Trivia: Mainstream America got its first taste of David Caruso when he appeared in a nationally syndicated mid-'70s coffee commercial as a stock boy in a general store run by Margaret Hamilton. In those days, Caruso would pick up extra cash by appearing in lineups for the New York police department, where his street-urchin style made him fit right in. This same street-tough quality won Caruso his first semi-regular TV series role in 1981, as the Irish-American gang leader "Shamrock" on Hill Street Blues. Building up his resumé, he continued to take supporting roles like the "washout" aviation candidate in An Officer and a Gentleman (1982) and assistant to Judd Nelson's quest for revenge in Blue City (1986). 1984 proved a busy year as he divorced wife Cheri Maugans and married Rachel Ticotin, with whom he had a daughter, Greta, later that year. More supporting roles paid Caruso's bills throughout the '80s, as well as a starring TV gig on a short-lived 1990 cop series called H.E.L.P. A much more important law enforcement role still lay ahead, however, in the form of a hot new series called NYPD Blue that premiered in 1993. Playing the role of Detective John Kelly on the series made Caruso an overnight star. The show was produced by his old Hill Street Blues boss Steven Bochco, and Caruso had the groundbreaking drama to thank for his transformation from working actor to sought-after star -- yet he remained with the monumentally successful show for only 26 episodes. After a very public series of disagreements with producers, Caruso left NYPD Blue in 1994, hoping to use his new celebrity to invigorate a film career. He returned to audiences in 1995, starring the crime thriller Kiss of Death. Unfortunately, Kiss of Death was a critical and box-office failure, as were his successive suspense thrillers Jade, Cold Around the Heart, and Body Count. Though he walked down the isle a third time in 1995, the actor's wedding seemed to be the only happy news associated with his name. By the end of the '90s, Caruso's decision to leave NYPD Blue was considered one of the most infamous career blunders in history, landing him on the C-list and making a joke of the inflated ego that some said put him there. In 1997, the first episode of the outrageous animated media satire South Park seemed to summarize the actor's status with a gag in which the two-year-old character Ike is persuaded to jump from a spaceship and fall several feet to the ground when his brother yells "Do your impression of David Caruso's career!" Many actors find themselves remembered as cinematic or TV one-hit wonders, and this was how Caruso was already being recorded in pop-culture history. The new millennium, however, would find the actor defeating the Hollywood laws of physics with a resurrection on a par with that of John Travolta. In 2002, the hit procedural prime-time crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation was launching a spin-off, CSI: Miami, and in the starring role of Lieutenant Horatio Caine was none other than David Caruso. The spin-off proved to be just as successful as its predecessor, and almost ten years after his first shot at fame with NYPD Blue, Caruso was back in the game. While cynics predicted that he would grow too big for his britches and leave the series in a disastrous repetition of history, Caruso remained loyal to the show, even making cameo appearances on the other CSI series. Though 2005 brought a divorce, it also saw the birth of a son with girlfriend Liza Marquez.

Trivia: Born October 08, 1968, actress Emily Procter made her way into the stormy world of acting by forecasting the weather. While a Journalism and Dance major at East Carolina University, she landed a job as a weather anchor for a local CBS affiliate. One thing led to another, and soon she was headed west, travelling the well-travelled route to Los Angeles. Luck greeted Procter shortly after her arrival, when she began landing spots on television sitcoms and dramas. After appearing on such shows as Lois and Clark and Friends, Procter made her film debut with a small role in Leaving Las Vegas in 1995. Work in a number of small films followed, as did parts in Jerry Maguire (1997), the HBO movie Breast Men (1997), and such television movies as The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion! (also 1997). 1999 proved a busy year for the actress, as she had supporting roles in both Guinevere and the Scottish film The Big Tease. She also starred in Body Shots, playing a member of a group of friends looking for love and/or sex in pre-millennial Los Angeles.2002 brought what could effectively be called a "big break" as Procter landed a leading role on the CSI spin-off CSI: Miami. The show proved just as successful as its predecessor and Procter found herself on one of the most watched shows on television, sticking around for season upon season as its popularity seemed to only grow with each passing year.

Trivia: Latino actor and heartthrob Adam Rodriguez found a convenient backdoor to Hollywood success. Proving definitively the old adage that "it's all in who you know," Rodriguez's dad, the longtime COO of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, happened to be watching the Emmys in 1996 and recognized an old army buddy accepting a production award. The gentleman in question had graduated from policeman to NYPD Blue consultant to one of the program's producers. The elder Rodriguez impulsively phoned his pal to congratulate him on the award; this led to a renewed friendship, and in time, a small guest spot for Adam on NYPD Blue. At that point, Rodriguez had only just decided on his true calling in life. A stint of seemingly random occupations (including stockbroker and bellhop) followed by a brief theatrical tenure at the Jersey Peppermill Playhouse convinced the young man that his passion lay in acting. The Emmy incident, as it were, happened almost immediately afterward.A recurring role on the brief series drama Brooklyn South ensued, followed by a guest spot on Law & Order, then a bit part in the Gary Fleder movie Impostor. Rodriguez attained his first substantial recognition, however, as Jesse Ramirez, an erudite attorney unknowingly saddled with an extraterrestrial girlfriend, on the sci-fi series Roswell. But his greatest exposure was still yet to come. Beginning in 2002, he played Eric Delko, drug and fingerprint expert at the Miami-Dade crime laboratory, on CSI: Miami, the first successful spin-off to the crime series phenomenon CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. Shortly thereafter, Rodriguez also signed for a part in Jessica Kavana Dornbusch's indie coming-of-age drama Thanks to Gravity (2005), about the trials and travails of a young woman of Jewish-Hispanic ancestry enrolled at Harvard. Numerous film roles followed, and on the heels of an appearance in Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself Rodriguez turned up in Ugly Betty as Hilda's on again-off again flame Bobby Talercio. In 2012 the chisled actor could be seen opposite Channing Tatum in Steven Soderbergh's Magic Mike.

Trivia: An artist, a dancer, and a true "actor's actor," hard-working Khandi Alexander began her career on-stage with the first national touring company of Bob Fosse's Dancin' and then on Broadway in Dreamgirls. While the mid-'80s saw Alexander land small roles in movies like Streetwalkin' and Maid to Order, her skills as a dancer earned her a full scholarship at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater School. Her dance career also regularly found her appearing in award shows, which eventually brought her into contact with pop sensation Whitney Houston. Impressed with Alexander's talent and no-nonsense attitude, Houston signed Alexander on to choreograph her sold-out I'm Your Baby Tonight world tour.Music was only part of the picture for the thespian, however, and to pursue her dream of becoming an accomplished actress, Alexander enrolled at the Stella Adler Conservatory. While she would continue to accept supporting roles in projects she was attracted to, two prominent gigs would catapult Alexander's career in 1995 when she accepted a regular part on the prime-time drama ER as sister to Eriq La Salle's Dr. Peter Benton, as well as a starring role in the critically acclaimed ensemble sitcom NewsRadio. While the two strong characters and formats were drastically different, Alexander stayed with NewsRadio until 1998, and continued to reprise her role on ER for seven years. After retiring from both of her TV gigs, Alexander continued to participate in a variety of projects until 2002, when an irresistible character would draw her back into television. The CSI spin-off CSI: Miami offered the part of smart, dignified coroner named Dr. Alexx Woods. The character seemed tailor-made for the charismatic actress, who joined the cast from the show's inception. Alexander would stick with the series for season upon season, as it became one of the most watched shows on TV. Alexander never abandoned the love of dance and stage acting that once dominated her career. In 1998 she played the leading role of Velma Kelly in a nationally touring production of Bob Fosse's Chicago. She has also taken to the stage in productions such as The Tragic and Horrible Life of the Singing Nun, Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie?, Legacy, Period of Adjustment, and Color of Blue.

Trivia: U.S. character actor Jonathan Togo is best known for his multi-season portrayal of Ryan Wolfe, the police officer-turned-laboratory geneticist on the blockbuster crime series CSI: Miami. His resumé also includes an appearance in the Clint Eastwood-helmed ensemble feature Mystic River (2003).

Trivia: With his bald head and beefy exterior, Hollywood character player Rex Linn quickly built up an acting resumé replete with many portrayals of toughs, feds, cops, thugs, and -- occasionally -- unremarkable, beleaguered everymen. Born in the panhandle of the Lone Star State, Linn came of age in the small Texas town of Spearman. He discovered a lingering interest in drama during his teenage years, but buckled under the weight of discouragement from an acting coach, and put acting on the shelf to focus on career pursuits in banking and the oil industry. Dissatisfied with these fields, Linn convinced an Oklahoma talent agent to sign him, and made the leap from commercials to feature roles with his portrayal of serial murderer Fred Epps in the Peter Masterson-directed thriller Night Game (1989), opposite Roy Scheider. The pleasure of this experience prompted Linn to head to the West Coast, where he worked construction, landed intermittent acting assignments, and studied the craft under the tutelage of Silvana Gallardo in Studio City, CA. Linn was memorable as the rogue treasury agent who assists terrorist John Lithgow in the Sylvester Stallone vehicle Cliffhanger (1993), which brought the actor the recognition he so persistently sought and led to a series of supporting roles in dozens of feature films. Linn's portrayal of Frank McLaury in Wyatt Earp (1994) marked the first in a series of several onscreen collaborations with Kevin Costner that also included the romantic comedy Tin Cup (1996) and the laborious sci-fi epic The Postman (1997). Linn also landed guest appearances on such series as JAG and 3rd Rock From the Sun. He is best known, however, for his fine portrayal of Miami-Dade Police Department detective Frank Tripp on the hit crime series CSI: Miami.

Trivia: Sexy and talented, with a memorably exotic look (due to a multiethnic ancestry), model-turned-actress Eva La Rue (also occasionally billed by her married name, Eva LaRue Callahan) launched her career in print work, with a heavy emphasis on covers for such periodicals as Woman's World, Latina, and Cosmopolitan en Español. La Rue segued into acting in the late '80s and early '90s, and landed a number of nonfiction television assignments, first as cohost, with the legendary Dom DeLuise, of the gag-laden series revival The New Candid Camera (1991), then as hostess of the Miss America Pageant and the Lifetime network special Weddings of a Lifetime. The ever-versatile La Rue concurrently tackled scripted roles as well. After supporting parts in many a Hollywood programmer (Robocop 3, Ghoulies III: Ghoulies Go to College, Mirror Images 2) and several years as a regular on the soap All My Children, she earned stellar notices for her portrayal of Mouseketeer-turned-beach bunny Annette Funicello in the telemovie A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes: The Annette Funicello Story. She went on to perform in recurring roles on the popular series Third Watch and Soul Food. La Rue culled her broadest fan base, however, for her portrayal of lab specialist and grant writer Natalia Boa Vista on the crime series phenomenon CSI: Miami.

Trivia: Stocky and heavyset African-American supporting player Omar Benson Miller (whose looks recalled a young Forest Whitaker) debuted onscreen in the early 2000s. Miller appeared in a host of films of varying quality, including 8 Mile (2002), the Richard Gere remake Shall We Dance? (2004), and the direct-to-video sexploitation comedy American Pie Presents: Band Camp (2005). In 2007, Miller tackled slightly more somber material with a key role in the Halle Berry-Benicio Del Toro psychological drama Things We Lost in the Fire, about the relationship between a grieving widow and a heroin addict. Miller would continue to find success on screen for years to come, appearing in movies like Miracle at St. Anna and The Sorcerer's Apprentice, as well as on the TV series CSI: Miami.

Trivia: Though her family would ultimately settle in Italy, Sofia Milos was born to a Greek father and Italian mother in Zurich, Switzerland. By the time she reached adolescence, Milos had demonstrated a clear knack for the liberal arts, and, in addition to proving herself a skilled painter, had become fluent in Italian, French, German, Greek, Suisse, Spanish, and English. Though she wouldn't begin acting until later in life, Milos nonetheless got used to public scrutiny when she won a beauty contest at the age of 14, beginning a successful modeling career a year later -- so successful, in fact, that the money she earned modeling throughout France, Italy, Japan, Russia, and the United States paid for her education at the School of Business and Economics in Switzerland.In 1990, Milos decided to take up residence in the United States, where she spent time living in New York before settling down in Los Angeles. Shortly after her arrival, Milos began attending acting classes at the Beverly Hills Playhouse, which is led by renowned acting coach and director Milton Katselas. Milos worked primarily in theater circles until 1993, when she was cast in Café Americain, NBC's short-lived sitcom co-starring Valerie Bertinelli and Maurice Godin. Though the show wasn't a hit, the right people noticed her potential, and Milos began racking up an impressive television resumé. She appeared on Friends in 1995, made a guest appearance on Mad About You in 1996, and landed a reoccurring role on Caroline in the City from 1997-1998. Though she made her feature film debut in 1999 -- she played one of Tim Meadows' voluptuous love interests in The Ladies Man -- it wasn't until her performance as mob boss Annalisa Zucca on HBO's The Sopranos that she would achieve mainstream recognition.HBO continued to showcase Milos' talents in Larry David's Curb Your Enthusiasm, for which she played an entirely improvised role as the girlfriend of Richard Lewis. After several more unsuccessful television pilots and a guest spot on ER, Milos starred as a long-suffering widow opposite Jason Isaacs and Lupe Ontiveros in Passionada (2003). Following the film, Milos landed a regular role as detective Yelina Salas in the hit television drama CSI: Miami.

Trivia: Actor Johnny Whitworth racked up a lengthy resumé tackling everyman roles in American films, honing in largely on supporting parts in mainstream studio features, with the occasional indie effort. His film credits, which run the gamut in terms of quality and genre, include such outings as the John Grisham legal drama The Rainmaker (1997), the slasher picture Valentine (2001), and the Andy Warhol-centered drama Factory Girl (2006), about the tragic life of Edie Sedgwick.

Trivia: Onscreen performer Michael Kelly specialized in slightly rough-hewn, working-class character roles. Kelly premiered on the big screen with occasional bit parts in the late '90s, but achieved much greater prominence by playing a security guard in the 2004 supernatural horror remake Dawn of the Dead, and by essaying one of the supporting roles in the Ericson Core-directed inspirational sports drama Invincible (2006), starring Mark Wahlberg and Greg Kinnear. Kelly also acted regularly on the small screen, with numerous guest roles as well as a longer stint on The Sopranos as FBI agent Ron Goddard. In 2007, Kelly signed to appear in Tooth & Nail, a post-apocalyptic thriller about a courageous band of holocaust survivors who hole up in a hospital and try valiantly to defend themselves from invading cannibals. He had a major part in Clint Eastwood's period drama Changeling as well as a small part in the thriller Law Abiding Citizen. In 2010 he appeared in the political biopic Fair Game, and the next year he had a major part opposite Matt Damon in The Adjustment Bureau. He was in the sci-fi hit Chronicle in 2012.

Trivia: Lithe, blonde Monet Mazur toiled in bit-part obscurity for several years before capturing attention with a role in Ted Demme's cocaine biopic Blow (2001). Named for her dad's favorite painter, Mazur grew up in Malibu familiar with the entertainment world through her record industry father and model mother. While still in her teens, Mazur began acting professionally with a bit role in the popular movie sequel Addams Family Values (1993), and a part on the TV daytime drama Days of Our Lives. Mazur moved to nighttime TV drama with a guest appearance on Fox's orphan tearjerker Party of Five in 1995. Mazur also played her first movie lead that same year in the schlock horror movie Raging Angels (1995), tellingly directed by Alan Smithee. Returning to higher profile projects, Mazur had one line as a "Mod Girl" in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997), appeared in the ill-fated film version of The Mod Squad (1999), and played a TV reporter in the superhero spoof Mystery Men (1999). Mazur also continued to guest star on TV, including episodes of the WB's Jack and Jill in 1999. Mazur finally earned a spate of "actress on the verge of stardom" articles when she was cast in a meatier role as one of Johnny Depp's stoner cohorts in Blow (2001). Though Blow was not a major hit, Mazur continued to register on the movie radar with a dramatic turn as Jennifer Lopez's abused sister-in-law in the mystical romance Angel Eyes (2001), and a starring role as a seductive con artist in the independent crime drama The Learning Curve (2001). Returning to lighter work, Mazur subsequently played a sexy dot-com employee intent on breaking Josh Hartnett's vow of abstinence in the romantic comedy 40 Days and 40 Nights (2002).

Trivia: Is of Puerto Rican and Peruvian-Japanese heritage. Has practiced martial arts since she was a teenager and holds a fourth-degree green belt in karate. Made her big-screen debut in 1997's Academy Boyz. Best known for her role as Anna Taggaro on CW's One Tree Hill. Supports animal rights through organizations like PETA.

Trivia: While most rising stars would be reluctant to tarnish their all-American image by appearing in films that demand they morph into another gender or in television roles that call for them to be as prickly as possible, handsome theater veteran Taylor Handley is always willing to throw the viewing audience the kind of curveballs that set him well apart from the pack. Born and raised in Santa Barbara, CA, Handley took to acting at the tender age of eight and cut his teeth in summer stock. While few of the aspiring actor's early television appearances -- including bit roles in Frasier, Touched By an Angel, and CSI -- would call for anything out of the ordinary, more substantial roles in Dawson's Creek and The O.C. began to reveal an actor of unusual complexity and ambition. It was his role as bad-boy Oliver Trask on The O.C., in particular, that first brought Handley to the attention of many television viewers, yet even with that edgy performance on his resumé, few could have foreseen something as strange as his role in the decidedly off-kilter romantic comedy Zerophilia a couple years later. Cast as an insecure teen boy who realizes he is gradually morphing into a female in writer/director Martin Curland's gender-bending film, Handley went places that few rising stars would be bold enough to venture. Handley next appeared in the period drama September Dawn, which detailed the historic confrontation between a traveling band of peaceful settlers and a renegade Mormon group. He could also be seen in the rip-roaring horror sequel Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, which pitted him against one of the most notorious madmen in screen history. Back on the small screen, following an appearance on CSI: Miami, Handley scored the lead role of Johnny Miller on the weekly guilty pleasure Hidden Palms. Scripted by Dawson's Creek mastermind Kevin Williamson, Hidden Palms told the tale of a troubled teen (Handley) doing his best to recover from his father's recent suicide and a stint in rehab by connecting with the angst-ridden kids who inhabit his new Palm Springs neighborhood.

Trivia: Bearing an eerie resemblance to a slightly more stalwart David Duchovney, former model-turned-actor Brendan Fehr has etched out a lucrative film career as a teenage tough guy in such popular high school horror-fests as Disturbing Behavior (1998), Final Destination (2000), and The Forsaken (2001). Also appearing on such small-screen efforts as Millennium and Roswell, Fehr has proven himself able to successfully alternate between television and film while doing his best to avoid being pigeonholed as a teen horror brat packer for the new millennium. Born in New Westminster, British Columbia, Fehr showed an interest in sports early on, and nearly went into a career as an accountant due to his love of mathematics. Relocating to Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1990, Fehr began to consider a career as a teacher while simultaneously finding work as a model. After approaching an agent while visiting his family in Vancouver in 1997, the handsome young model was convinced that his looks would shine through on camera and soon made his film debut on UPN's Breaker High. Moving on to numerous roles for the Fox Family network and appearing on such television hits as Millennium found Fehr an increasing sought-after up and comer, and it was only a matter of time before he made his film debut in the sci-fi horror hit Disturbing Behavior. Numerous supporting roles followed, and in addition to his work in teen fright flicks, Fehr also appeared in such seldom-seen films as Kill Me Later (2001). Fehr was increasingly busy in the early years of the new millennium, with such films as Long Shot and Paper, Scissors, Stone hinting at a bright future for the developing actor.

Trivia: Won an episode of Fear Factor in 2005. Earned a Shakespeare certificate from the British American Drama Academy, where she studied with Sir Ben Kingsley and John Barton. Played the role of Juliet in the British American Drama Academy's stage production of Romeo and Juliet. Performs improvisational comedy at the UCB Theatre and The Groundlings. Is the artistic director for Duchess Riot, an all-female comedy troupe that was voted Best Theatre Group by L.A. Hot List in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014.

Trivia: Her father, a lawyer, worked on Bill Clinton's first presidential campaign. At 7, was cast as Molly in a national Broadway tour of Annie. Did not originate the role of Fiona in Nurse Jackie, but replaced Daisy Tahan in Season 2. Was nominated for two Young Artist Awards in both 2011 and 2012 for her work in Nurse Jackie and All My Children; she won for Nurse Jackie in 2011. Released a video of her single called "Boomerang" in 2012.

Trivia: Supporting actor Rory Cochrane made his film debut with a small role in James Dearden's A Kiss Before Dying (1991). Prior to that, while still enrolled at New York City's LaGuardia High School, he had appeared in the CBS television docudrama Saturday Night With Connie Chung (1989); he then appeared in an episode of the ABC series H.E.L.P. (1990). Cochrane has subsequently earned recognition for playing memorable character roles in independent features. He is best known for playing the constantly zoned-out teenaged stoner Slater in Richard Linklater's ode to adolescence in the 1970s, Dazed and Confused (1993). Other notable roles include a turn as a troubled teen wrangling with a dysfunctional father (Jeff Goldblum) in Fathers and Sons (1992) and Cochrane's multilayered and funny portrayal of a paranoid, gun-loving biker in Love and a .45 (1994). Cochrane continued to work steadily in little-seen independent films like Empire Records, and The Low Life. He did have a major role in James Toback's confrontational Black and White. He appeared in Hats's War opposite fellow Dazed and Confused alum Cole Hauser. Cochrane scored a role on the CSI spin-off CSI: Miami, but his character was killed off. In 2006 Cochrane would be cast again by Richard Linklater in his adaptation of A Scanner Darkly. Cochrane would remain active on screen as the years rolled on, apperaing in movies like Public Enemies and on shows like The Company, CSI: Miami, and 24.

Trivia: Cuban-American actor Eddie Cibrian was born in California, where he got a taste for show business early on. Like a lot of good-looking young actors, he got his feet wet in the business with a role on a soap opera, playing Matt Clark on The Young and the Restless. He'd eventually take on the starring role of Griff Walker on the tawdry show Baywatch Nights before rounding out the '90s with a three-year stint on Sunset Beach. The new millennium found Cibrian's career on a continual upward trajectory, most prominently assuming the role of Jimmy Doherty on the series Third Watch between 1999 and 2005. He went on to spend most of 2006 playing Russell Varon on the sci-fi series Invasion, and Agent Daniel Lucas on the show Vanished, and in the years following, Cibrian found his way onto myriad popular shows, appearing on Dirty Sexy Money, Ugly Betty, Samantha Who?, CSI: Miami, and The Playboy Club.