and a New York Drama Critics Award for her portrayal of Annie Sullivan in The Miracle Worker. Armed with these triumphs, Bancroft returned to Hollywood to appear in the movie version of The Miracle Worker (1962), reprising her role opposite Patty Duke who played Helen Keller. Her performance earned her an Oscar for Best Actress; unable to attend the ceremony because she was performing on Broadway in Mother Courage, she was presented with the award by Joan Crawford a week later on the Broadway stage. Bancroft followed this victory with a string of emotional dramas that included The Pumpkin Eater, which was released in 1964, the same year she married filmmaker/comedian Mel Brooks. Just when it would look like she would be typecast in such dramas, Bancroft showed up in Mike Nichols' seminal comedy The Graduate, playing Mrs. Robinson, the ultimate "older woman," to Dustin Hoffman's confused Benjamin Braddock. Her role in the landmark film won her an Oscar nomination, to say nothing of a permanent dose of notoriety. Although Bancroft seemed destined for a stellar career and she remained one of the more well-respected actresses in Hollywood, a long string of so-so films kept her from reaching major stardom. Still, Bancroft turned in a number of memorable performances in films such as The Turning Point (1977), The Elephant Man (1980), To Be or Not to Be (her 1983 collaboration with husband Brooks), Agnes of God (1985), 84 Charing Cross Road (1986), and Torch Song Trilogy (1988). In 1980, Bancroft made her debut as a director/screenwriter in the darkly comic Dom DeLuise vehicle Fatso. Throughout the 1990s and into the new millennium, Bancroft continued to be visible onscreen, appearing in films like How to Make an American Quilt (1995), Home for the Holidays (1995), and Keeping the Faith (2000). Sadly, she became stricken with uterine cancer and succumbed to the disease in 2005. Her last performance would come postumously with a voice-role in the animated adventure Delgo.

Trivia: Before he became an actor, Charles Durning, the son of an Army man, continued in his father's footsteps with valor and distinction, earning a silver star and purple heart in World War II. Durning held down several "joe jobs" -- iron worker, elevator operator, cabbie, waiter, and dance instructor -- until turning to acting in the late 1950s. Fresh from the national tour of The Andersonville Trial, Durning began his long association with Joseph Papp in 1962, distinguishing himself in Shakespearean roles. He made his earliest film appearance in Ernest Pintoff's Harvey Middleman, Fireman (1965). Durning's film roles increased in size and importance after his interpretation of a crooked cop in the Oscar-winning The Sting (1973). He went on to appear in several Burt Reynolds films, most memorably as the singing governor in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982). That performance landed him an Oscar nomination, as did his spin on "Concentration Camp" Erhardt in the 1983 remake of To Be or Not to Be. In 1975, Durning was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his portrayal of ulcerated police lieutenant Moretti in the theatrical feature Dog Day Afternoon (1975); he finally won that award 15 years later for his work as "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald in the TV miniseries The Kennedys of Massachusetts. Other notable film roles to his credit include Peter Stockmann in the Steve McQueen-produced An Enemy of the People (1978), Dustin Hoffman's "suitor" in the cross-dressing classic Tootsie (1982) (he later co-starred with Hoffman in the 1984 stage revival of Death of a Salesman), and the foredoomed Waring Hudsucker in the Coen Brothers' Hudsucker Proxy (1994).On television, Durning played Lt. Gil McGowan on the daytime soap Another World, officer Frank Murphy in The Cop and the Kid (1975), Big Ed Healey in Captains and the Kings (1976), Studs' dad in Studs Lonigan (1979), private-eye Oscar Poole in Eye to Eye (1985), the title character in PBS' I Would Be Called John: Pope John XXIII (1987), crooked industrialist Dan Packard (the old Wallace Beery role) in Dinner at Eight (1989), and Dr. Harrlan Eldridge in the Burt Reynolds TV vehicle Evening Shade (1990-1994), an assignment which afforded the far-from-sylph-like Durning his first nude scene.While his television and film career have continued to be prolific, Durning has also continued to earn acclaim for his stage work. In 1990, he won a Tony Award for his performance as Big Daddy in the Broadway revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.He continued to work steadily well into his seventies in a variety of projects including Jodie Foster's dysfunctional family comedy/drama Home for the Holidays, the absurd comedy Spy Hard, and Jerry and Tom. At the beginning of the 20th century he reteamed with the Coen Brothers for O Brother, Where Art Thou?, and was part of the impressive ensemble in David Mamet's State and Main. He was also part of the original cast of the firefighter drama series Rescue Me. Durning died at age 89 in late December 2012, two months before his 90th birthday.

Trivia: Proving that there is a reason for the existence of the cliché "tall, dark, and handsome," Dylan McDermott has won many a heart, as well as many a critical nod, for his role on the Emmy-winning television series The Practice. The actor struggled for years before landing his part as a lawyer on the show in 1997. Since then, the critical appreciation he has garnered has been complemented by his regular appearances in the style sections of a number of magazines, making him one of the most visible actors in Hollywood.Born October 26, 1962, in Waterbury, CT, McDermott had a tumultuous childhood. After his parents' divorce, his mother died when the actor was very young. McDermott was, by his own account, something of a delinquent, but his life began to turn around when he discovered acting as a teenager. His interest in the theater was given an additional boost by his stepmother, the playwright Eve Ensler. Ensler encouraged the actor, whom she formally adopted when he was 19, and he began training for his career at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse. After acting in stage productions such as Neil Simon's Biloxi Blues, McDermott made his film debut as platoon leader Sgt. Franz in 1987's Hamburger Hill. His next notable role was as Julia Roberts' husband in Steel Magnolias. Despite being part of one of the biggest hits of 1989, real fame eluded McDermott, who secured limited recognition for his reported real-life role as Roberts' boyfriend rather than for his acting in the film.After appearing in leading man roles in a string of disappointing films, including Jersey Girl with Jami Gertz, McDermott's luck began to change, with a part in Clint Eastwood's 1993 smash In the Line of Fire. The following year, he got a lead role as Elizabeth Perkins' lawyer love interest in Miracle on 34th Street. The relative success of that film was inversely proportional to McDermott's next, the ill-received Woody Harrelson vehicle The Cowboy Way (1994). McDermott rebounded somewhat with his leading role as Holly Hunter's love interest in the following year's Home for the Holidays, but it wasn't until two years later, when he appeared in a few episodes of Ally McBeal and landed his role on The Practice, that McDermott began to find true success. Winning a 1999 Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe award for his work on the show, the actor (who by this point was also the subject of numerous articles and Best Dressed photos with his wife, stage actress Shiva Ashfar) found previously closed doors being opened, most notably in the form of a big-screen starring role in the 1999 romantic comedy Three to Tango, co-starring Matthew Perry and Neve Campbell. Increasingly in demand as a television actor in the following years, McDermott turned up in the boardroom jungle series Big Shots and the short-lived police drama Dark Blue before shattering small screen taboos as a cheating husband who unwittingly moves his family into a haunted house in the twisted FX Network series American Horror Story. In 2012, as if to balance the morbidity of his latest television endeavor, the handsome and versatile actor flexed his comic chops opposite Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis in the election year political comedy The Campaign. He also appeared in the teen pic The Perks of Being a Wallflower, playing the lead character's father. McDermott returned to TV shortly thereafter, starring in the short-lived Hostages before taking the lead in Stalker.

Trivia: Bearing more than a passing physical resemblance to her famous father Sir Charles Chaplin, graceful, versatile Geraldine Chaplin is an internationally respected leading and character actress. The eldest daughter from Charles Chaplin's marriage to Oona O'Neill, the daughter of famed playwright Eugene O'Neill, she spent her first eight years in Hollywood, but then moved with her family to Switzerland when her father was persecuted by the U.S. government for his political beliefs. In her new home, Ms. Chaplin attended private schools and was trained in classical ballet at the Royal Ballet School in London with the English Royal Ballet. She made her film debut in the elder Chaplin's Limelight (1952) as a dancer. She also played a small role in her father's last film, Countess From Hong Kong (1964). She had her first major adult role in 1965 playing Omar Shariff's wife, Tonya, in Doctor Zhivago. Much of the film was shot in Spain and it was there that Chaplin began a long romance with director Carlos Saura, who featured her in several films. She has subsequently worked with some of Europe's finest directors. She has also worked with American directors, most notably Robert Altman, who first utilized her in Nashville (1975) as the chatty, shallow BBC reporter Opal. In addition to her busy film career, Chaplin also appeared on-stage and in television miniseries such as Gulliver's Travels (1996) and The Odyssey (1997). Though she has often played leads, the diminutive, willowy, and offbeat beauty with the haunting blue eyes claims she is more comfortable in character roles.

Trivia: Dark-haired and petite American comic actress Cynthia Stevenson first made a name for herself appearing on various television shows during the 1980s. On television she was typically cast as flighty somewhat forgetful optimists. In 1990, Stevenson was the host of the unsuccessful syndicated My Talk Show, a parody of talk shows in which she interviewed unknown celebrities in her living room. The show only lasted three months and nearly led Stevenson to leave acting. Then Robert Altman cast her as Bonnie Sherow in The Player. After that she won the second lead in Bob, a television sitcom starring Bob Newhart. Despite favorable critical reviews, the show only briefly aired. More sporadic film and television work followed until 1995, when Stevenson's career finally took flight and she appeared in three major feature films, including Live Nude Girls. As icing on the cake, she also landed the role of Gloria on the television sitcom Hope & Gloria.

Trivia: Actor Steve Guttenberg, trained at New York's High School of the Performing Arts, Julliard and the Actors Studio, was already a professional as a teenager, making his off-Broadway debut in a revival of The Lion in Winter. In 1976 he was first seen before the cameras in the made-for-TV Something for Joey. The following year, he made his big-screen bow in The Chicken Chronicles, and within three years was starring in his own weekly TV series, Billy (he was subsequently top-billed in the bizarre 1982 summer-replacement weekly No Soap, Radio. After a flurry of excellent film roles--the foredoomed Barry Kohler in Boys from Brazil (1978), football-obsessed groom-to-be Eddie in Diner (1982), etc.--Guttenberg settled into workaday parts. He seemed to have a propensity for getting involved in film series: he was seen as Michael Kellan in both 3 Men and a Baby and 3 Men and a Little Lady, Jack Bonner in the two Cocoon films, and Mahoney in the first four Police Academy entries. In 1991, Steve Guttenberg made his belated Broadway debut in Prelude to a Kiss. In the decades to follow, Guttenberg would appear in films like Home Team, Domino One, Fatal Rescue, and A Novel Romance, as well as a memorable arc on the cult hit series Veronica Mars. He would also appear on Dancing with the Stars.

Trivia: Since 1994, audiences have watched as Claire Danes has matured from awkward teen to one of the most popular actresses of her generation. Whether portraying the angst-ridden Angela Chase on My So-Called Life or trailer park trash in Oliver Stone's U-Turn, Danes has consistently displayed an uncommon maturity and insight in her performances that belies her relative inexperience. Her ability has won over countless critics and fans and has allowed her the opportunity to work with luminaries ranging from Jeanne Moreau to Jodie Foster and Francis Ford Coppola. Claire Catherine Danes was born April 12, 1979 in New York City and began acting shortly thereafter. With the support of her artistically-inclined parents (a painter mother and photographer father), Danes enrolled in an acting class at the Lee Strasberg Studio when she was nine years old. After attending the Professional Performing Arts School for the sixth and seventh grade, she went to Los Angeles in the hopes of being cast in Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List (Danes had previously appeared in an episode of Law and Order and in Dreams of Love, an obscure film produced by Milos Forman). While she was waiting for Spielberg's decision, serendipity struck in the form of the makers of a new TV show called My So-Called Life, who wanted Danes to star in their production. Danes agreed to do the show after turning down the role that Spielberg had decided to give her. Always someone interested in learning, Danes rejected Spielberg's offer because she wouldn't be able to receive schooling in Poland, where the movie was to be filmed.Premiering in 1994, My So-Called Life lasted only a couple of seasons, but garnered critical praise and a cult following during its brief lifetime. Moreover, it made Danes, if not a star, then a star in the making. Hollywood opened its bleary eyes and took notice, and soon Danes was being touted as the Next Big Thing. During the run of My So-Called Life, Danes starred as the saintly, sickly Beth in Gillian Armstrong's adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's classic Little Women (1994). The film was a success, and allowed Danes to perform in the company of such well-respected actors as Susan Sarandon, Winona Ryder, and Gabriel Byrne (who would later play her father in Polish Wedding). Danes followed up Little Women with How to Make an American Quilt (1995), which, despite a stellar cast including Anne Bancroft, Alfre Woodard, and the great Jean Simmons, failed to make much of a critical or popular impression. Danes' next project, Jodie Foster's Home for the Holidays, met with a similar fate, but afforded Danes the chance to work with Foster, who became a sort of mentor to the young actress.After making two more films, which continued Danes' pattern of starring in movies that behaved badly at the box office despite having bankable actors (Jeanne Moreau in the straight-to-video I Love You, I Love You Not (1996) and Michelle Pfeiffer in To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday (1996)), Danes hit it big with Baz Luhrmann's wildly popular William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet (1996). Her portrayal of Juliet broke the hearts and opened the tear ducts of many, while her pairing with Hot Young Thing Leonardo DiCaprio undoubtedly caused mass swooning incidents in theatres the world over. The critical and commercial success of the film meant that Danes was soon in great demand, as evidenced by the people she was able to work with over the next couple of years. After Romeo + Juliet, Danes worked with Oliver Stone on the lunatics-in-a-small-desert-town picture U-Turn (1997), a film that caused consternation among critics and at the box office. Danes' turn as Joaquin Phoenix's trashy girlfriend represented a departure from her previous, more innocent roles, something that she embellished upon in both Francis Ford Coppola's The Rainmaker, where she played Andrew Shue's abused wife, and A Polish Wedding (1998), in which she portrayed the rebellious Hala. Neither movie was particularly successful, an unfortunate bit of luck that continued with Danes' next two efforts, Les Miserables (1998) and The Mod Squad (1998), the latter of which, despite the high anticipation surrounding its release, was panned by critics who complained it looked more like a Diesel ad than a movie, and largely ignored by the public.Through it all, Danes has remained in the media spotlight, appearing on countless magazine covers and as the object of speculation for many. Aside from the bad publicity surrounding remarks she made about the Phillipines during the making of Brokedown Palace (1999), and her subsequent banning from that country, she has continued to attract positive attention for everything from her enrollment at Yale University in 1998 to her boyfriends, who include the Australian rocker Ben Lee.Despite a series of misses during the late 90's, Danes came back with several small but critically acclaimed roles. In Igby Goes Down (2002), she played the confused love interest of the title character, starred alongside Sean Penn in director Thomas Vinterburg's It's All About Love (2002), and took part in the Academy-Award winning The Hours (2002). While her performance in The Rage at Placid Lake (a 2003 Australian production featuring her boyfriend Ben Lee) went largely unnoticed, mainstream audiences got their chance to see Danes butting heads on screen with Arnold Schwarzenegger and newcomer Nick Stahl in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. In 2005, Danes joined Steve Martin in the adaptation of Martin's bestselling novella, Shopgirl. That same year, she could be seen as Sarah Jessica Parker's sister in the dysfunctional-family comedy The Family Stone. Dane's career continued to build momentum in 2007, when she appeared in an eclectic trio of projects: the romantic drama Evening, the adventure fantasy Stardust, and the taut thriller The Flock, which cast her as the law-enforcement protege of a veteran played by Richard Gere.In 2009 she played a young woman looking to make it in showbiz by working for the greatest talent of his generation in Richard Linklater's Me & Orson Welles. She followed that up playing the lead in the made-for-cable biopic Temple Grandin, a project that earned her a Golden Globe and an Emmy. She took the most prominent role in the new Showtime series Homeland, playing a law-enforcement officer with personal problems, and again won a Golden Globe for her work in that show's initial season.

Trivia: An alumnus of the Yale School of drama, American actor Austin Pendleton was lucky enough to latch onto a starmaking stage role relatively early in life. Pendleton was the first performer to play the part of tailor Motel Kamzoil in the evergreen musical Fiddler on the Roof, in which he had one of the play's best non-Tevye songs, "Miracle of Miracles." Hollywood has been less generous to Pendleton in terms of good roles. He was cast in a supporting role in Skidoo (1968), a smash miss frequently cited as the worst film in the careers of most of its participants (Jackie Gleason, Groucho Marx, Carol Channing, Otto Preminger, et al.) He was shown to better advantage in What's Up, Doc? (1972), while in The Front Page (1974) he sparkled as a condemned killer plagued by a bad head cold on the eve of his execution. A first-rate character player, Austin Pendleton has never quite scaled the heights of stardom in films, though his theatre work as both actor and director has always been critically lauded.

Trivia: One of the more underrated actors in Hollywood, tall, soft-spoken David Straithairn has earned almost consistent critical appreciation for his work in a number of films, most notably his many collaborations with director John Sayles. Born in San Francisco on January 26, 1949, Straithairn gained an entrance into acting via his days at Williams College. It was there that he met fellow student Sayles, and the two had their first collaboration with Return of the Seacaucus Seven. The 1980 film, which told the story of a group of friends reuniting after college, inspired a number of similar efforts, including The Big Chill. Following his debut, the actor -- whose additional performing experience came from his training at the Ringling Brothers Clown College -- appeared in supporting roles in a number of films, including Silkwood (1983) and Dominick and Eugene (1988). He continued to collaborate with Sayles, acting in The Brother From Another Planet (1984), Matewan, (1987), and Eight Men Out (1988). Straithairn was also introduced to television audiences with his role as bookstore owner Moss Goodman on the popular dramedy series Days and Nights of Molly Dodd.In the 1990s, Straithairn had prominent roles in a number of critically acclaimed films and television miniseries. In addition to his continuing work with Sayles, in 1991's City of Hope and Passion Fish (1992), the actor lent his talents to such films as Bob Roberts (1992), Sneakers (also 1992), The River Wild (a 1994 film which reunited him with Silkwood co-star Meryl Streep), and Losing Isaiah (1995). He also appeared in miniseries such as the 1991 O Pioneers! and In the Gloaming (1997), in which he played the father of an AIDS-stricken Robert Sean Leonard. In 1997, Straithairn had a memorable turn as a high-class pimp with a dodgy mustache in the wildly lauded L.A. Confidential and after a supporting role in Simon Birch (1998), once again collaborated with Sayles, this time playing a fisherman with a past in the 1999 Limbo. He remained one of the most respected character actors of his generation appearing as the father in the remake of The Miracle Worker, and starring in the drama Blue Car as a manipulative teacher. In 2005 he garnered an Oscar nomination and the biggest high-profile success of his career playing Edward R. Murrow in George Clooney's Good Night, and Good Luck. He followed up that success with appearances in such films as We Are Marshall, The Bourne Ultimatum, Howl, and Temple Grandin. In 2012 he was cast in Steven Spielberg's long-planned biopic Lincoln as William Seward.

Trivia: If television and movie buffs with a keen eye suspect that they may have seen actress Amy Yasbeck somewhere before, it could be from her early roles on the long-running soap opera mainstay Days of Our Lives or a mid-'90s stint on Wings, but it's possible that Yasbeck's recognition factor reaches back even further into the pop culture public conscience. As a child, the pretty actress was featured on the box of the wildly popular Easy Bake Oven.Born and raised the daughter of a grocery store proprietor father and a homemaker in Cincinnati, OH, Yasbeck got her break in show business after moving to New York City, where she was discovered by an agent while working in a restaurant. Moving to Los Angeles shortly after she began auditioning for roles, the aspiring actress made her television debut on Love, American Style before taking a villainous turn as Olivia in Days of Our Lives. As her small-screen career began gaining momentum with roles in Dallas, Magnum P.I., and The Cosby Show, Yasbeck also appeared early on in such features as House II: The Second Story (1987), Pretty Woman, and Problem Child (both 1990), on the set of which she met future husband John Ritter. Her versatile ability to transform herself into a given character regardless of apparent physical disparities was later evidenced in Yasbeck's role as Maid Marian in Mel Brooks' zany parody Robin Hood: Men in Tights. Though her role description called for a buxom blond actress of British persuasion, the artifices of a wig, a phony accent, and some creative costume-stuffing won the actress the role while simultaneously winning the favor of director Brooks (who later cast Yasbeck opposite Wings co-star Steven Webber in Dracula: Dead and Loving It [1995]). Drifting between television (Alright, Already, I've Got a Secret) and film (Odd Couple II, Denial [both 1998]). Throughout the next decade she made regular guest appearances in various TV series including Just Shoot Me!, That's So Raven, and Hot in Cleveland.

Trivia: More than for his film resumé, Randy Stone was perhaps best known outside the industry for his close friendship with actress Jodie Foster. A prominent casting director throughout the '80s and '90s, Stone also dabbled in acting and producing before his untimely death due to a heart attack in 2007.

Trivia: One of the more promising actors to emerge during the late-1990s Teen Invasion, Shawn Hatosy got his start in commercials and theatre. The Maryland native first broke into film with a miniscule role in the 1995 Home for the Holidays, and two years later appeared in a string of films, with his most notable role being the high school student who stands up for an outed Kevin Kline in In & Out. He gained further recognition the following year as a football player battling alien teachers in The Faculty, and in 1999 had a number of substantial roles: he could be seen as the protagonist of the Farrelly Brothers' coming-of-age comedy Outside Providence, as a young Nick Nolte in Simpatico, and as the guy who teaches Natalie Portman a few things about life in Wayne Wang's Anywhere But Here. As the new century got under way, Hatosy could be seen in a variety of projects including Down to You, 11:14, and the indie hit The Cooler. He continued to work steadily in projects such as Faith of My Fathers, Alpha Dog, Factory Girl, and Nobel Son. He landed a major part in the cop series Southland, and found time during his work on that show to appear in Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, and Michael Mann's historical gangster film Public Enemies.