Trivia: Tall, dark, and very handsome, Johnathon Schaech has all of the physical attributes one would expect of a leading man. Despite his appearance, however, Schaech has eluded true stardom, appearing in films that allow him to showcase his talent without providing the opportunity for the actor to make a solid splash in the mainstream.Born in Edgewood, MD, in 1969, Schaech was a model before being cast in his first role, in a 1993 film called The Webbers. Co-starring David Arquette and Jennifer Tilly, the film was mired in obscurity, much like Schaech's next effort, Franco Zefferelli's Storia Di Una Capinera or Sparrows (1993). It was director Gregg Araki who gave Schaech his first real break, when he cast him as a dangerous, perpetually aroused drifter in his 1995 film The Doom Generation. Ecstatically bad-mannered and filled with an abundance of sex, violence, and severed heads, the film became something of a cult classic and gave Schaech a limited dose of fame. The scope of his fame was widened a little bit with his next significant picture, How to Make an American Quilt (1995). As one of the token Y-chromosome bearers in a virtually all-female cast, Schaech made a favorable impression with many filmgoers in his role as Winona Ryder's lifeguard suitor. His notices were favorable enough to get him a leading part in Tom Hanks' 1996 film That Thing You Do! and the title role of the made-for-cable Houdini (1998). Along with these relative successes came the requisite flops, among them 1997's Welcome to Woop Woop, which featured a memorably bizarre title and little else, and Hush (1998), in which Schaech played the son of a completely crackers Jessica Lange. In 1999, Schaech had another shot at cult stardom when he again collaborated with Araki on Splendor, which had its debut at the Sundance Film Festival. The same year, he was also cast in the Jennifer Love Hewitt series, Fox's The Time of Your Life.

Trivia: Possessing an unusual beauty marked by perhaps the most distinctive set of lips in the business (an inheritance from father Steven Tyler), Liv Tyler unsurprisingly made her entrance into acting via the world of modeling. Since her breakthrough role in 1996's Stealing Beauty, she has emerged as a performer with bona fide talent, dropping her "model-actress" hyphenate in favor of just "actress."Born in New York, NY, on July 1, 1977, to model and former 1970s rock groupie Bebe Buell, Tyler spent most of her youth believing that rocker Todd Rundgren was her father. However, as she grew older, she began to notice more than a passing resemblance between herself and Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler, who was a family friend, and she ultimately discovered that he was indeed her biological father. When she was 12, she took Tyler's last name as her own.After experiencing obligatory preteen awkwardness -- hers featured braces and a bit of a weight problem -- Tyler had blossomed enough by the time she was 14 to consider modeling. She moved to New York City in the company of her mother and began to pursue a career. After appearing on the covers of magazines like Seventeen and Mirabella, Tyler got her first taste of acting while filming a television commercial. She made her film debut in 1994, as the sister of an autistic boy in Bruce Beresford's Silent Fall, appearing in the mystery alongside Richard Dreyfuss and Linda Hamilton.Following this fairly auspicious debut, Tyler's next project, 1995's Empire Records, proved a disappointment on both commercial and critical levels. Tyler kept at it, next starring as the unrequited love interest of a reclusive pizza maker (Pruitt Taylor Vince) in James Mangold's Heavy that same year. Her work in the critically hailed film won her wide praise and her career began to take off. Tyler's breakthrough came the following year in Bernardo Bertolucci's Stealing Beauty. Starring as a 19-year-old who comes to Italy to find her father and lose her virginity, she suddenly became Hollywood's new "It" Girl, appearing on magazine covers and as one of People's "50 Most Beautiful" in 1997.After a lead as one of the titular Abbott sisters in Inventing the Abbotts (1997) and a brief cameo in U-Turn the same year, Tyler stepped into the realm of bloated budgets and even more bloated box-office returns with her role as Bruce Willis' daughter and Ben Affleck's girlfriend in Armageddon (1998). The following year, she returned to the art house circuit with Robert Altman's Cookie's Fortune. The film was widely praised, as was its ensemble cast, which included Tyler, Glenn Close, Julianne Moore, Charles S. Dutton, Chris O'Donnell, and Ned Beatty. The same year, Tyler lent her talents to the 18th century road movie genre, starring opposite Robert Carlyle and Jonny Lee Miller in Plunkett and Macleane. She also had a leading role as the object of Ralph Fiennes' jaded affections in Martha Fiennes' Onegin, which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival.After taking the role of an irresistibly destructive seductress in the 2001 comedy One Night at McCool's, Tyler took another trip back in time, this time putting her pixyish beauty to ideal use as Arwen, an elf faced with the daunting dilemma of choosing between love and immortality in director Peter Jackson's grandiose, three-film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolken's Lord of the Rings.She was the love interest for Ben Affleck in Kevin Smith's Jersey Girl. In 2007, she stretched her dramatic range in Mike Binder's Reign Over Me, and the next year played the love interest of Dr. Banner in The Incredible Hulk, and also took the lead in the home-invasion thriller The Strangers. She was the love interest for a frustrated wannabe superhero in James Gunn's Super in 2010, and the next year she had a major part in the thriller The Ledge. In 2014, she starred in the HBO series The Leftovers.

Trivia: Making an art out of portraying dysfunctional losers and likable freaks, Steve Zahn worked for years before getting his due as one of the most engaging and unconventionally gifted actors in Hollywood. Hailing from Marshall, MN, where he was born in 1968, Zahn was first introduced to improvisational acting in high school. Following a year at Gustavus-Adolphus College, he was accepted at the prestigious American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, MA, where he trained for two years. After completing his tenure there, Zahn settled in Hoboken, NJ, and tried to support himself with acting in New York, working a variety of odd jobs on the side. He found work in various theater productions, including a 13-month road tour of Bye, Bye Birdie, which provided both steady employment and an introduction to his wife, who was a dancer in the musical.Zahn's break came when he was cast in Sophistry, a play that also starred Ethan Hawke. His performance was seen by Ben Stiller, who offered him a role in his upcoming film, Reality Bites. Zahn took the part of Sammy, Winona Ryder's amiable, slightly conflicted gay friend. The film, which was released in 1994, was actually Zahn's second feature, the first being the 1993 drama Rain Without Thunder. Reality Bites met with relative success and helped to jump-start not only Zahn's career, but those of Ben Stiller and Janeane Garofalo, as well. Zahn proceeded to take a significant role in Eric Bogosian's play SubUrbia and his work in the production led to his casting in the 1995 submarine thriller Crimson Tide, starring Denzel Washington. The following year, he won a leading role in Tom Hanks' That Thing You Do! and subsequently re-created his SubUrbia role for the play's film adaptation, which also featured Giovanni Ribisi and Parker Posey. In 1998, Hollywood began to take notice of the actor, as he was featured in four different films. Three of them, You've Got Mail, Out of Sight, and The Object of My Affection, proved to be box-office successes; the other one, Safe Men, was released into general obscurity. The following year, Zahn made an appearance in the romantic comedy Forces of Nature, co-starring Ben Affleck and Sandra Bullock, and had a leading role in Happy, Texas, which was released at Sundance. For his performance as a con artist forced to play gay, Zahn won a special acting award at the festival, a much-deserved token of appreciation for an actor as underrated as he is original.In the years that followed, Zahn elevated his portrayal of lovable losers to a virtual art form. Though he would head up an impressive cast in the 2000 feature Chain of Fools, the film would be inexplicably relegated to cinematic limbo and audiences would next catch an unexpected glimpse of the rising star in director Michael Almereyda's Hamlet (2000). If the following year's Saving Silverman found Zahn back to his usual antics, abysmal reviews and poor audience reaction quickly sunk the romantic comedy and audiences would catch their next glimpse of him in John Dahl's edge-of-your-seat thriller Joy Ride (also 2001). His portrayal of Drew Barrymore's character's well-intending but hopeless husband in the 2001 comedy drama Riding in Cars with Boys showed a dramatic side many audiences had yet to experience from Zahn, and after a brief break from the screen Zahn returned in 2003 with a pair of high profile comedies. After joining comedian/actor Martin Lawrence as one half of a pair of hapless security guards in the 2003 comedy National Security, Zahn attempted to bring up baby opposite actor/comedian Eddie Murphy in the family friendly comedy Daddy Day Care. A series of supporting performances in Shattered Glass, Speak and Employee of the Month (all 2004) were quick to follow, ensuring that audiences who couldn't get their fill of Zahn's unique and endearing quirkiness wouldn't be left out in the lurch for long.Behind the camera, Zahn has provided vocal work for such family films as Stuart Little (as well as its 2002 sequel), Doctor Dolittle 2 and Chicken Little (2005). In 2006, Zahn again tried his hand at more dramatic work with a role in the Werner Herzog POW film Rescue Dawn, but soon he was going back to his comedic roots with 2008's Sunshine Cleaning and Strange Wilderness. He was one of the stars of the thriller A Perfect Getaway in 2009. Zahn then changed gears by taking on the role of dad Frank Heffley in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.

Trivia: Was a competitive gymnast during his youth and often performs his own stunts. Placed sixth in the overall competition of California finals for the U.S. Gymnastics Federation at the age of 10. Won a Young Artist Award in 1992 for his starring role of Doyle Standish in the drama Dutch (1991). Served as a producer and assistant director on the short film A Dog and His Boy (1992). With Vegas Vacation (1997), became the fourth actor to play Rusty Griswold.

Trivia: As legend has it, Charlize Theron was discovered by an agent while fighting with a bank manager on Hollywood Boulevard. Eighteen and starving, Theron purportedly got into the argument after the manager refused to cash her check. The outburst caught the agent's attention, and eight months later Theron got her first acting job. She subsequently went on to become one of the hottest young actors in Hollywood, thanks to a fortuitous combination of talent and the blonde, statuesque good looks so fervently adored by the camera. Born August 7, 1975, Theron was raised on a farm in Benoni, South Africa. Trained as a ballet dancer, she was sent to Milan at 16 to become a model following the death of her father (which, it was later revealed, occurred after he was shot by Theron's mother, who was defending herself from his drunken abuse). After tiring of modeling, Theron returned to her first love, dancing, which resulted in a move to New York to dance with the Joffrey Ballet. Unfortunately, her career was halted by a knee injury, which led Theron -- at her mother's behest -- to travel to Los Angeles to try her luck with acting. After a long, unprofitable struggle, fate smiled upon Theron in the form of the aforementioned bank encounter. Following an inauspicious bit part in 1994's Children of the Corn III, Theron won her first dose of recognition with 2 Days in the Valley (1996). The film wasn't particularly successful, but it did give her both much-needed exposure and critical praise. The film also served as the stepping stone to her first leading role, that of Keanu Reeves' embattled wife in The Devil's Advocate (1997). The film drew poor reviews, but Theron managed to win widespread praise for her performance. Her next project, Trial and Error (1997), surfaced briefly before disappearing with nary a trace, but the subsequent Mighty Joe Young (1998) netted Theron more positive notices. Her ascent was confirmed with her casting in Celebrity, Woody Allen's 1998 cameo-fest that also featured turns from everyone from Kenneth Branagh to Winona Ryder to Leonardo DiCaprio to Isaac Mizrahi. In her portrayal of a perpetually aroused supermodel, Theron shone in a role seemingly designed to allow her to flaunt her natural attributes and little else. She was rewarded with more substantial -- not to mention multilayered -- work in The Cider House Rules (1999), Lasse Hallström's Oscar-winning adaptation of John Irving's novel. As a troubled young woman with secrets to hide, Theron received star billing alongside Michael Caine and Tobey Maguire.In the wake of The Cider House Rules came a few highly publicized but ultimately disappointing projects, including John Frankenheimer's Reindeer Games (2000), Robert Redford's The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000), and Sweet November (2001), the last of which reunited her with erstwhile co-star Keanu Reeves. Theron was also reunited with Woody Allen in his The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001), another widely anticipated film that, despite a high-profile cast and stylish period design, was both a critical and commercial underachiever.None of this, however, nudged Theron from her A-list status, something that was confirmed by her casting in the flashy, star-studded 2003 remake of The Italian Job, a much-beloved 1969 comedy caper starring Michael Caine. The 2003 version featured Mark Wahlberg in the starring role, with Theron, Edward Norton, Seth Green, and Mos Def, among others, backing him up. That same year, Theron switched gears and dove headfirst into the "serious actress" category with her starring role in Monster, the crime drama based upon the real-life story of serial killer Aileen Wuornos, a prostitute who, in the late '80s, murdered seven men in Florida. Co-starring Christina Ricci as Wuornos' lover, the film promised to show audiences a side of Theron that certainly hadn't been hinted at in her previous portrayals of models, girlfriends, and Southern debutantes. It was evidently successful as Theron was showered with more than a dozen awards including an Oscar following her first-ever Academy Award nomination.2005 would be a decidedly mixed year for Theron. She first appeared in the live-action adaptation of the cult animated series Aeon Flux, a film that was nearly unanimously maligned by critics and largely avoided by audiences. Luckily, she also starred in the well-received docudrama North Country. Playing a woman who successfully battled sexual harassment, Theron was honored with her second Oscar nomination for the performance.In 2007 Theron earned critical praise for her supporting role as a detective in In the Valley of Elah, and joined the star-studded cast of The Road in 2008. Theron took a lead role the following year in Young Adult (penned by Juno collaborators Diablo Cody and Jason Reitman) as a recently divorced author who returns to her hometown with her sights set on winning back her high school sweet heart. Young Adult was received well by both box office and critical standards. 2012's Snow White and the Huntsman featured Theron as the diabolical queen, while Prometheus (2012) found the actress playing the cold but complex character of corporate representative Meredith Vickers. In 2014, she took on a out-of-character comic role, playing the romantic lead in Seth Macfarlane's A Million Ways to Die in the West, before returning to top form in Mad Max: Fury Road the following year.

Trivia: American leading actor Tom Hanks has become one of the most popular stars in contemporary American cinema. Born July 9, 1956, in Concord, CA, Hanks spent much of his childhood moving about with his father, an itinerant cook, and continually attempting to cope with constantly changing schools, religions, and stepmothers. After settling in Oakland, CA, he began performing in high-school plays. He continued acting while attending Cal State, Sacramento, and left to pursue his vocation full-time. In 1978, Hanks went to find work in New York; while there he married actress/producer Samantha Lewes, whom he later divorced.Hanks debuted onscreen in the low-budget slasher movie He Knows You're Alone (1979). Shortly afterward he moved to Los Angeles and landed a co-starring role in the TV sitcom Bosom Buddies; he also worked occasionally in other TV series such as Taxi and Family Ties, as well as in the TV movie Mazes and Monsters. Hanks finally became prominent when he starred opposite Daryl Hannah in the Disney comedy Splash!, which became the sleeper hit of 1984. Audiences were drawn to the lanky, curly headed actor's amiable, laid-back style and keen sense of comic timing. He went on to appear in a string of mostly unsuccessful comedies before starring in Big (1988), in which he gave a delightful performance as a child in a grown man's body. His 1990 film Bonfire of the Vanities was one of the biggest bombs of the year, but audiences seemed to forgive his lapse. In 1992, Hanks' star again rose when he played the outwardly disgusting, inwardly warm-hearted coach in Penny Marshall's A League of Their Own. This led to a starring role in the smash hit romantic comedy Sleepless in Seattle (1993).Although a fine comedic actor, Hanks earned critical respect and an even wider audience when he played a tormented AIDS-afflicted homosexual lawyer in the drama Philadelphia (1993) and won that year's Oscar for Best Actor. In 1994 he won again for his convincing portrait of the slow-witted but phenomenally lucky Forrest Gump, and his success continued with the smash space epic Apollo 13 (1995). In 1996, Hanks tried his hand at screenwriting, directing, and starring in a feature: That Thing You Do!, an upbeat tale of a one-hit wonder group and their manager. The film was not particularly successful, unlike Hanks' next directing endeavor, the TV miniseries From Earth to the Moon. The series was nominated for and won a slew of awards, including a series of Emmys. The success of this project was outdone by Hanks' next, Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan (1998). Ryan won vast critical acclaim and was nominated for 11 Oscars, including a Best Actor nomination for Hanks. The film won five, including a Best Director Oscar for Spielberg, but lost Best Picture to Shakespeare in Love, a slight that was to become the subject of controversy. No controversy surrounded Hanks' following film, Nora Ephron's You've Got Mail (1998), a romantic comedy that paired Hanks with his Sleepless co-star Meg Ryan. Although the film got mixed reviews, it was popular with filmgoers, and thus provided Hanks with another success to add to his resumé. Even more success came soon after when Hanks took home the 2000 Golden Globes' Best Actor in a drama award for his portrayal of a shipwrecked FedEx systems engineer who learns the virtues of wasted time in Robert Zemeckis' Cast Away. Though absent from the silver screen in 2001, Hanks remained in the public eye with a role in the acclaimed HBO mini-series Band of Brothers as well as appearing in September 11 television special America: A Tribute to Heroes and the documentary Rescued From the Closet. Next teaming with American Beauty director Sam Mendes for the adaptation of Max Allan Collins graphic novel The Road to Perdition (subsequently inspired by the Japanese manga Lone Wolf and Cub, the nice-guy star took a rare anti-hero role as a hitman (albiet an honorable and fairly respectable hitman) on the lam with his son (Tyler Hoechlin) after his son witnesses a murder. That same year, Hanks collaborated with director Spielberg again, starring opposite Leonardo Dicaprio in the hit crime-comedy Catch Me if You Can.For the next two years, Hanks was essentially absent from movie screens, but in 2004 he emerged with three new projects: The Coen Brothers' The Lady Killers, yet another Spielberg helmed film, The Terminal, and The Polar Express, a family picture from Forrest Gump and Castaway director Robert Zemeckis. 2006 was a very active year for Hanks starting with an appearance at the Oscar telecast that talented lip-readers will remember for quite some time. In addition to helping produce the HBO Series Big Love, he scored a major international success by reteaming with director Ron Howard for the big-screen adaptation of {Dan Brown's novel The Da Vinci Code, which was such a success that he signed on for the sequel in 2009, Angels and Demons. His Playtone production company would have a hand in the animated feature The Ant Bully in 2008, and that same year he filmed The Great Buck Howard co-starring his son Colin Hanks. He also signed on to co-star with Julia Roberts in two different films: Mike Nichols' Charlie Wilson's War in 2008 and the romcom Larry Crowne in 2011. Later that same year, Hanks would make dramatic waves in the post-9/11 drama Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, which was nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture.Ranked by Empire Magazine as 17th out of "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" in October 1997, Hanks is married to actress Rita Wilson, with whom he appeared in Volunteers (1985). The couple have two children in addition to Hanks' other two from his previous marriage.

Trivia: Born December 17, 1974, in Los Angeles, Giovanni Ribisi began his career in network television, with recurring and guest roles on a number of shows, including The Wonder Years. As a teenager, he was typecast for several years as a dimwitted slacker in films and on television, with a memorable guest spot in an episode of The X-Files and a recurring role as Lisa Kudrow's brother on Friends. Ribisi was eventually able to break the grunge mold, first with a secondary role in Tom Hanks' That Thing You Do! (1996) and then in Richard Linklater's SubUrbia (1997). It was his role in Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan (1998) that caused many critics to dub him one of the leading actors of his generation, a status confirmed by his appearance on the cover of Vanity Fair with a number of fellow up-and-comers. Ribisi was given further opportunities to showcase his sleepy-eyed versatility in such films as 1999's The Mod Squad and The Other Sister. If Ribisi's best roles had been unfairly weighed down by an overabundance of commendable but little seen roles in the previous years, all this would change as the young actor began to focus increasingly on roles that were not only high quality, but high profile as well. His role in the high stakes 2000 drama The Boiler Room may have went largely unseen in theaters, but healthy word of mouth combined with an impressive cast of up and comers found the film an enduring shelf life on cable and DVD. After burning rubber in the fast and furious Nicolas Cage action thriller Gone in Sixty Seconds, Ribisi's memorable performance in director Sam Raimi's southern gothic flavored chiller The Gift preceded a touching turn in the affecting made-for-television drama Shot in the Heart. Ribisi's subsequent role as a conflicted police officer in the 2002 drama Heaven may have been a well-intended commentary on the state of crime and terrorism, but audiences largel dismissed the effort as pretentious tripe and the actor took a brief turn into blockbuster territory with Basic before a turn as an aloof, celebrity obsessed photogapher in director Sophia Coppola's art-house hit Lost in Translation. If his turn as a celebrity who turns convention in its head by stalking a fan in I Love Your Work didn't strike home with viewers, an appearance in the same year's Cold Mountain offered him the chance to flex his dramatic skills alongside an impressive cast that included Jude Law and Nicole Kidman. Of course Ribisi never was one to be predictable with his choice of roles, and following the romantic comedy Love's Brother he essayed a supporting role in the 2004 sci-fi thriller Sky Captain and The World of Tomorrow. A handful of largely forgettable roles followed, and on the heels of recurring television roles in My Name is Earn and Entourage, Ribisi dove back into sci-fi with a role as villainous Chief Administrator Parker Selfridge in James Cameron's phenominally successful Avatar. And if Ribisi's performace in that film failed to make your skin crawl, his turn as a psychotic, heavily-tattooed drug dealer in the fast paced 2012 action thriller Contraband was sure to do the trick. He continued his villainous run as a stalker in the surprise hit film Ted (2012). Ribisi later re-teamed with his Ted director, Seth MacFarlane, in 2014's A Million Ways to Die in the West. He also appeared in the Oscar-nominated film Selma that same year.

Trivia: A character actor with a knack for playing blustery Southerners and military men (comic and dramatic), Chris Ellis was, appropriately enough, born and raised in Mississippi. While hardly a radical, 18-year-old Ellis discovered his interest in the arts, and his slightly longer than average hair made him a less than welcome presence in Mississippi. In 1968, he began studying acting with a theater troupe in Memphis, TN, where he made his stage debut. After completing his studies, Ellis moved to New York City, where he began working in off-Broadway and regional theater. However, keeping his foot in the door proved difficult for Ellis, and he found himself without steady work through most of the '80s, getting by thanks to the kindness of friends who would often invite him over for dinner. In 1990, Ellis' luck began to change when he was cast as the memorable Harlan Hoogerhyde in the Tom Cruise vehicle Days of Thunder. By the mid-'90s, Ellis was working steadily in film and television, making small but notable appearances in Apollo 13, That Thing You Do!, and Armageddon, and making guest appearances on such series as The X-Files, Millennium, and Chicago Hope.

Trivia: In films from 1965, American actor Alex Rocco specialized in tough-guy roles, sometimes leavening his hard-bitten portrayals with a dash of roguish humor. Rocco's film assignments included such parts as gangster Legs Diamond in St. Valentine's Day Massacre (1967) and Moe Greene in The Godfather (1974). He has been a regular or semi-regular on a number of television shows, beginning with 1975's Three for the Road, in which he starred as free-lance photographer (and full-time family man) Pete Karras. Alex Rocco has since been seen in such TVers as The Facts of Life as Mr. Polniaczek, Sibs as Howie Roscio, The Famous Teddy Z as Al Floss, and The George Carlin Show as Harry Rossetti. He played the father of Jennifer Lopez's character in The Wedding Planner (2001) and was a recurring character on the short-lived series Magic City (2012-13). Rocco died in 2015, at age 79.

Trivia: Character actor Bill Cobbs began his acting career relatively late in life after working odd jobs in Cleveland, OH. At the age of 36, he moved to New York and joined the Negro Ensemble Company, making his Broadway debut in First Breeze of Summer. His film career started in the late '70s with small film roles and guest appearances on television. In the early '80s, he worked on several performances for the NBC Live Theatre series and a PBS anthology with Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee. Usually cast as the token old black man dispensing words of wisdom, Cobbs' weathered-yet-honest looks got him several guest spots on TV shows from Good Times to The West Wing. He did end up with a few reoccurring roles on sitcoms like The Slap Maxwell Story, The Gregory Hines Show, and The Michael Richards Show. He even had a part in The Others, the NBC sci-fi drama answer to The X-Files. Perhaps his most memorable television appearance is his role as Regina Taylor's father on I'll Fly Away as well as in the TV movie version I'll Fly Away: Then and Now. Throughout his film career, he has built a long list of credits playing kindly fathers, grandfathers, and even Moses (in The Hudsucker Proxy). He was Whitney Houston's manager in The Bodyguard, an old man in New Jack City, and Grandpa Booker in The People Under the Stairs. Though he appears in nearly all genres of Hollywood films, he occasionally gets meatier roles in made-for-TV dramas like Carolina Skeletons, Nightjohn, and Always Outnumbered. In 2002, he played wisened elders in Sunshine State, Enough, and Sweet Deadly Dreams.

Trivia: C.C.N.Y. graduate Peter Scolari was endowed with an instantly likeable personality and a gift for the fast quip. As such, he was ideally cast on the 1980 TV sitcom Bosom Buddies as Henry Desmond, one of two male "roomies" forced by circumstance to disguise themselves as women (we'll get to Scolari's co-star in a moment). On either side of Bosom Buddies' two-season run, Scolari was featured on the short-lived sitcoms Goodtime Girls (1984) and Baby Makes Five (1983). He enjoyed a longer run in the role of trendy TV producer Michael Harris on Newhart, and was engaging and convincing as a prejudice-busting high school choral director in the Disney TV movie Perfect Harmony (1991). It is one of the inequities of show business that so ingratiating a performer as Peter Scolari was starring in such direct-to-video pond scum as Ticks (1994) and co-starring in such Hall-of-Obscurity theatrical films as Camp Nowhere (1994), while his old Bosom Buddies co-star, Tom Hanks, was collecting all manner of industry awards for such films as Philadelphia and Forrest Gump, among others.

Trivia: Actress Rita Wilson has played supporting and leading roles on television and in feature films. Her first TV work was the recurring role of Nurse Lacey on the long-running CBS sitcom M*A*S*H. An athletic beauty, Wilson had leading roles in two short-lived series, The Cheerleaders (1976) and The Beach Girls (1977). She made her film debut in Cheech & Chong's Next Movie (1978). Though she could have continued her career playing fluffy roles, Wilson had higher aspirations and accepted an invitation to attend the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. When not studying, Wilson honed her dramatic skills at the Macowan Theatre in London. Upon her return to the U.S., Wilson co-starred with Tom Hanks in Volunteers (1985). A romance flowered between the two and they married three years later. In 1993, Wilson played one of her best-known roles, that of Suzy, the girl who falls to pieces while describing the movie An Affair to Remember in Sleepless in Seattle. Wilson had a rare starring role opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger in the holiday comedy Jingle All the Way (1996). Wilson has subsequently divided her time between films and television work, appearing in Hanks' feature directorial debut That Thing You Do! (1996) as well as such popular sitcoms as Mad About You and Frasier in addition to the acclaimed Hanks-produced miniseries From the Earth to the Moon. After a turn in Gus Van Sant's remake of Psycho, Wilson could be seen in such romantic comedy/dramas as Runaway Bride and The Story of Us before her role as Leelee Sobieski's ill-fated mother in The Glass House (2001). In 2002 she had a huge hit as a producer when she helped bring the indie smash My Big Fat Greek Wedding to the big screen, and she got good reviews playing the wife of sex-addicted celebrity Bob Crane in Paul Schrader's drama Auto Focus. She went on to appear in Raise Your Voice, The Chumscrubber, Old Dogs, It's Complicated, and Larry Crowne, while she scored another success as a producer with the ABBA jukebox musical Mamma Mia!

Trivia: In another era, Chris Isaak's steely good looks and affable, unaffected screen presence would have made him an overnight leading man. Whether by choice or fate, however, Isaak seems to be content with his status as a part-time character actor and full-time rockabilly-influenced crooner. Born in Stockton, CA, in 1956, Isaak dabbled in surfing and competitive boxing as a teenager -- leaving him with his trademark bent nose -- before enrolling in an exchange student program in Japan. Upon his return to the U.S., Isaak completed college and endured a series of odd jobs as he led the life of the Northern California beach bum.In the mid-'80s, Isaak and his friends secured a record deal and began recording their unique brand of Southwestern retro-pop under the moniker Silvertone. It was director Jonathan Demme -- already a fan of Isaak's music -- who gave him bit parts in 1988's Married to the Mob and Demme's 1991 breakthrough, The Silence of the Lambs. Though Isaak's acting career was slowly gaining momentum, his Roy Orbison-influenced ballads still weren't catching on with the general public. When David Lynch featured the jilted-lover anthem "Wicked Game" in his road movie Wild at Heart, however, radio requests for the song quickly grew, and Isaak found himself with a Top Ten hit by the end of 1990 -- well over a year since the track was originally released. Thanks to Herb Ritts' sultry video for the song, Isaak had become a reluctant sex symbol as well. Lynch would be the first to capitalize on Isaak's heightened public profile, casting him as Special Agent Chester Desmond in 1992's baffling, elliptical Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me.Despite the film's lackluster box-office performance, director Bernardo Bertolucci took notice and gave Isaak a lead role in his fantasy-biopic Little Buddha. Though convincing as the stoic family man whose son is mysteriously believed to be the latest reincarnation of Buddha, the neophyte actor couldn't withstand the wellspring of negative critical response to the film, causing some wags to slight his work in it. Perhaps as a response, Isaak has usually maintained a low profile in features since Buddha, choosing instead to take distinctive supporting roles in period films such as That Thing You Do! and Grace of My Heart, both in 1996.Though his feature-film aspirations hadn't panned out, Isaak did find some success acting on the small-screen in 2001, when he was given his own television show on Showtime. The Chris Isaak Show attracted a cult following with its witty semi-fictional portrayal of musician Chris Isaak. In 2004, Isaak took to the big-screen again, starring in the NC-17-rated John Waters sex comedy A Dirty Shame amidst an eclectic cast that included British comedian Tracey Ullman, Jackass co-creator Johnny Knoxville, indie-film actress Selma Blair, and such Waters regulars as Patricia Hearst and Mink Stole.

Trivia: It sounds apocryphal, but it's true: 13-year-old Kevin Pollak did begin his Bar Mitzvah speech with "A funny thing happened on the way to the temple..." In fact, Pollak's rabbi had encouraged him to do so: even at this early stage, the boy evinced a gift for comic timing. By 17, he was doing stand-up in his native San Francisco. He went on to play the West Coast comedy-club and improv circuit, and was briefly teamed with Dana Carvey, a professional collaboration that ended amicably when Carvey was hired by Saturday Night Live. Though Pollak himself didn't make it to SNL, he flourished as an impressionist, writer and film and TV supporting actor. He was given several opportunities to shine in such films as Barry Levenson's Avalon (1990), Mick Jackson's LA Story (1991) and Rob Reiner's A Few Good Men (1992). Reiner went on to team Pollak with Bob Amaral in the weekly TVer Morton and Hayes (1991) a hit-and-miss homage to the 2-reel comedies of the 1930s and 1940s (Pollak had previously played a featured role in the short-lived 1988 sitcom Coming of Age). Kevin Pollak's film career went into warp-drive in the 1990s, with such choice roles as Jacob in the two Grumpy Old Men flicks, Todd Hockney in The Usual Suspects (1995), Phillip Green in Casino (1995), and Boss Vic Koss in That Thing You Do (1996).His film and television career still going strong into the 2000s, Pollak found a way to work his passion for poker into his schedule as host of Bravo's Celebrity Poker Showdown in 2003, and in 2009 he launched a weekly internet series entitled Kevin Pollak's Chat Show.

Trivia: An accomplished character actor most readily at home playing average and undistinguished domestic types (particularly fathers and husbands), Holmes Osborne appeared in scattered projects very occasionally during the 1970s and '80s, but his career only took off at the tail end of the 1990s, culminating with a small role in Alexander Payne's critically worshipped high-school satire Election (1999) -- as the father of class jock Paul Metzler (Chris Klein) and "bad girl" Tammy Metzler (Jessica Campbell). Osborne went on to grace the casts of several key Hollywood and independent films during the next several years, including Donnie Darko (2001), Windtalkers (2002), Cheaper by the Dozen (2003), and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004), in addition to scattered appearances on such television programs as Ally McBeal, The Drew Carey Show, and Invasion. In 2006, Osborne re-teamed with Darko director Richard Kelly for the filmmaker's epic-sized dystopian black comedy Southland Tales.

Trivia: The youngest of four siblings. Was raised in Maryland. Studied in the same acting class with actor Casper Van Dien. In 1993, starred in the first Got Milk? commercial, directed by Michael Bay. Was head of the comedy department at the now-closed James Franco's film and acting school, Studio 4. Founder and teacher of NOTS Comedy School's comedy department.

Trivia: The son of actors, juvenile performer Clint Howard began showing up on screen in the mid-1960s, usually in the TV series and feature films co-starring his older brother Ron Howard. Clint's best-known TV guest appearances include the part of Balok in the 1966 Star Trek episode "The Corbomite Maneuver," and his vivid portrayal of a youthful prognosticator in the opening installment of Night Gallery's 1971-72 season. He was starred in the 1967 Ivan Tors theatrical feature Gentle Giant and in that property's TV-series spin-off Gentle Ben. Upon attaining adulthood, Howard was mostly consigned to character parts; he has also been featured in the films directed by his brother Ron Howard, from Eat My Dust (1978) to Apollo 13 (1995).

Trivia: Trained at New York's Professional Children's School, Warren Berlinger made his first stage appearance at the age of 11. At 17, Berlinger was showered with critical praise for his performance in the 1955 Broadway production A Roomful of Roses, in which he appeared with his future wife, actress Betty Lou Keim. Both Berlinger and Keim repeated their roles in the 1956 film version of Roses, retitled Teen-age Rebel. In 1958, he won a Theatre World Award for his performance in Blue Denim, again re-creating his role in the 1959 film adaptation. He scored a huge hit in the 1963 London production of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, essaying his favorite role, J. Pierpont Finch. In films, Berlinger's stock-in-trade has been the portrayal of plump, good-natured schmoes; he was still conveying this image into the 1980s and 1990s in films like The World According to Garp (1982) and Hero (1992). On television, he played the lead in the "Kilroy" episodes of Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color(1965) and had regular roles on The Joey Bishop Show (1961), as Joey's brother Larry, The Funny Side (1971), A Touch of Grace (1973), Operation Petticoat (1977) and Small and Frye (1983). Distantly related to comedian Milton Berle, Warren Berlinger appeared with "Uncle Miltie" in the 1975 feature Lepke.

Trivia: Jonathan Demme proved to be that rare maverick filmmaker who managed to find a place for his talents within the Hollywood system while still making movies his own way and on his own terms. A director who invested his characters with an unusual depth and humanity, Demme was unafraid to take on challenging and controversial subject matters in his films, but also knew how to make his stories absorbing and entertaining, and the results have included both box-office blockbusters (The Silence of the Lambs, Philadelphia) and critical favorites (Melvin and Howard, Something Wild). Born in Baldwin, NY, on February 22, 1944, Demme's mother was an actress, and his father worked in public relations. When he was 15, his family moved to Miami, where his father had landed a job at the Fountainbleau Hotel. Demme's original career goal was to become a veterinarian, and, after working at animal clinics as a teenager, he enrolled at the University of Florida in Gainesville. College-level chemistry, however, proved to be his Achilles' heel, and, realizing animal medicine was not a practical goal, he began searching for a new path. An enthusiastic cinema fan since childhood, he applied for an open position as film critic at the university's newspaper. After finishing college, Demme continued as a film critic for a small paper in Coral Gables until his father introduced him to flamboyant producer Joseph E. Levine. Levine was impressed with the young man's writing, and, after a stint in the military, Demme was given a job as a publicist in the producer's organization. Over the next several years, Demme worked for several film companies, including United Artists, and continued to write about film and music during a stint in New York, where he helped to compile the score for a low-budget thriller called Sudden Terror. While in London in 1970, a friend from his days at UA recommended Demme as a unit publicist to Roger Corman, then in Ireland shooting Von Richtofen and Brown. The independent producer/director soon gave Demme the opportunity to write a motorcycle picture for him, and Demme teamed up with friend Joe Viola to turn the premise of Rashomon into a biker film; after a few rewrites, Corman hired Demme to produce the film and Viola to direct, and the result was called Angels Hard As They Come. After serving as producer and second unit director on another Corman production, The Hot Box, Demme was given the opportunity to direct a steamy women-in-prison picture called Caged Heat; along with the requisite nudity and violence, Demme inserted a subplot about prisoners being abused through medical experiments. After two more films for Corman -- the offbeat crime feature Crazy Mama and the revenge thriller Fighting Mad -- Demme was hired to make a film about the then-current CB radio craze. The result was a charming, low-key, comedy drama called Citizen's Band, which won enthusiastic reviews from a number of critics but was a dud at the box office, even after being retitled Handle With Care. But the film's notices were strong enough for Demme to be hired to direct the Hitchcockian thriller Last Embrace, and, in 1980, he landed a project perfectly suited to his style. Melvin and Howard was based upon the true story of Melvin Dummar, who claimed to have once given Howard Hughes a ride and is later named beneficiary of 150 million dollars in a will discovered after the reclusive billionaire's death. While the film was only a modest commercial success, it received uniformly positive reviews. Screenwriter Bo Goldman and supporting actress Mary Steenburgen both received Oscars for their work on the picture, while the New York Film Critics Circle named it the Best Film of 1980. The warm reception for Melvin and Howard led to Demme's involvement in Swing Shift, a picture about women working in defense plants during World War II. Demme wanted the picture to deal primarily with working women embracing their new freedoms during wartime, but leading lady Goldie Hawn felt the film should focus on her character's relationship with a musician (played by Kurt Russell) while her husband was at war. By most accounts, Demme and Hawn rarely saw eye-to-eye during the production, and he and his editor left the project before the film's final cut was completed. Although Swing Shift proved to be a commercial and critical disappointment, bootleg copies of Demme's edit have circulated among collectors, with many contending his version was markedly superior. The director's next movie was more low-key: a concert film documenting the striking multi-media stage show of the rock band Talking Heads. Stop Making Sense was both a massive critical success and a surprise commercial hit, and it confirmed Demme's fondness for music-oriented projects. He later directed music videos for artists such as Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, New Order, and Fine Young Cannibals, and helmed another concert film, Storefront Hitchcock, featuring the quirky singer/songwriter Robyn Hitchcock. (Demme later directed two other feature-length documentaries: Swimming to Cambodia, a record of Spalding Gray's acclaimed one-man show, and Cousin Bobby, about the life and work of his cousin, an Episcopal priest and political activist.)Demme's next two major projects, Something Wild and Married to the Mob, walked a fine line between the endearing and the oddball, and performed well, if not spectacularly, at the box office. But it was 1991's The Silence of the Lambs, a taut thriller with a strong feminist subtext, that propelled Demme into the first rank of American filmmakers, earning him an Oscar for Best Director, among others for Best Picture, Best Actor (Anthony Hopkins), Best Actress (Jodie Foster), and Best Adapted Screenplay (Ted Tally). Demme followed this success with the AIDS drama Philadelphia, another blockbuster and Tom Hanks' first Oscar win. Demme next tackled a controversial adaptation of Toni Morrison's novel Beloved, and then paid homage to the French Nouvelle Vague with a stylish remake of Charade entitled The Truth About Charlie. When not busy with his own projects, Demme has also served as a producer of other films, including Adaptation, That Thing You Do!, and Mandela. A political activist and collector of Haitian art, he has been married twice, first to after director/producer Evelyn Purcell and later artist Joanne Howard. Demme would continue to direct over the coming years, helming films like Rachel Getting Married, a remake of the Manchurian Candidate, and Ricki and the Flash as well as several documentaries like Jimmy Carter Man from Plains, I'm Carolyn Parker and Justin Timberlake + the Tennessee Kids. Demme died in 2017, at age 73.

Trivia: A driving creative force behind such critically praised, but short-lived, television series as Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared, writer/producer/director/actor Paul Feig has worn many hats throughout his enduring showbiz career. From teenage standup to high-profile Hollywood player, his unique perspective always seems to offer something fresh and innovative. A native of Mt. Clemens, MI, whose interest in theater prompted him to join the drama club and play an active role in forensics, Feig got his first taste of show business as the writer and director of a trio of television commercials for his father's hardware store. It was around the age of 15 that the aspiring comic began performing at local comedy clubs (accompanied by his parents, of course) and landing roles in community theater, and following his freshman year in college, Feig set his sights on a career in the entertainment industry. Realizing that he wasn't about to break into the movie business in Michigan, Feig began phoning every major Hollywood studio in hopes of finding work as an actor. Though that particular endeavor may not have landed him a lead in the latest Hollywood blockbuster, Universal Studios did mention that they were looking for tour guides -- and Feig was soon gassing up for the cross-country road trip that would bridge his past to his future. It didn't take long for Feig to land the job as a tour guide, and after becoming enamored with the film industry when he attended the world premiere of Raiders of the Lost Ark, the aspiring filmmaker was accepted into U.S.C. Film School. As his tenure at U.S.C. wound to a close, Feig opted to fill his internship credit by working as a script reader for Michael Phillips. The internship eventually evolved into a full-time job, and Feig's co-workers were constantly impressed with the aspiring writer's tireless drive to succeed -- though Feig was secretly itching to get back into standup comedy. A chance win on the $25,000 Pyramid provided Feig with the money needed to hit the road with his standup act, and in order to keep himself occupied on the road, the struggling standup worked to hone his screenwriting skills. When the acting bug finally lured Feig back to the West Coast, the struggling comic became a struggling actor with roles in such features as Three O' Clock High and Ski Patrol, and on the small screen in It's Garry Shandling's Show and the short-lived Dirty Dancing. More substantial roles in Heavyweights and That Thing You Do! were quick to follow, and after scraping together 30,000 dollars to film his feature debut, Feig stepped behind the camera to direct his script for Life Sold Separately. A low-key comedy drama concerning four strangers attempting to escape their day-to-day lives, Life Sold Separately went largely unseen despite landing mostly favorable reviews. In 1999, Feig served as writer and producer for the critically acclaimed, but ill-fated, television series Freaks and Geeks, a refreshing look at high-school life from the unique perspectives of the eponymous cliques. Two years later, Feig stepped behind the camera to direct episodes of the popular Freaks and Geeks follow-up series Undeclared, a unique and honest look at college life which suffered an eerily similar fate to its high-school counterpart. In 2003, Feig made an interesting departure from his generally humorous, Midwestern-flavored brand of comedy to direct I Am David, an adaptation of author Anne Holm's acclaimed novel North to Freedom. A touching tale of a young boy who escapes a concentration camp in a desperate attempt to deliver an important letter to Denmark, I Am David revealed a side of the director that audiences had rarely seen. Feig would continue to direct for the small screen, finding particular success with shows like Arrested Development, The Office, and Nurse Jackie. The filmmaker would continue to helm big screen efforts as well, most memorably with the 2012 comedy Bridesmaids.

Trivia: The character that Gedde Watanabe is most remembered for is no doubt Long Duk Dong, the spastic foreign exchange student in Sixteen Candles (1984) whose drunken fall from a tree and laughable bastardization of the English language had ninth graders of the day rolling in theater aisles. Though a few major roles followed soon after, Watanabe ultimately fell victim to the comic typecasting machine, rendering his talents muted in favor of the stereotypical "humorous foreign-guy" roles in which he would repeatedly stumble through the cursed paces of his former footprints.It seems ironic that the actor who is remembered for these roles is a native not of Japan or some far away shore, but of Ogden, UT. Though his roles have expanded in their nature somewhat in recent years, Watanabe, a fine comic actor with a certain warm sincerity, has appeared frequently in major releases, though usually a little further down the credit list. Studying acting at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, CA, Watanabe also possesses a notable talent for crooning, appearing early on as an original cast member of Sondheim's Pacific Overtures in the 1970s.After his breakout role in Candles, Watanabe continued to riff on his likeable but mechanical Japanese-guy persona with humorous roles in UHF (1989) and, perhaps most notably, Gung-Ho (1986) and the short-lived television series of the same name that followed. Bit parts in television and film followed fairly frequently, often appearing in such television series as ER and doing voice-over work for such animated series as The Simpsons and Batman: Beyond. The late '90s showed promise for Watanabe with a couple of small yet stereotype-busting roles in Guinevere and EdTV (both 1999).

Trivia: American actor Robert Ridgely's first television job was the part of Kimbro in the 1962 wartime drama The Gallant Men. He later played a Ted Baxter-ish anchor man on Domestic Life (1984), and was earlier featured as an unctuous talent-show emcee in Jonathan Demme's Melvin and Howard (1979). Ridgely showed up in a brace of Mel Brooks films during the early '90s, including Life Stinks (1991) and Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993), and was featured in Michael Keaton's Multiplicity and Tom Hanks' That Thing You Do! Although he was always busy in front of the cameras, the actor was best-known as one of show business' most prolific and versatile voice-over artists. Ridgely's extensive TV-cartoon resumé included the title roles in Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All (1979), Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle (1980), and Thundarr the Barbarian (1982) Ridgely made his final film appearances in Boogie Nights and Fire Down Below (both 1997). He died of cancer in 1997 at the age of 65.

Trivia: Best remembered for playing plucky cub reporter Jimmy Olson in all four of the Superman films that starred Christopher Reeve, Marc McClure made his film debut in the Disney film Freaky Friday and in the television movie James at 15 (both 1977). He went on to play supporting roles and occasional leads in both venues. In 1979, McClure starred in the short-lived TV series California Fever.

Trivia: A familiar face to a nation of television viewers thanks to his role as the more-than-slightly demented father on the popular FOX sitcom Malcolm in the Middle, longtime stage and screen actor Bryan Cranston has had a rich and varied career, lending his talents to everything from anime voice work (Armitage III and Macross Plus) to daytime television (as an original cast member of Loving). His commanding but off-kilter presence and quirky charm have easily provided Cranston with the necessary range to essay such diverse roles, and the longtime actor can always be counted on to inject a healthy dose of personality into his performances, no matter how large or small the role may be. Though the San Fernando Valley native made his television debut as a commercial actor at the age of eight, it wasn't until college that Cranston truly realized his calling as an actor. Following college graduation, Cranston's passion eventually drew him to Daytona Beach, FL, where the burgeoning actor appeared in such community-theater productions as Barefoot in the Park and Death of a Salesman. In 1982, he joined the cast of the then-new soap opera Loving, and though he would only remain with the daytime drama for a short time, appearances in Airwolf and Hill Street Blues, among various other series, found the actor maintaining a notable presence on television. Following a series of supporting feature performances, Cranston moved back to the small screen with a regular role in the 1988 sitcom Raising Miranda. In the years that followed, he would frequently shift between film (Clean Slate) and television (The Louie Show) while supplementing his income with voice-over work for such popular anime series as Armitage III. Supporting performances in such high-profile features as That Thing You Do! and Saving Private Ryan helped to increase the busy actor's recognition factor, and in 1999, Cranston wrote, produced, directed, and starred in his first feature film, a low-key drama entitled Last Chance. Though the film failed to gain much attention, Cranston was soon receiving numerous positive notices for his Emmy-nominated role as the hapless father in the breakout television hit Malcolm in the Middle. His performance alternately eccentric and endearing, Cranston injected the role with the perfect balance of fatherly weirdness and down-to-earth charm, and the series embarked on a healthy run. In the years that followed, Cranston became an increasingly familiar face to television and film viewers, and in addition to offering vocal work for the short-lived animated television series Clerks, he would contribute to such family-friendly fare as 'Twas the Night and The Santa Claus Brothers. After taking the lead in the 2003 made-for-television feature Thanksgiving Family Reunion, Cranston could be spotted opposite screen legend Kirk Douglas in the 2004 drama The Illusion. He appeared in the 2006 miniseries Fallen, and had a bit part in the Oscar nominated Little Miss Sunshine.However, in 2008 his career entered a whole new phase when he began work on the AMC series Breaking Bad, playing a chemistry teacher who becomes a meth dealer. His work on the critically lauded program would earn him four Emmys for Best Actor in a Drama Series (plus another two as a producer on the series). It also made him an in-demand character actor for movies and he worked steadily appearing in projects as radically different as Drive, Larry Crowne, Red Tails, John Carter, and Rock of Ages among many others.In 2014, Cranston made his Broadway debut in the play All The Way, playing President Lyndon Baines Johnson. The role earned him a Tony Award, and he committed to reprising the role for a TV movie. The following year, he played blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo in the film Trumbo (2015), nabbing Cranston his first Academy Award nomination.

Trivia: Colin Hanks, son of the famous Tom Hanks, was born on November 24, 1977. He spent his youth in Sacramento, and, after deciding to follow in his father's dramatic footsteps, began studying acting. Attending Loyola Marymount University in Westchester, CA, he gained experience that would help to make him a talent in his own right, in addition to the name his father had already made. Before graduation, he had a bit part in That Thing You Do! (1996), directed by his father. Hanks landed a role on WB's Roswell after he finished college, and soon followed it up with a turn in the youthful, modern version of the Cyrano de Bergerac story, Whatever It Takes (2000). In 2002, he starred in Orange County with Jack Black, a stoner comedy involving misplaced college applications and a wide range of hilarious characters. Hanks would make a habbit of appearing in Black's films, appearing in Peter Jackson's King Kong in 2005, and Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny in 2006. He would spend the next few years picking up roles in movies like 2008's Homeland Security and The House Bunny, before joining the cast of the action-comedy series The Good Guys in 2010. The show only lasted for 20 episodes, but TV prooved to be a good fit for Hanks, who would go on to become a regular face on TV, on shows like Dexter and Burning Love.

Trivia: Never intended to pursue acting as a career. Initially worked in banking, then jumped to National Public Radio as producer. Served as artistic director for various cultural projects during the 1980s, finally becoming the Director of Performing Arts for the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London. Decided to pursue acting full time in 1991, honing his skills in England before heading to Hollywood in 1993. Best known for his roles on the TV shows Prison Break and The Wire. Is a big-time fan of world music.

Trivia: Tall, lanky, and possessing one of the most affable grins in Hollywood, Tom Everett Scott is often considered a younger version of Tom Hanks, his director in That Thing You Do!. Ironically, this resemblance almost cost him his part in the film; after seeing Scott's audition tape, Hanks didn't want to hire him because of the resemblance, but the intervention of his wife, Rita Wilson, who saw the tape and thought Scott was "cute," saved the day and landed the young actor his breakthrough role.Scott was born September 7, 1970 in Brockton, Massachusetts. The third of four children, Scott was raised in East Bridgewater, Massachusetts by a civil engineer father and an insurance saleswoman mother. While a sophomore communications major at Syracuse University, he discovered his love of theatre and changed his major to drama. After graduation, he moved to New York City, did an obligatory stint as a waiter, and formed a theatre company, '"aTheaterco," with three friends. Scott toiled away in obscurity until 1993 when he got his first role, on the TV sitcom Grace Under Fire. He auditioned for That Thing You Do! and landed the leading role of Guy, a wide-eyed drummer for the one-hit-wonders the Wonders. The role brought Scott previously unheard-of opportunities, including the starring role in his next film, 1997's An American Werewolf in Paris, which co-starred Julie Delpy. 1998 proved to be a busy year for Scott, who was seen in three very different films, the most notable being One True Thing, in which he played Meryl Streep's son. Scott also had a turn in the independent drama River Red and the college comedy Dead Man on Campus. In 1999, Scott played a significant part in the romantic comedy The Love Letter, in which he co-starred with Tom Selleck, Kate Capshaw, and Ellen DeGeneres.

Trivia: During his 13-year NFL career, was selected to the Pro Bowl eight times and chosen as the NFL's Defensive Lineman of the Year twice. Earned a Super Bowl title in 1983. Joined Fox Sports in 1994; won an Emmy in 1997 for Outstanding Sports Personality/Analyst. Trained with smoke jumpers (firefighters who battle forest fires) for his starring role in the 1998 film Firestorm. Was enshrined in Pro Football's Hall of Fame on July 29, 2000. Was named the 2001 Man of the Year by the Walter Camp Foundation because of his charity work. Charities he's worked with include the United Way, the Mental Health Association and the Boys and Girls Clubs of America. Was a spokesman for Radio Shack, doing a popular series of commercials with Teri Hatcher; has endorsed a variety of products, including those for Nike, Hanes and Chevrolet. Is the author of Football for Dummies. Founded the Howie Long Classic, a charity golf tournament, which raises money for students in need of financial aid at his alma mater, Villanova University. Eldest son Chris also became a professional football player.