Trivia: Born on June 15, 1964, Courteney Cox grew up with three older siblings in Mountain Brook, an affluent Alabama town. Though Cox participated in multiple extracurricular activities during her high school years, she did not exercise her taste for acting until she dropped out of the architecture program at Mount Vernon College. Landing a contract with the prestigious Ford Modeling Agency led Cox to several commercial appearances. Her first official role arrived in 1984, when she was cast as a young debutante in one episode of the long-running soap opera As the World Turns.Her big break, however, was rooted in director Brian De Palma's decision to feature Cox as the girl pulled from the audience in Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" video. Years later, after the actress had gained a great deal more notoriety, this short music-video appearance became a key piece of celebrity trivia in a multitude of magazines and entertainment shows. In 1985, she starred alongside Dean Paul Martin in the forgettable series Misfits of Science. Cox reappeared on the television screen as Michael J. Fox's girlfriend, Psychology major Lauren Miller, in the '80s sitcom Family Ties. Though Cox landed bit parts in a handful of mediocre films (Mr. Destiny, The Opposite Sex and How to Live with Them) after Family Ties wrapped in 1989, her status as an actress officially gelled in 1994, when she co-starred with Jim Carrey in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, and, most notably, won the role of Monica Geller on the hugely successful sitcom Friends. This role brought her a nomination for an American Comedy Award, as well as a prominent role in Wes Craven's Scream trilogy. Cox's role as the notoriously cutthroat reporter Gale Weathers was significant not only in terms of critical acclaim, but also because the set of Scream was where she met fellow actor David Arquette, whom she married in 1999.Although she certainly attempted to match the big screen-success of her fellow Friends castmates with such efforts as 3000 Miles to Graceland (2001), and The Longest Yard (2005), Cox-Arquette fought a tortuous uphill battle, and never managed to land a part that brought her nearly as much goodwill as the high-strung Monica. She voiced Daisy the Cow in Steve Oedekerk's 2006 animated feature Barnyard, alongside an all-star cast that includes Danny Glover, Kevin James, Wanda Sykes, Sam Elliott and Andie MacDowell. The endeavor became a double-edged sword; on one hand, most critics detested the $50 million picture; on the other, it worked wonders at the box office, as one of the top grossers of its season. Cox-Arquette's decision to join the cast of the family-friendly superhero story Zoom alongside Tim Allen and Chevy Chase didn't prove nearly as capricious. The picture suffered from relentless (though arguably justifiable) critical drubbings and performed abysmally on a commercial front, grossing just over $4 million in the week that followed its premiere - from an estimated $60 million budget. It also became the latest in Allen's long line of box office stinkers that included Christmas with the Kranks, Joe Somebody, and many others; The New York Times's Jeannette Catsoulis moaned that it "bleeds boredom from every frame," while Entertainment Weekly's Lisa Schwartzbaum observed, "this lifeless family comedy sucks the joy from every joke it touches."That same year, the trades indicated Cox's forthcoming producer credit in longtime husband David Arquette's 2007 directorial debut, the slasher picture The Tripper, with Balthazar Getty, Paul Reubens and Lukas Haas. The Hostel-like story involved a group of potheads who travel to a Woodstock-esque concert for indulgence in sensual (and visceral) pleasures, but find themselves stalked by a psychotic. Cox and Arquette each cameo in the film. 2007 also found Cox returning to TV, producing and starring in the dramatic thriller Dirt, about the seedy side of an already seedy industry - the tabloid press. The show only ran until 2008, but Cox was soon onto the next project, the sitcom Cougar Town, which she produced and starred in as well. By 2011, she was back in the movies, working on Scream 4 -- though during the production of the film, she and husband/co-star David Arquette announced they were separating; their divorce was finalized in 2013.

Trivia: Jennifer Aniston makes a good case for proving that acting talent can be absorbed by osmosis. From her father John Aniston's stardom on Days of Our Lives to her godfather Telly Savalas, the actress was surrounded by plenty of inspiration from an early age. As Aniston attended the Rudolph Steiner School as a child, she was interested in many forms of art and proved to be a talented painter, eventually having one of her pieces displayed at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. Acting also appealed to her, and became her primary focus after graduating from New York's prestigious High School for the Performing Arts in 1987. She took roles in off-Broadway productions such as For Dear Life and Dancing on Checker's Grave before she began honing her skills in television acting with appearances on shows like Quantum Leap and Herman's Head. Before long, Aniston's film and television résumé had grown into a laundry list of one-time appearances, short-lived series, and B-level movies. By 1994, the handful of bit parts and failed shows on Aniston's résumé had established her as a working actress but created little foreshadowing about her future as a star. Her upcoming audition for the role of Monica Gellar in a pilot for a sitcom at that point titled "Friends Like These," however, would prove to be quite auspicious. The role in question would eventually be filled by Courteney Cox, as Aniston changed her mind and opted to try out for Rachel Green, a young suburbanite living on her own for the first time and working as a coffee-shop waitress in New York City. The rest, as they say, is history -- "Friends Like These" would become Friends, the hugest sitcom in years, quickly making Aniston America's sweetheart. Friends' obsessive following churned up a particular interest in Aniston's signature hairstyle. The shag cut known as "The Rachel" could be seen on heads all over the country. Even as the fad fell out of popularity in the salons, Aniston's star continued to rise. Still adored on one of the most popular television shows in history, she moved to the big screen in romantic comedies like She's the One (1996), Picture Perfect, 'Til There Was You (1997), and The Object of My Affection (1998). In the late '90s, she also began dating actor Brad Pitt. Talk of Pitt's recently ended engagement to actress Gwyneth Paltrow quickly dissipated as "Gwen and Brad" turned to "Jen and Brad." The two young stars became the ultimate Hollywood power couple and celebrated with a star-studded wedding in July of 2000. The new millennium found Aniston at the top of her game. Raking in a million dollars an episode for her role on the still popular Friends and married to one of the hottest men in Hollywood, she seemed to have it all. Secure in her A-List position, she took the opportunity to work on low-profile films and cult hits, such as 1999's Office Space, and 2000's Rock Star. Aniston's talent for dramatic roles was finally given a proper outlet when she played the lead in 2002's The Good Girl, which found critics surprised and impressed with her range. She made no attempt to shy away from comedy, however, starring alongside Jim Carrey in Bruce Almighty, and Ben Stiller in 2004's Along Came Polly. In 2004, as Friends began what would be its final season, Aniston's immediate future was filled with tremendous turmoil and change. Only a week into 2005, she and husband Brad Pitt legally separated, surrounded by rumors that Pitt had sparked a serious romantic connection with his Mr. and Mrs. Smith co-star Angelina Jolie. The media leapt onto the story, desperate to sate the public's curiosity about how such a seemingly perfect union could come to an end. Rumors swilled about the circumstances of their break-up, citing everything from disagreements over children to taste in interior decorating. Aniston's steady poise and willowy figure created a division in the public perception between herself and the more curvaceous and risqué Jolie.Media frenzy buzzed around the breakup long after she and Pitt officially filed for divorce in March. Vendors even started selling T-shirts reading "Team Aniston" and "Team Jolie," though most of the public seemed to side with the slighted Aniston. The actress plowed ahead, however, marking 2005 by starring with Clive Owen in the gritty thriller Derailed and with Shirley MacLaine and Kevin Costner in the comedy Rumor Has It.... 2006 brought the ensemble film Friends With Money, as well as another movie that would help put her divorce in the past...in more ways then one. While Pitt made headlines by becoming legal guardian of Jolie's adopted children and father to a baby Jolie gave birth to in Namibia, Aniston starred alongside comedy and character actor extraordinaire Vince Vaughn in The Break-Up. The comedy cast the two as an ex-couple going to war over which of them should keep their beloved condo, but the real life connection between the actors was quite the opposite. Though reluctant to speak about their relationship publicly, Aniston and Vaughn appeared quite clearly to have become a couple, bolstering the success of The Break-Up, and seeming to put Aniston's fans at ease regarding her personal life, even after she and Vaughan amicably split later that year. By 2007, Aniston's public image had left her divorce in the past, and was ready for new territory.Aniston found her next success in the 2008 tearjerking pet-comedy Marley & Me, opposite Owen Wilson. As the 2000's gave way to the 2010's, Aniston would all but completely cement her position as the number one actress in Hollywood when it comes to broadly appealing comedies, winning over audience after audience with He's Just Not That Into You, Love Happens, The Switch, Just Go With It, Horrible Bosses, and Wanderlust. She won rave reviews for her work in the film Cake in 2015, earning her a Golden Globe nomination.

Trivia: Lisa Kudrow first made her name playing Phoebe, the ditzy, New Age member of the titular close-knit pals on NBC's highly successful sitcom Friends. Since then, she has bridged the gap between television and film with undeniable success, winning particular acclaim for her role as an uptight school teacher in Don Roos' The Opposite of Sex (1998).Born in Encino, California on July 30, 1963, Kudrow earned a degree in biology from Vassar College before beginning her acting career. After college, she joined the Los Angeles improvisational group, The Groundlings, at the urging of family friend Jon Lovitz. Improv paved the way for more work, and Kudrow was soon appearing in bit roles in a number of films. Her first real break didn't come until 1993, when she began appearing on the TV sitcom Mad About You as Ursula, the waitress from hell. Real fame came in 1994, when the actress was cast as Phoebe on Friends; the enormous success of the show gave her both wide recognition and a steady day job. Kudrow's first leading role on the big screen was as one of the titular heroines (alongside Mira Sorvino) of the 1997 comedy Romy and Michele's High School Reunion; unfortunately, her character was little more than a film version of Phoebe. Fortunately, Kudrow got to widen her range a little further that same year with a starring role in the independent drama Clockwatchers, portraying a struggling actress alongside the likes of Toni Collette and Parker Posey. The following year, Kudrow won raves and critical respect for her turn in The Opposite of Sex, a scathing black comedy in which she gave a comic and poignant performance as an embittered woman coping with the death of her brother, the presence of her best friend's malicious little sister (Christina Ricci), and the romantic attentions of Lyle Lovett. The acclaim she received for her portrayal was complemented the same year with an Emmy Award for her work on Friends. In 1999, Kudrow shared the screen with Robert DeNiro in the comedy Analyze This, and later that year she starred with Diane Keaton and Meg Ryan as three sisters dealing with the imminent death of their irritating father (Walter Matthau) in the comedy Hanging Up, directed by Keaton and written by Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron.As the new millenium unfolded, Kudrow would prove to be a strong force on screen, appearing in a number of acclaimed films, like Wonderland, Happy Endings, The Other Woman, Easy A, and in the comedy series Web Therapy.

Trivia: Propelled to stardom in 1994 as a result of his role on the long-running, hit television series Friends, handsome Matt LeBlanc has been singled out for his finely tuned deadpan skills on the popular television mainstay, and it may come as no surprise that the actor who was voted one of the 50 most beautiful people alive by People magazine broke into show business as a model.Born July 25, 1967, in Newton, MA, LeBlanc dreamed of a career as a professional racer after receiving a motorbike at the age of eight. His mother's vocal objections voiced concern over the youngster's safety on the track, and the aspiring king-of-the-course and momma's boy soon began training to become a professional carpenter. Later graduating from high school and finding money in short supply, LeBlanc took his friends' suggestion of becoming a model to heart and, after selling his truck to pay the way, he headed for New York and began appearing in print and later, commercials. A role in a Heinz ketchup commercial which won the prestigious Gold Lion Award at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival brought the aspiring star more recognition, and it wasn't long before he began proper thespian training. Scoring a role on the television series TV 101 found the fresh-faced actor relocating to sunny Los Angeles, and although the show was quickly canceled, LeBlanc continued with appearances in television's Married With Children and in such short-lived series as Top of the Heap and Vinny and Bobby in the early '90s. Following his breakthrough in Friends in 1994, Leblanc gained a reputation as somewhat of a party guy with a penchant for womanizing, though he would later deflect the image as he settled down in his marriage to Meliss McKnight. LeBlanc attempted to solidify a cinematic career with roles in such features as Ed (1996), Lost in Space (1998), and Charlie's Angels (2000), but his greater success would remain on the small screen. After Friends wrapped in 2004, Leblanc appeared on a spin-off called Joey for two seasons, and later joined the cast of the comedy series Episodes.

Trivia: If one were to base one's judgment of David Schwimmer's talent on his low-key performance as the anxious, awkward but lovable paleontologist Ross on NBC's smash hit comedy Friends, one might never suspect that beneath the affable exterior lies a versatile, multi-talented actor and filmmaker. Tall, dark-haired, and lanky, Schwimmer was born in Queens, but later raised in Southern California, where he attended the famed Beverly Hills High School. He then enrolled in Chicago's Northwestern University, where he briefly considered pursuing his family's traditional profession and becoming a lawyer, but by that time, the acting bug had bitten him deeply and he was committed to it. Following graduation from Northwestern, Schwimmer gained enough stage experience in Chicago theater to co-found the Lookingglass Theatre Company with fellow actors. Schwimmer remains passionate about his involvement with the troupe and has starred in or directed many of their productions. In 1989, he made the first of several attempts to break into Hollywood, when he was cast as a killer in the made-for-TV thriller A Deadly Silence. It was apparently an unpleasant experience and the young actor hastened back to the familiarity of Lookingglass. Still, the lure of Hollywood was great and Schwimmer returned to guest star and play recurring roles on several television series. One of his best-known early TV roles was that of Olivia D'Abo's hippie fiancé on The Wonder Years. On the gritty crime drama NYPD Blue, he garnered critical acclaim for his portrayal of a lawyer who goes over the edge and becomes a vigilante. He had another bad television experience when he was cast opposite Henry Winkler in Fox's sitcom Monty. The series crashed before it got off the ground and Schwimmer swore he'd never do another comedy show. Up until 1994, he continued to play a wide variety of roles and to divide his time between stage and television.Despite his earlier vow, Schwimmer reluctantly accepted the role of Ross in Friends, a role that the show's creators wrote especially for him. The series, about a group of good-looking, but rather aimless buddies in their twenties, was an immediate hit and Schwimmer's lovable nerd character made him a star and got him an Emmy nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series With his newfound stardom came offers for feature film roles. Though he had actually begun appearing in films in 1990, he had, thus far, played only small roles. He made his debut as a star playing a virtual clone of Ross in the Pallbearer (1996). He played a dramatic role as one of the inventors of silicon breast implants in the made-for-television docudrama Breast Men (1997). Schwimmer signed a lucrative contract with Miramax that will not only star him in several pictures, but also allow him to direct. But while nearly a decade of experience directing television prepared Schwimmer well for his feature directorial debut, the 2007 comedy Run, Fatboy, Run, not even the presence of rising comedy star Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead) could save the film from the bargain bins. Fortunately for Schwimmer, the animated comedy Madagascar proved enough of a hit to warrant at least two sequels, giving the able voice actor plenty of time to plan his sophomore feature, 2010's cautionary internet predator thriller Trust.

Trivia: Handsome leading man Matthew Perry has managed to translate the fame and popularity he garnered from playing Chandler Bing on the hit NBC sitcom Friends into an increasingly successful film career as a romantic comedy lead. Born in Massachusetts, the son of actor John Bennett Perry, his parents divorced when he was still a baby. His mother got full custody and moved Perry to Ottawa, Canada, where she worked as a political assistant (years later, Perry's mother would work as a press secretary for prime minister Pierre Trudeau). As a youth, Perry was an extremely talented tennis player and was once ranked third in Canada's doubles competition. At the same time, the teenaged Perry was interested in acting and had been appearing in school productions since he was 13. At age 15, he relocated to L.A. to join his father, in hopes of becoming both a tennis pro and a working actor. However, in 1984, Perry suffered a devastating loss during a major tennis event and decided that he would have more success as an actor. Shortly after the fateful sporting match, he debuted on an episode of the sitcom Charles in Charge. Though Perry was still in high school, it rapidly became apparent that his education would take a backseat to acting. While in a restaurant, he was spotted by director William Richert, who offered the 16-year-old a small role opposite River Phoenix in A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon (1988). Though Perry wanted to become a successful professional actor, his father was pressuring him to attend U.C.L.A. As a compromise, Perry agreed that if he could not find an acting job in the first year after high school graduation, he would attend college. Not long after that, he was hired by Fox television to star in the series Boys Will Be Boys. The series bombed, but Perry was then starred opposite Valerie Bertinelli in a new series, Sydney. While this show too was short-lived, it started Perry on a professional guest-star career that would land him roles on such series as Beverly Hills 90210, Growing Pains, and his father's show 240 Roberts. He made his sophomore film appearance in She's Out of Control (1989) opposite Ami Dolenz and Tony Danza. In the early '90s, Perry and his colleague, Andrew Hill, penned the pilot to a situation comedy about a bunch of friends in their twenties who like hanging out. They called their show Maxwell House and sold it to Universal. They pitched the idea to NBC, but the network had a similar vehicle in the works. Instead of taking Perry and Hill's show, they offered to co-star Perry in their program, Friends. The first episode aired in 1994 and became a Top Ten hit. In features, Perry had his first success with the romantic comedy Fools Rush In (1997), though it was The Whole Nine Yards -- released the same year that Friends went off the air -- that really got moviegoers laughing. A return to television in Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip was shortlived after being eclipsed by the similar-themed 30 Rock, and in 2007 Perry erceived an Emmy nomination for his turn as a devoted high school teacher working with inner-city teens in The Ron Clark Story. In 2011 Perry could be seen as a sports arena manager experiencing a mid-life crisis in the ABC series Mr. Sunshine, though it was promptly cancelled by the network after failing to perform. Nevertheless, subsequent small screen roles in Go On and The Good Wife showed an actor determined to persevere at all costs.

Trivia: Elliot Gould was one of Hollywood's hottest actors of the early '70s and though he reached the peak of his popularity years ago, he remains a steadily employed supporting and character actor. Gould's lifelong involvement in show business is partially the result of his mother. In classical stage mother fashion, she made an eight-year-old Gould take numerous classes in performing, singing, and dance, including ballet. She enrolled him in Manhattan's Professional Children's School and then had him perform in hospitals, temples, and sometimes on television. Gould was also a child model. During summers, Gould performed at Catskill mountain resorts. When he was 18, he made it into a Broadway chorus line. Working odd jobs in between minor stage gigs, Gould did not get his big break until he joined the chorus line of the musical Irma La Douce. From there he won the leading role opposite Barbra Streisand in I Can Get It for You Wholesale. Though the two leads got good reviews, the show did not and rapidly closed. During its short run, Gould and Streisand fell in love, and in 1963, married. The following year, Gould made an inauspicious feature-film debut playing a deaf-mute in The Confession (1964). He did much better in his second film, The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968). While Gould's career seemed jammed in neutral, his wife's popularity hit the stratosphere, and for a time, he helped arrange her television appearances. By 1967, after years of being called Mr. Streisand and undergoing analysis, Gould untied the knot with Streisand. Gould became a star in 1969 when his co-starring role in the sex comedy Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice earned him a Best Supporting Actor nomination. After playing Trapper John in Robert Altman's counterculture classic M*A*S*H, Gould at last made it to the big league. Tall, curly-haired, more homely than handsome, laid-back, unconventional, sensitive, and unabashedly Jewish, Gould was tremendously popular with young adults who strongly identified with the often confused and neurotic characters he played. Gould's subsequent few films, notably Getting Straight (1970) and Little Murders, reinforced his counterculture image. For a while, he seemed to be everywhere, but by 1973, his career had already begun tapering off. A powerfully subtle performance as Philip Marlow in Altman's Long Goodbye (1973) proved that Gould had talent to spare, but over the next few years, he chose several independent, under the radar films, like California Split and Capricorn One. Over the coming decades, Gould would eventually find an ideal level of fame and activity, appearing in a massive number of films, like Dangerous Love, Bugsy, Ocean's Eleven (and its sequels), and Contagion. Gould would also enjoy a beloved recurring role on the massively successful sitom Friends as the father of Ross and Monica Geller.

Trivia: Lead actress, onscreen from 1989.