Trivia: A slight actress with a big voice, Anika Noni Rose studied at San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater. After learning all she could to prepare herself, she moved to New York to pursue a career on the stage, getting her first break with a role in the Broadway production of Footloose. Rose's voice, acting, and unmistakable stage presence assured that doors would continue to open for her and she would continue to rack up prominent roles, becoming what could only be described as a truly successful career stage actress, starring in such Broadway productions as Eli's Comin', Purlie, Threepenny Opera, and Tartuffe. The actress was honored with an Obie Award as well as a Garland/Drama-Logue Award for her work, but she received by far the most success and acknowledgement for her role in the acclaimed Caroline or Change, for which she won a Tony award in 2004 for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical, as well as a Lucille Lortell Award, a Theatre World Award, and a Clarence Derwent Award.Intent on exploring every possible avenue as a performer, Rose began a career onscreen in the new millennium. She guest-starred in an episode of Third Watch, and scored a role in the American Idol contestant-driven From Justin to Kelly in 2003. Then in 2006, Rose took a role in an ideal hybrid of her talents with the big-screen version of the musical Dreamgirls, a roman à clef based on Motown girl group The Supremes. Rose played Lorrell Robinson, the member of the group who experiences the least drama in the story, but whose solid presence -- not to mention voice -- is vital to the script. The longtime pro had no problem surrendering the media spotlight to über-divas Beyoncé Knowles and Jennifer Hudson, who played the other two members of the group, but few could help but notice what a force to be reckoned with the Broadway talent was. After the movie and its impending media blitz was over, Rose reprised her role in Caroline or Change in L.A. and San Francisco before she returned with the musical to Broadway.In 2009 she made history voicing the first African-American princess in Disney history when she played Tiana in The Princess and the Frog, and later joined the cast of the hit CBS series The Good Wife. Her big-screen resume continued with the ambitious Tyler Perry project For Colored Girls.

Trivia: Lived in Germany with her family when her father's military career relocated them. Lived in Japan for three years after college. Made her acting debut in the Japanese comedy All About Our House in 2001. Made her Broadway debut in Baby It's You in 2011, a jukebox musical about the 1960s group The Shirelles. Creator and writer of the comedic blog The Deviled Angel.

Trivia: A black belt in seven karate styles who made his feature debut in The Toxic Avenger II and has appeared in numerous off-Broadway plays, Michael Jai White has a curiously eclectic career and is likely a recognized face to action movie aficionados. A Brooklyn, NY, native who was raised in the sometimes harsh limbo between the impoverished Bridgeport and well-to-do Westport, CT, Jai White grew from an introverted youth to a man comfortable in multiple surroundings. Eventually gaining a reputation as a fearsomely tough street fighter by the age of 14, the strikingly mature-appearing youngster earned his keep by offering karate lessons at the YMCA before graduating high school with honors and setting his sights on college. Bouncing from school to school unsure of what direction to take in life, Jai White took a few acting classes but eventually ended up as a junior high school teacher specializing in emotionally disturbed children. Soon auditioning for roles in Manhattan with the blessing of his students, Jai White would rise through the ranks and eventually land roles in such features as Universal Soldier (1992) and Full Contact (1993). After appearing as Mike Tyson in the 1995 television movie Tyson, the tough actor was cast in the role of a double-crossed assassin who seeks vengeance from the fiery depths of Hell in the eagerly anticipated film adaptation of the cult comic book Spawn. Later appearing in such features as Breakfast of Champions (1999) and Exit Wounds (2001), Jai White gained solid footing as a reliable supporting action figure.

Trivia: Rough-cut character actor Chris Browning specialized in portrayals of rugged, earthy types, with a heavy emphasis on westerns and war dramas. After making appearances on such small-screen programs as Hardball, Wildfire, and In the House during the 1990s, Browning broke into features; his credits included James Mangold's psychological western remake 3:10 to Yuma (2007), Michael Salomon's road comedy Beer for My Horses (2008), and Kevin Bray's crime thriller Linewatch.

Trivia: Tall leading man Barry Bostwick began his professional acting career while still a sophomore at the United States International University School of Performing Arts in San Diego; his first stage gig was opposite Walter Pidgeon in Take Her, She's Mine. Completing his training at the New York University Graduate School of the Arts, Bostwick made his Broadway bow in Cock-a-Doodle Dandy. He went on to play Danny Zuko in the smash-hit musical Grease, and in 1978 won a Tony Award for his work in The Robber Bridegroom. In films from 1971, Bostwick is best known for his calculatedly cloddish portrayal of Brad Majors in the midnight-movie perennial The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Equally enjoyable was his characterization of the aspiring songwriter ("It Just Shows to Go Ya") who agrees to write an entire Broadway musical in 24 hours in the 1979 spoof Movie, Movie. Barry Bostwick has also excelled on television, playing movie idol John Gilbert in Garson Kanin's The Silent Lovers (1980) and George Washington in two mid-'80s miniseries based on the life of the first U.S. president. He continued to work steadily on the big and small screen in projects such as the miniseries War & Remembrance and its sequel, Challenger, Praying Mantis, and Weekend at Bernie's II. At the beginning of the 21st century he appeared in The Skulls 3 as well as other productions including Hannah Montana: The Movie. In 2012 he appeared in the action comedy FDR: American Badass!

Trivia: A native of Lynnwood, WA, Randy Couture established himself as one of the top-tiered Mixed Martial Arts champions and professional Greco-Roman wrestlers in the world. Couture served six years in the army, where he subjected himself to intense training as a boxer alongside the standard basic-training routines. He then underwent 25 years of training as a Greco-Roman wrestler and delved into MMA with full abandon, cultivating a unique fighting method dubbed "Ground and Pound" that involved flooring and pinning down an opponent and pounding the individual with one's fists. Occupationally, Couture held a six-year post as a strength conditioning and assistant wrestling coach at Oregon State University. In 1997 (at age 33), he formally entered the Ultimate Fighting Championship competitions and chalked up a formidable record, courageously taking on, and defeating, such formidable opponents as Chuck Liddell, Pedro Rizzo, and Kevin Randleman; he also moved into announcing on pay-per-view fighting events.In terms of film work, the majority of Couture's early on-camera appearances consist, unsurprisingly, of live wrestling and MMA events. He moved into dramatic roles, however, under the aegis of no less than David Mamet, in the esteemed playwright-cum-director's 2008 martial arts saga Redbelt. Coincident with this, Couture also signed on to star opposite Rob Schneider and David Carradine in the crime comedy Big Stan (2008) and appeared as the villain in the straight-to-DVD Universal sequel The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior.

Trivia: Worked for Boston mayor Thomas Menino in the early 1990s; later worked as the director of Boston's film bureau. Also worked as a doorman and dabbled in stand-up comedy. Was discovered by director Ted Demme. Made his film debut in the 1998 drama Monument Ave. Produced the 2008 film Lonely Street.

Trivia: Was born abroad because her parents were missionaries. Was a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. Started out as a teacher in Compton, CA, before becoming an actor. Owns a production company called Kwick Whit Productions. Regularly performs stand-up comedy in and around Los Angeles.

Trivia: Adopted by a social worker in Mississippi when he less than 2 years old. Began his entertainment career as a stand-up comedian in Washington, D.C. Gained notoriety in the early '90s for his adept impersonations of celebrities like Sugar Ray Leonard and Sammy Davis Jr. Made his feature-film debut opposite Halle Berry in the 1991 movie Strictly Business. Honored in 2012, along with his In Living Color castmates, with the Groundbreaking Award at the TV Land Awards 10th Anniversary ceremony.

Trivia: American comic character actor/impressionist Buddy Lewis appeared in a few films during the '50s, '60s and '70s.

Trivia: Born in Fayetteville, GA (a suburb of Atlanta), actor Gary Anthony Williams attended Clayton State College and went on to establish himself as one of the most-sought after character players of the 2000s, maintaining his most frequent presence on television. A classically trained actor, Williams honed his craft via involvement with the Georgia Shakespeare Festival, then performed in various theatrical locales including Agatha's Dinner Theatre, The Shakespeare Tavern, and the Alliance Theatre. Williams moved into television in the late '90s, with a guest spot on the series drama In the Heat of the Night and a small role in the Schwarzenegger thriller End of Days (1999).The following decade witnessed Williams guesting in series programs including CSI, Joan of Arcadia, and NYPD Blue, appearing in recurring roles on shows such as Malcolm in the Middle, and tackling a small supporting part in the farce Undercover Brother (2002). He signed for two permanent series roles in subsequent years: that of Uncle Ruckus in the racially themed animated sitcom The Boondocks, and that of Clarence Bell, a shy lawyer who develops a drag queen alter ego, Clarice, to contend with difficult situations, on the offbeat David E. Kelley series drama Boston Legal.

Trivia: While attending college on a track and field scholarship, a college advisor suggested that he try theater; he took an acting class, and soon landed a role in the school's production of To Kill a Mockingbird. Went on to star in six more school productions while in college, including Little Shop of Horrors and Richard III. Wrote, produced, and starred in his own short film, Chance; this experience helped him decide to become an actor full time. While filming an episode of the ABC drama Castle, auditioned and landed a role on the CBS reboot of Hawaii 5-0; while filming Hawaii 5-0, auditioned and landed a role on the CBS sci-fi series Extant; all three episodes aired within the same week. Competed with his brother Ak on a 2011 episode of the daytime quiz series Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?

Trivia: A writer who evolved into a triumphant R&B performer and then a stage and film actress, Jill Scott grew up in Philadelphia and wrote lyrical, evocative poetry -- poetry that prompted her discovery by Amir, drummer of the R&B band the Roots. A studio collaboration between Scott and that band yielded the 1999 Top 40 pop hit "You Got Me"; afterward, in lieu of doing the expected by issuing her first solo recording, Scott first garnered legions of fans by touring across Canada in a powerhouse revival of the Jonathan Larson musical Rent; she then began issuing solo recordings in the summer of 2000. Scott's film career largely grew out of her music act, beginning as it did with solo performances in the 2005 Dave Chappelle's Block Party and the 2006 documentary Finally Sayin' What I Really Mean.... She segued into pure dramatic roles in 2007, with a pair of memorable performances -- one in the comedy drama Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married? and an outstanding turn as blues maven Big Mama Thornton in the coming-of-age period piece Hounddog. She returned for the sequel to Why Did I Get Married, and was cast in TV series The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. Scott continued to split her time between her singing and acting careers, releasing albums in 2011 and 2015 and appearing in films like Baggage Claim and the 2012 television movie remake of Steel Magnolias.