Trivia: While still in high school, American actor Timothy Hutton, son of actor Jim Hutton, toured with his father in a stage production of Harvey. After high school he moved to southern California and managed to land roles in several TV films, notably Friendly Fire and Young Love, First Love (both 1979). He debuted onscreen as a troubled teenager in Robert Redford's first directorial effort, Ordinary People (1980). For his work in that film he won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, at the time the youngest actor to earn such an honor. Hutton soon became typecast as sensitive, somewhat wimpy youths in a string of major films, a mold he didn't break out of until the late '80s. Despite his auspicious beginning, most of Hutton's films have been financially unsuccessful. In 1984 he made his New York stage debut in Orpheus Descending, and in 1990 starred on Broadway in the hit romance Prelude to a Kiss. He has also done some directing, including an episode of the TV show Amazing Stories and a rock video made by the band The Cars. He married and divorced actress Debra Winger.

Trivia: Blonde actress Beth Riesgraf made the majority of her on-camera appearances in a guest capacity on various television series, then took her debut feature bow with a bit role in the CG-animated Jason Lee-starrer Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007). Riesgraf was engaged Lee for a time, and the couple had a child together in 2003. In 2008, the actress signed to star opposite Timothy Hutton in Leverage, a TNT original series about an insurance investigator-turned-high-tech outlaw.

Trivia: When he initially surfaced as an on-camera presence during the 1990s and 2000s, supporting actor Aldis Hodge recalled a young Will Smith, with his looks, his relaxed charm, and easygoing manner; like Smith, Hodge made one of his first significant impressions on the small screen, yet he maintained a lower profile. Parts included guest starring appearances on such series programs as ER, CSI, NYPD Blue, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Around 2005, Hodge broke into big-screen features, first with small-scale roles, such as an appearance in the David Mamet-Stuart Gordon thriller Edmond, then in that same year's Snoop Dogg-headlined urban drama The Tenants. Hodge also provided one of the adorable penguins' voices in George Miller's animal picture Happy Feet (2006). One the small screen that year, Hodge could be seen in a recurring role on the critically acclaimed sports drama series Friday Night Lights as Ray "Voodoo" Tatum. He enjoyed a healthy run on the hit cable program Leverage as part of a group of criminals who take revenge against other scammers in order to help out those who have been victimized. Aldis Hodge is not to be confused with Al Hodge (Captain Video and His Video Rangers), a television actor from the '50s and '60s -- nor are they related.

Trivia: Versatile performer Christian Kane posed a dual threat in Hollywood, juggling multiple careers as an actor and vocalist/guitarist. Born to a prosperous oil-industry family in Dallas, TX, Kane relocated frequently with his family as a youngster, but ultimately settled in Norman, OK. From early boyhood, he nurtured dreams of Hollywood stardom -- dreams that eventually prompted him to leave college and head to the lights of Los Angeles; he also possessed an ingenuity that helped him find an "in" to the seemingly impenetrable entertainment industry, by approaching a prestigious Hollywood production company and offering to deliver scripts in exchange for talent consideration. It marked a bold but innovative move; significantly, the bid worked and Kane got his foot in the proverbial door. He soon landed his premier on-camera role, as one of the leads in the late '90s television series Fame L.A. Meanwhile, he jump-started a career as a musician on the side, by meeting the man who quickly became his songwriting partner, Steve Carlson. The two formed a band, christened KANE and started turning heads via Christian's unique country & western-infused vocals; with that outfit they headlines numerous Southern California hotspots including The Mint and The Viper Room.Unfortunately, Fame L.A. only lasted a short time, but Kane connected with much greater success via a recurring run on the vampire-themed fantasy series Angel, as attorney Lindsey McDonald. He then moved into feature roles and racked up a series of supporting turns in A-listers including the gentle Disney drama Secondhand Lions (2003), the dismal Ashton Kutcher sex farce Just Married (2003), and the critically acclaimed Billy Bob Thornton sports drama Friday Night Lights (2004). In the years that followed, Kane returned to television on two high-profile series: he played prosecutor's husband Jack Chase on the acclaimed Jerry Bruckheimer procedural drama Close to Home (2005-2006), then signed to star opposite Timothy Hutton and Beth Riesgraf in Leverage (2008), a TNT original series about an insurance investigator-turned-high-tech outlaw. While continuing to work on that successful program, he appeared in The Donner Party and Universal Squadrons.

Trivia: From the outset of her career, sloe-eyed British actress Gina Bellman exuded an alluring, exotic appeal that recalled the glamorous screen sirens of Hollywood's Golden Age. She first achieved fame by virtue of her collaboration with the English playwright-cum-scriptwriter/director Dennis Potter, in whose overtly sexual and explicit Blackeyes she starred. In that controversial outing, Bellman played the sexual abuse victim of the title -- an imaginary character within the context of the film. The choice of project (given its content) marked a bold move for the actress, but an intelligent one given Potter's peerless reputation and the respect afforded him in the English film industry. More importantly, it succeeded in turning spectators' and critics' heads toward Bellman in the very best way.Intriguingly, Bellman had no educational or industry experience as an actress when she auditioned for Blackeyes (1990), shy of a role as King David's daughter in Bruce Beresford's critically maligned Biblical epic King David (1985). The daughter of Russian-Jewish-Polish parents, born in New Zealand, Bellman grew up with a father who worked in retail and a homemaker mother. The family immigrated to London before Bellman's 11th birthday, and within a year, she discovered a passion for acting and soon began attending auditions. After Blackeyes, parts came quickly and furiously, marked by the actress' intriguing, distinguished choice of projects on-stage, in features, and on television. Some of her higher-profile endeavors included the eccentric Jewish-themed feature comedy Leon the Pig Farmer (1992), a theatrical role in David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow, and an ongoing turn as the flighty, hare-brained man-hunter Jane Christie on the BBC's wildly popular (and extremely explicit) sex comedy series Coupling (2000).In 2006, Bellman signed for a supporting role in director Martin Curland's raunchy sci-fi comedy Zerophilia, while the following year, she co-starred opposite James Nesbitt in the BBC miniseries Jekyll, an unusual revisionist version of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic novel Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. In the years to come, Bellman would remain an active force on screen, most notably on shows like Leverage.

Trivia: Baby-faced and Canadian, writer/actor Dave Foley dropped out of school in favor of joining the Second City Comedy Troupe in Toronto. He made his film debut in the 1986 comedy High Stakes, followed by several TV movies. He and old friend Kevin McDonald helped to form the sketch comedy group and TV series The Kids in the Hall, so named after a Jack Benny joke. Running from 1989 to 1994, the show earned a devoted following and several Emmy nominations. A contributing writer to the show, Foley also appeared in the cast. Some of his best characters include Manservant Hecubus, Bruno Puntz Jones, and the insane Jerry Sizzler. After the show's cancellation, the group stayed in contact for the 1996 feature Kids in the Hall: Brain Candy and the 2001 live tour Kids in the Hall: Same Guys New Dresses. Relocating to Los Angeles, Foley appeared in the unfortunate movie It's Pat and went to work on a new television show, starring as station manager Dave Nelson in the aptly named sitcom NewsRadio from 1995 to 1999. During this time, he also wrote, produced, and starred in the comedy The Wrong Guy, which won Best Screenplay at the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival. Working in Hollywood, he had supporting parts in the comedies Hacks, Blast From the Past, and Dick. Meanwhile, he provided the voice of Flik the Ant in A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2, and It's Tough to Be a Bug, as well as various voices in the South Park movie, the IMAX movie CyberWorld, and the miniseries From the Earth to the Moon. Mixing animation with his sketch comedy background, he then starred in Monkeybone, based in part on the graphic novel Dark Town. On-stage, he appeared in the musical comedy White Trash Wins Lotto, which ran at The Roxy in Hollywood. He also had supporting parts in the comedy features On the Line, Run Ronnie Run!, and Stark Raving Mad. In 2003, Foley returned to his native Canada to appear in the comedy Whitecoats, directed by Dave Thomas. In 2004 Foley took the gig of host for Bravo's Celebrity Poker Showdown, and two years later he returned to the Pixar fold to voice a brief cameo in Cars. In 2007 he played a major part in the infamous Uwe Boll film Postal. Fans were overjoyed when The Kids in the Hall reunited in 2010 for the six-episode series Death Comes to Town.

Trivia: Wil Wheaton was eight years old when he got his first showbiz break, appearing with Bill Cosby in a Jell-O pudding commercial. The following year (1982), Wheaton was prominently featured in the voiceover cast of the animated The Secret of NIMH. During this same period, he made his Los Angeles stage debut in a Company of Angels Theatre production of All My Sons. His starmaking turn was as Gordie Lachance, the Stephen King alter-ego, in the 1986 feature Stand By Me (1986). He then went on to play the title role in the 1987 Disney TV-movie Young Harry Houdini. Wheaton gained worldwide fame (and a worldwide website) as ensign Wesley Crusher in the weekly TV series Star Trek: The Next Generation, a role he played from 1987 to 1990. After leaving STNG on his own accord, Wheaton transitioned into adult roles with appearances in Flubber and a slew of independent films, and in 2001 he launched Wil Wheaton Dot Net, a blog that quickly gained a considerable following while turning the veteran actor into something of a geek icon. Meanwhile, in addition to staying busy with voice roles in such popular videogames as the Grand Theft Auto series and Fallout: New Vegas, Wheaton also contributed vocally to such animated television series' as Naruto, Ben 10: Alien Force, and Batman: The Brave and the Bold. In 2009 he began riffing on his own public persona with a recurring role as a fictional version of himself on The Big Bang Theory, and in 2010 he joined the cast of the quirky Sci-fi Channel series Eureka as Dr. Isaac Parrish. The author of both Dancing Barefoot and Just a Geek, Wheaton is the brother of actress Amy Wheaton.