Trivia: Bearded, amiable American singer/actor Kenny Rogers launched his professional career as a member of the New Christy Minstrels, then first rose to fame as a member of the country-pop group the First Edition. After several years of hits like "Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town" (as well as popular syndicated TV series Rollin' on the River), the First Edition broke up in 1974. Rogers had some lean years immediately after the split, at one point making ends meet by promoting a correspondence school guitar course. The outlook became brighter in 1976 when Rogers recorded his first solo hit, "Love Lifted Me," which he followed up with the even more popular ballad "Lucille." He regained his following with a dozen TV specials and several duets with equally renowned female country artists. In 1980, Rogers made his TV-movie debut with The Gambler (1980), an agreeable Western based on one of his more successful songs ("You gotta know when to hold 'em/know when to fold 'em...etc."). The Gambler scored an immediate ratings coup, inspiring sequels over the next decade, the best of which was The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw (1991), which had the added drawing card of guest appearances by several popular TV cowboy stars of days gone by. Rogers also pleased the crowd with the made-for-TV Coward of the County (1981), a dramatized elaboration of another of his top-selling songs. Less successful was Kenny Rogers' starring theatrical feature, Six Pack (1982), which proves that having six cute kids onscreen doesn't make you a Disney-quality hit.

Trivia: Had jobs at a furniture store, a supermarket and an air-conditioning company after high school. Signed with Warner Brothers Records in 1989. Is a member of the Grand Ole Opry. Has appeared in a number of TV shows and feature films. Recorded his 2007 album The Storm with producer Randy Jackson (American Idol).

Trivia: Gave birth to her first daughter, Wynonna, the week of her high-school graduation. Worked as a nurse before starting her career in entertainment. After divorcing her first husband, she moved her family from Los Angeles to Kentucky because "the kids were starting to think Hollywood was normal." In 1983, took daughter Wynonna to a live audition for the RCA Nashville record executives, who signed them to a record deal within an hour. Along with daughter Wynonna, became the first female country act to found their own booking agency. Took a hiatus from performing professionally in 1991 after being diagnosed with hepatitis C and founded the Naomi Judd Research Fund. In 2000, she told Larry King that she was cured. In April 2011, said of daughter Ashley Judd's memoir, All That Is Bitter & Sweet, that she would one day get around to reading it since she wanted to "honor her [daughter's] reality." Has authored more than 10 books on such topics as cooking, aging and her struggles with hepatitis C.

Trivia: The son of a drama teacher and dialogue director, American actor Stacy Keach began performing in college productions, then studied at the Yale Drama School. He spent a year at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art on a Fulbright scholarship, then acted in Shakespeare in the Park productions, where he first established his reputation; he soon worked both off and on Broadway, winning a Tony for his work in Indians. Keach debuted onscreen as a drunken drifter in The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968), then went on to play leads and supporting roles in a number of films; his screen appearances after 1982, however, have been infrequent. He wrote and directed the short film The Repeater (1972); he also directed a TV version of Pirandello's classic Six Characters in Search of an Author. In 1975 he starred in the short-lived TV series Caribe, and after starring in several TV movies, Keach assumed the title role of the TV series Mike Hammer in 1983. His career came to an abrupt halt in the mid-'80s when he was arrested and imprisoned in England for cocaine possession; after serving nine months and participating in drug rehabilitation, he returned to Mike Hammer. He is the brother of actor James Keach, with whom he co-starred in The Long Riders (1980), a film he also co-wrote and co-produced. He is married to Polish actress Malgosia Tomassi.

Trivia: Actor Brion James launched his career in television and feature films and on television in the mid '70s. With his piercing eyes and cruel smile, the versatile, 6' 3"James, usually portrays assorted eccentric bad-guys, urban scum, and red-necks. One of his most memorable roles was Leon, an android in Ridley Scott's Blade Runner (1982). As his father owned a movie theater in Beaumont, California, James spent most of his life around movies . Following high school, James moved to New York City where he became a cook and butler for Stella Adler, a renowned drama coach. While in the Big Apple, James also appeared off-Broadway, and as a stand-up comedian. In 1973, he returned to Los Angeles to become a full time actor with the philosophy that he would never turn down a job. James's strategy has worked, and since then he has appeared in over 100 TV shows and 70 features.

Trivia: Canadian character actor Bruce Greenwood spent the 1970s working in regional Vancouver theater, and appeared in many Canadian TV shows during the '80s. His first American film was a walk-on role in Rambo: First Blood. In the U.S., he fared much better with television pilots, miniseries, and made-for-TV movies. His first big role was Dr. Seth Griffin on St. Elsewhere from 1986-1988. Other TV projects included The FBI Murders, The Servants of Twilight, and Summer Dreams: The Story of the Beach Boys. By the '90s, he had found a home for himself on television. Greenwood played Pierce Lawson in 1991 on the evening soap opera Knots Landing, earned a Gemini (the Canadian Emmy) nomination for The Little Kidnappers, and then took home an award for his role in Road to Avonlea. He also starred as Thomas Veil on the UPN dramatic series Nowhere Man and guest starred as Roger Bingham on the HBO comedy series The Larry Sanders Show. He did quite well on NBC, as well, appearing in many TV movies (including Naomi & Wynonna: Love Can Build a Bridge) and starring in the sci-fi mystery show Sleepwalkers as Dr. Nathan Bradford.Greenwood made the leap to the big screen with a fellow Canadian, Egyptian-born filmmaker Atom Egoyan. In Exotica, he played the troubled Francis, a tax collector obsessed with a stripper. The film was a hit at the Cannes Film Festival, and Greenwood re-teamed with the director for his next film, The Sweet Hereafter, which won a special jury prize at Cannes, while Greenwood was nominated for a Genie award for his supporting role of mourning father Billy Ansell. By contrast, he played bad guys in mainstream thrillers in the '90s, with starring roles in Disturbing Behavior, Hide and Seek, Double Jeopardy, and Rules of Engagement He may be most well known, however, for playing President John F. Kennedy during the Cuban Missile Crisis in the political thriller Thirteen Days, for which he won a Golden Satellite Award. With this role under his belt, Greenwood moved into more dramatic territory with the A&E miniseries The Magnificent Ambersons as well as a dual role in Egoyan's Ararat. In 2003, he produced fellow Canadian Deepa Mehta's film The Republic of Love and appeared in the action comedy Hollywood Homicide and the sci-fi thriller The Core. He continued to work steadily in a variety of projects including I, Robot, Racing Stripes, Capote, Déjà vu, and had a small part in Todd Haynes' 2007 idiosyncratic Bob Dylan biopic I'm Not There. That same year he played the president in the hit sequel National Treasure: Book of Secrets. He had a brief but memorable turn as Captain James T. Kirk's father in J.J. Abrams Star Trek, and played a bad guy in the comedy Dinner for Schmucks. He had a major role in the arty western Meek's Cutoff, and reteamed with Abrams when he appeared in the Spielberg homage Super 8.

Trivia: Frequently drawing comparisons to such glamorous Hollywood starlets as Ava Gardner and Rita Hayworth, former Miss U.S.A. turned sultry screen siren Laura Elena Harring had been acting in features for over a decade when she entranced audiences with her enigmatic performance in David Lynch's surreal mystery Mulholland Dr. Born in Los Mochis, Sinaola, Mexico, Harring relocated to San Antonio, TX, with her mother and two sisters at age 11. Traveling abroad to study at Switzerland's Aiglon College at the age of 16, the worldly student later spent time doing such unglamorous work as digging ditches and planting gardens in India as a social worker. Though she would spend a brief period backpacking throughout the world following her exploits in Switzerland and India, it wasn't long before Harring returned to her family in Texas and made the fateful decision to enter the Miss El Paso contest. After becoming the first Latina to win the title of Miss U.S.A. in 1985 at the age of 21, Harring entered the world of royalty with her marriage to Count Carl Edward Von Bismark. Shortly after her marriage, Countess Harring would pursue her love of drama at the London Academy of Performing Arts. Refining her talents on the stages of Los Angeles' downtown theater arts district, the Countess made her screen debut as the bride of Santa Anna in the 1987 made-for-television film The Alamo: Thirteen Days to Glory. Harring alternated between television and film in the following years, later igniting the screen with her passion for tango in 1990's The Forbidden Dance. Amicably separated from her husband shortly thereafter, the emerging actress focused her career and continued to alternate between the small and silver screens with roles in Exit to Eden (1994), The Elian Gonzalez Story, and Little Nicky (both 2000) before hitting her stride under the assured direction of eccentric director Lynch the following year. Originally conceived as a television pilot, Mulholland Dr. was rejected by the networks before being retooled into a feature that fascinated audiences and critics at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival, where it earned a Best Director award. Drawing much attention at the 2002 Oscars for her pricey footwear, the now in-demand starlet continued her Tinsel Town ascent with a role in the Denzel Washington hostage drama John Q. the following year.

Trivia: In the early 1970s, after completing college, moved to California and became a Los Angeles County social worker. Took drama class in 1973 at Hollywood High School in Los Angeles. After she won an acting competition held by the school, decided to pursue a career in acting. Made first TV appearance in the 1974 made-for-TV drama I Love You...Goodbye. Assisted in the creation of the Latino Theater Company in Los Angeles. Appeared in the stage and movie adaptations of Zoot Suit and Real Women Have Curves. Won a National Board of Review award and received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for her performance in the 2000 film Chuck & Buck. Provided voice of Abuela Elena in the PBS animated series Maya and Miguel. Narrated the 2005 Independent Lens PBS documentary Maid in America, which featured women who work as domestics. By her own account, she has portrayed a maid more than 150 times in her career. Recipient of the National Hispanic Media Coalition Lifetime Achievement Award.