Trivia: One of the most powerful and uncompromising artists in rap music, Ice Cube enjoyed a surprisingly smooth transition into a career in motion pictures, first distinguishing himself as an actor and later branching out into writing, producing, and directing. Born O'Shea Jackson in South Central Los Angeles on June 15, 1969, Ice Cube came from a working class family, with both his father and mother employed by U.C.L.A. Ice Cube began writing lyrics when he was in ninth grade; a friend in a high school typing class challenged him to see who could come up with a better rap, and when he won the contest, Cube began honing his hip-hop skills in earnest. Before long, Ice Cube had formed a rap group called CIA with a friend, a DJ known as Sir Jinx. CIA began playing parties organized by Dr. Dre (born Andre Young), a member of a popular local hip-hop group called The World Class Wrecking Cru, and Cube and Dre both got to know Eazy-E (born Eric Wright), a rapper with a group called HBO who had started his own record company, financed by his successful career as a drug dealer. In time, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, and Eazy-E joined forces with DJ Yella (born Antoine Carraby) and MC Ren (born Lorenzo Patterson) to form the group N.W.A. With their 1988 album Straight Outta Compton, N.W.A.'s profane and provocative lyrics (particularly the infamous "F -- -- Tha Police") made them one of the most controversial groups in the history of rap music, and if they weren't the first gangsta rappers, they certainly brought the sound to a mass audience for the first time. In 1989, Cube, dissatisfied with N.W.A.'s management (and the fact he had been paid a mere 30,000 dollars for writing and performing on an album which sold three million copies), decided to leave the group and strike out on his own. He released his first solo album, AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted, in 1990, and the disc's blunt, forceful sound and aggressive blend of street life and political commentary proved there was life for the rapper after N.W.A.. The following year, after releasing the follow-up EP Kill at Will, and a second album, Death Certificate, Cube made his acting debut in John Singleton's gritty look at life in South Central Los Angeles, Boyz N The Hood, which drew its name from an early N.W.A. track. Cube received strong reviews for his performance as ex-con Doughboy, and a year later starred opposite fellow rap trailblazer Ice-T in Walter Hill's Trespass. In 1995, Cube reunited with Singleton for the drama Higher Learning, and, later that year, expanded his repertoire by starring in Friday, a comedy he also wrote and produced. With his career in the movies on the rise, Cube spent less and less time in the recording studio, although he often contributed to the soundtracks of the films in which he appeared, and recorded with the L.A. all-star group Westside Connection. In 1998, Cube added directing to his list of accomplishments with The Players Club, for which he also served as screenwriter and executive producer, as well as played a supporting role as Reggie. The same year, he released his first solo album in four years, War and Peace, Vol. One: The War Disc. Cube went on to write and produce sequels to both Friday and All About the Benjamins, which co-starred his Friday sidekick, Mike Epps. He also continued to work in films for other writers and filmmakers, including Three Kings, Ghosts of Mars, and the extremely successful urban comedy Barbershop.In 2004, Cube's career continued to pick up steam. He appeared in the motor-cycle action thriller Torque, as well as Barbershop 2: Back in Business. By the next year, he was taking over for Vin Diesel, starring in XXX: State of the Union, as well as branching into the realm of family comedy with Are We There Yet?. Both were box office gold, and Cube went on to follow up the latter with 2007's sequel Are We Done Yet?.He tried his hand at an inspirational sports drama producing and starring in The Longshots in 2008. His love of sports found full flower in his 2010 documentary Straight Outta L.A., which he made as part of ESPN's 30 for 30 series. The film examined the relationship between sports and hip-hop culture in The City of Angels during the heyday of N.W.A. He appeared in the corrupt cop drama Rampart, and had a funny turn as the Captain to the undercover agents working out of 21 Jump Street.

Trivia: A charismatic actress who possesses equal parts beauty and talent, Nia Long became a fixture of many African-American ensemble films of the late 1990s. Born in Brooklyn, New York, on October 30, 1970, Long developed an interest in acting at an early age. She received training from Betty Bridges, mother of former child star Todd Bridges (best known for his role on the TV series Diff'rent Strokes. Long got her start on TV, playing a character on the soap opera Guiding Light from 1991 to 1993. She earned her first helping of fame with her role on the popular sitcom Fresh Prince of Bel Air, which cast her as Will Smith's love interest. The actress made her film debut in John Singleton's acclaimed Boyz 'N the Hood (1991), sharing the screen with the likes of Cuba Gooding, Jr., Ice Cube, Angela Basset, and Lawrence Fishburne. She followed the film with Made in America (1993), a comedy that cast her as the daughter of Whoopi Goldberg and Ted Danson. Long subsequently established herself as a strong presence in romantic dramas and comedies, carving out a niche in such films as Soul Food (1997), Love Jones (1997), and The Best Man (1999). The actress also ventured into a number of other genres, as demonstrated by her roles in films ranging from supernatural horror (Stigmata) (1999) to big business crime drama (The Boiler Room) (1999) to inner-city police thriller (In Too Deep) (1999).As the new century got under way she had major roles in Big Momma's House and Boiler Room, as well as BAADASSSSS! On the small screen she joined the cast of the NBC drama Third Watch. In 2005 she was in the hit Are We There Yet?, and she followed that up with the sequel Are We Done Yet. Long also made time for the sequel Big Momma's House 2. In 2010 she appeared in the drama Mooz-lum. She reprised her role from The Best Man in the 2013 sequel The Best Man Holiday and later starred in The Single Moms Club.

Trivia: John McGinley, often credited as John C. McGinley, has become one of the most prolific character actors in Hollywood since he first got noticed in Oliver Stone's Platoon (1986). The intense, unblinking actor specializes in sarcasm, cynicism, and a used car dealer's unctuous insincerity, meaning he can play either wacky or sinister in both comedies and dramas. Although he has appeared in six Stone films, his breakout performance came in a very different format, as the acerbic and piercingly straightforward Dr. Perry Cox on the hit NBC sitcom Scrubs (2001).McGinley was born on August 3, 1959, in New York City. Growing up in Millburn, NJ, he was more involved in sports than theater. He began studying acting at Syracuse University, continuing at N.Y.U.'s Tisch School of the Arts. McGinley then toiled both on and off-Broadway, as well as two years on the soap opera Another World, scoring his first film role in the Alan Alda-directed Sweet Liberty (1986). It was while he was serving as John Turturro's understudy on the play Danny and the Deep Blue Sea that a casting scout in Stone's employ spotted him and got him an audition for Platoon. McGinley was cast as the sycophantic Sgt. Red O'Neill in the eventual Oscar winner.McGinley followed up Platoon with another one-two punch of Stone movies, Wall Street (1987) and Talk Radio (1988). In interviews, McGinley has described theirs as a "strong working relationship," not a friendship per se with the demanding director. He appeared in a handful of other films before his fourth Stone collaboration, Born on the Fourth of July (1989), which was quickly followed by his first screenwriting effort. McGinley co-scripted and co-starred in the 1990 film Suffering Bastards, alongside Talk Radio's Eric Bogosian.The 1990s were a period of intense work for the actor, who appeared in an average of three movies a year, sometimes as many as seven -- a necessary but no less tricky feat for a character actor earning modest paychecks. The most heralded of these were David Fincher's Seven and Stone's Nixon (both 1995); the most forgettable were Highlander II: The Quickening (1991) and the Steven Seagal starrer On Deadly Ground (1994). For most moviegoers, he remained under the radar.Two showy roles in 1999 ably demonstrated McGinley's facility for comedy. As a callous efficiency expert brought aboard to reorganize (i.e., downsize) the tech firm at the heart of Office Space, McGinley grinned and joked his way through a round of heartless layoffs. A similar oiliness informed his loud, obnoxious, kiss-ass portrayal of a Jim Rome-type sports interviewer in Stone's Any Given Sunday. It was soon after, in 2001, that McGinley was brought aboard for the role destined to identify him beyond any single film. As the default mentor on Scrubs, McGinley alternated hard-knocks frankness, biting wit, and a genuine desire to be left alone, in turn creating a hilarious persona and sealing his fate as an unwitting cult figure to the young surgeons. The sitcom work schedule has given him the necessary stability to spend time with his young son, Max, who has Down's syndrome.

Trivia: Philip Bolden debuted in features as a child star during the mid- to late 2000s. One who largely specialized in family-friendly urban comedies, his credits included Johnson Family Vacation (2004), Are We There Yet? (2005), and Are We Done Yet? (2007). In 2008, Bolden provided one of the main voices for the CG-animated comedy Fly Me to the Moon 3-D (2008).

Trivia: Son of a Hungarian immigrant.Attended Goddard College with friend and playwright David Mamet.1964 New York State Table Tennis Champion.In 1981, started performing stand-up comedy at The Improv in New York.Former member of the rhythm and blues group Katz and Jammers.Recipient of the Boston Comedy Festival's Lifetime Achievement Award.

Trivia: Studied at The Second City in Toronto.Portrayed the Kraft Philadelphia Cream Cheese Angel in one of Canada's most successful advertising campaigns that ran for 16 years.Had only 40 minutes to prepare for her Seinfeld audition because she had been body surfing in Malibu when she found out.Has taught corporate workshops at Beyond The Box, and improvisation and sketch writing at Humber College and Fleming College.Co-founder, along with her late husband Paul O'Sullivan, of The Peterborough Academy of Performing Arts.

Trivia: Began working in entertainment when he was 4 years old. At age 5, landed a recurring role on Full House, portraying Michelle Tanner's pal Teddy. Portrayed Shaquille O'Neal's grandson in a commercial for the sports drink All Sport. Appeared in music videos for Prince, Mariah Carey and Michael Jackson. Earned a NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Youth Actor/Actress in 2000 for his role as whiz kid T.J. Henderson on Smart Guy. Costarred with his sisters, twins Tia and Tamera Mowry, in the TV-movie Seventeen Again (2000). Played varsity football in high school and went on to play football in college at Savannah State University and the University of Wyoming. Is a supporter of the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

Trivia: Moved to California when he was one year old.Began his acting career at the age of 12 when he was cast as a street dancer after being discovered breakdancing in a schoolyard.Won the ALMA Award for Emerging Artist of the Year in 1995.While working on the movie Flight of the Phoenix (2004), helped co-star Hugh Laurie record his audition tape for House.Founder of the production company Third Son Productions, Inc.

Trivia: Stand-up comedian Hayes MacArthur studied government at Bowdoin College before changing career directions, pointing himself toward show business. After spending some time with the Groundlings Theatre Company, he transitioned into film and TV, making guest appearances on shows like King of Queens and Medium, and in movies like 2007's National Lampoon's Homo Erectus. In 2008, he had a recurring role in the short-lived series Worst Week. MacArthur continued to have supporting roles in films, like She's Out of My League (2010), though he mostly stuck to television. In 2010, he appeared in the short-lived series Perfect Couples and popped up in guest apeparances on a long list of comedies, including Happy Endings, Suburgatory and Go On.

Trivia: Dubbed "Magic" by Lansing State Journal sportswriter Fred Stabley Jr. after Stabley witnessed Johnson post a triple-double (36 points; 16 assists; 16 rebounds) in a high-school game. Led Michigan State University to the NCAA Tournament two straight years, culminating in the 1979 title over Larry Bird and Indiana State University—sparking a rivalry that spilled over into the two stars' NBA careers. Selected first overall in the draft by the Los Angeles Lakers. Started Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals in place of an injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and scored 42 points and 15 rebounds to clinch the title, and became the first rookie to win the Finals MVP. Won five titles with the Lakers (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987 and 1988). Announced on November 7, 1991, that he had contracted HIV and would retire immediately, but was subsequentally selected to the 1992 NBA All-Star Game, sparking complaints from some players. Named to the 1992 U.S. Olympic Team, dubbed the Dream Team, after FIBA allowed professional players to compete. Hosted a late-night talk show in 1998 called The Magic Hour, which was canceled by Fox after two months. Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002. He was introduced by former rival Larry Bird.