Trivia: Actor Mark Harmon is the son of football great Tom Harmon and 1940s film star Elyse Knox; he is the brother of Kris Harmon -- ex-wife of Ricky Nelson -- and uncle of Kris and Ricky's actress daughter Tracy Nelson; and finally, Harmon is the husband of Mork and Mindy star Pam Dawber. Harmon emulated his dad by playing football at UCLA, then followed in mom's footsteps by turning to acting; his first movie was 1978's Comes a Horseman. Most of Harmon's starring film appearances are easy to take but unmemorable, such as his lackadaisical high-school teacher in Summer School (1988). A baseball fan, Harmon was once part-owner of the minor-league San Bernardino Spirit, a team which figured prominently in his 1988 film vehicle Stealing Home. Harmon is best known for his work on 1980s series TV: he has co-starred in Flamingo Road and Moonlighting, and played the lead role of AIDs-stricken Dr. Bob Calswell on St. Elsewhere. TV would prove to be a source of success for the actor, and he would go on to star on such popular shows as Chicago Hope and NCIS.

Trivia: David McCallum's parents were both members of the London Philharmonic; his mother was a cellist and his father was first violinist. The young Scots-born McCallum himself planned to pursue a musical career after serving with the Royal West African Frontier Force, but decided instead upon acting. Following his studies at the RADA, McCallum entered films in 1957, where he was usually cast as a troublemaking street punk or callow junior officer. His first American film (albeit lensed principally in England) was Freud (1962), in which he played a profoundly mother-obsessed mental patient. McCallum became the rage of the teeny-bopper set when he was cast as cool-headed Russian secret agent Ilya Kuryakin on TV's The Man From UNCLE (1964-68). At one point, McCallum was receiving far more fan mail than the series' ostensible star, Robert Vaughn; he took advantage of his celebrity to launch a brief singing career, duetting with Nancy Sinatra on the 1966 UNCLE episode "The Take Me to Your Leader Affair." He also wrote the music and lyrics and sang the title song of his 1967 movie vehicle Three Bites of the Apple. Following UNCLE, McCallum had a handful of solid dramatic film roles before returning to the small screen in the short-lived 1975 series The Invisible Man. He continued to appear primarily in episodic television, although he occasionally could be glimpsed on the big-screen as well. Highlights include The Watcher in the Woods, Matlock, The Wind, Murder She Wrote, and The A-Team. The nineties began with a major part in the sleeper Hear My Song, before continuing in Healer, Law and Order, and Cherry. McCallum became a fixture on television yet again at the beginning of the 21st century when he was cast as Donald "Ducky" Mallard on CBS' drama NCIS, which was for a time the top-rated scripted drama on network television.A man of sundry outside interests, McCallum's range of expertise includes computers and small-arms weaponry. Once wed to actress Jill Ireland, David McCallum has since 1967 been married to Katherine Carpenter.

Trivia: Going under the name Pauley P., actress Pauley Perrette (born March 27th, 1969) first gained notoriety with an extended arc on the acclaimed ABC drama Murder One. She followed that with guest spots on such shows as The Drew Carey Show and Frasier before landing a gig as a regular (using her full moniker) on the short-lived Party of Five spin-off Time of Your Life. After that series bowed, Perrette could be seen in small capacity in the big-screen hits Almost Famous and The Ring. In 2003, she finally landed in a series with staying power. This time it was the JAG spin-off Navy NCIS, a CBS drama that cast Perrette in a lead role alongside Mark Harmon.

Trivia: Actor Sean Murray began filling up his resumé when he was just a young teenager, making small appearances in movies like Hocus Pocus and This Boy's Life. He continued to steadily wrack up small and midsized roles in films and on television until 2004, when he joined the cast of the series NCIS playing Timothy McGee. His stepsister, Troian Bellisario, has appeared in NCIS as Murray's character's sister.

Trivia: A graduate of the famous School for the Performing Arts, actor Rocky Carroll continued his studies at the Conservatory of Theatre Arts at Webster University before moving to New York in the mid-'80s to try his hand at a professional acting career. He soon found success with the Shakespeare on Broadway series, and cultivated a flourishing career on-stage. Carroll also branched into screen acting, with recurring roles on Roc and Chicago Hope, and in movies like Crimson Tide, Born on the Fourth of July, and Yes Man.

Trivia: A graduate of Colorado's Niwot High School, actor Brian Dietzen gravitated to drama at eight years old, when he caught the acting bug from an elementary school play; in time, he extended his stage activities into high-school productions, and attended the University of Colorado at Boulder as a theater major in that institution's B.F.A. program. Under the mentorship of Sean Kelley, Dietzen formally trained in theatrical mainstays -- from Waiting for Godot to Equus; so successful were his efforts in these productions that it prompted him to join the Colorado Shakespeare Festival after graduation, and then to make the big leap to Los Angeles. Dietzen scored his first major coup in L.A. by signing on for a regular role in the short-lived WB series My Guide to Becoming a Rock Star, and then landed a small part in the American Idol spin-off movie From Justin to Kelly (2003). The actor is best known, however, for his recurring series role as Jimmy Palmer, assistant lab technician to Donald "Ducky" Mallard (David McCallum), on the popular CBS procedural thriller NCIS. On the side, he remained extremely active in stage work.

Trivia: Dropped out of college and took public speaking classes to help further her career. At the premiere of Gone (2012) she admitted she's always had a fear of being kidnapped. Was cast in NCIS in 2013 as a replacement for the departing Cote de Pablo; she was promoted to a series regular before her first episode aired.

Trivia: In his role as eager-to-fit-in exchange student Fez on the enduring and popular Fox sitcom That '70s Show, actor Wilmer Valderrama mangled the popular lingo of the eponymous decade with gleeful abandon. Though removed from his small-screen persona, the handsome actor can give the impression of a young Benicio Del Toro. His dorky and personable charm as Fez endeared him to television audiences, making him one of That '70s Show's defining personalities. Born January 30th, 1980, Valderrama is a Miami native whose family relocated to Venezuela when he was three years old; the aspiring actor would eventually return stateside to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. Valderrama joined the cast of That '70s Show shortly before finishing his high-school education at William Howard Taft High School in 1998, and three short years later, the television mainstay made his feature debut by taking to the diamond with a supporting role in the romantic teen comedy Summer Catch. Guest appearances on Grounded for Life and That '70s Show co-star Ashton Kutcher's hidden-camera prankster series, Punk'd, were quick to follow, and in 2003, Valderrama essayed the role of DJ Keoke in the flashy true-crime drama Party Monster. Based on the exploits of murderous club-kid Michael Alig, the film offered Valderrama an opportunity to truly separate himself from his popular small-screen persona. With That '70s Show still going strong in 2004, the popular television star's voice could also be heard in the animated children's film Clifford's Really Big Movie. 2006 found the actor playing a small supporting role for the scathing message movie Fast Food Nation, and took on the role of Detective Efrem Vega for the NBC television series Awake.Valderrama continued to concentrate on TV, booking guest arcs on shows like Suburgatory and Raising Hope before settling into more stable work with regular gigs on From Dusk till Dawn: The Series and the short-lived Minority Report series. In 2016, he joined the cast of NCIS for the 14th season of the show.

Trivia: Aspired to be an actor from the age of 5. Moved to London at the age of 17 to pursue his acting career. Was homeless for a short time while searching for work as an actor. Appeared in numerous British television series, including Law & Order: UK, Doctor Who, The Cut and Doctors. Nominated for BAFTA's Screen Nation Award for Best Emerging Talent in 2010. In 2013, moved to Los Angeles in hopes of furthering his acting career. Starred in a 2015 TV commercial for Lexus.

Trivia: Born in Pennsylvania c. 1967, Maria Bello attended Villanova University as a political science major, but acting ability - evident from an early drama class - altered her career plans. Following graduation, Bello honed her acting skills in a number of New York theater productions before she broke through to the public as one of the leads in the short-lived TV spy comedy Mr. and Mrs. Smith (1996). Bello gained broader primetime exposure as Dr. Anna Del Amico on NBC's blockbuster ER during the 1997 season and segued into films with her performance as recovering junkie Ben Stiller's confidante in the film-a-clef Permanent Midnight (1998), adapted from Jerry Stahl's harrowing book.Bello scored her first pop hit as Mel Gibson's beautiful cohort in the harsh crime drama Payback (1999). Poised to potentially become one of the select group of actors who transition smoothly from television to film, Bello co-starred as one of the bottle-tossing, bar-stomping babes in charge of the titular drinking establishment in the Bruckheimer-produced hellraiser Coyote Ugly (2000). When Coyote Ugly failed to live up to box office hopes, Bello starred as Suzi Loomis in Bruce Paltrow's Duets, and as Ruth Harkness in the IMAX feature China: The Panda Adventure (2001), based on her real-life experiences with the eponymous creatures. Bello scored a bona fide critical, if not financial, hit with Paul Schrader's biopic about slain Hogan's Heroes star Bob Crane, Auto Focus (2002). As Crane's co-star and second wife Patricia, Bello holds her own opposite Greg Kinnear's bravura performance as the nymphomaniacal Crane, evoking the complex emotions of a spouse who accepts yet ultimately cannot contend with her husband's desires.A year after Auto Focus, Bello would score even bigger with the critics with a starring role alongside William H. Macy in the gritty Vegas romance The Cooler. As the cocktail waitress who falls for Macy's sadsack ne'er-do-well, Bello brought a sense of extreme realism to her character. The film netted her a Best Supporting Actress nomination from the Screen Actors Guild and a runner-up prize from The National Society of Film Critics.In early 2004, Bello appeared as Johnny Depp's estranged wife in the Stephen King adaptation The Secret Window, and in John Sayles' well-received political thriller Silver City. Though subsequent appearances in the fairly forgettable Assault on Precinct 13, The Dark, and The Sisters followed in 2005, Bello's Golden Globe-nommed performance as an unassuming housewife who married into mystery in A History of Violence, coupled with her prominent performance as a determined alcohol lobbyist in the critically-acclaimed Thank You for Smoking, helped to get her back in the good graces of critics and end the year on a decidedly high note. When 2006 arrived, Bello joined Nicolas Cage, Michael Pena, and Maggie Gyllenhall in World Trade Center, Oliver Stone's docudrama/survival picture that recounted the experiences of two Port Authority firefighters trapped beneath the rubble of the destroyed buildings. Bello joins the cast of the same year's Flicka, adapted from the seminal children's novel by Mary O'Hara (and incarnated decades prior as the movie and TV series My Friend Flicka) , alongside Alison Lohman and country singer Tim McGraw.Bello had a lead part in Alan Ball's feature film directorial debut Towelhead in 2007, and tackled the indie horror film Downloading Nancy the next year. In 2010 she scored a small part in the Adam Sandler comedy Grown Ups as well as major parts in a couple of dramas - The Company Men and Beautiful Boy.She next returned to television, taking the lead role in the NBC remake of the British series Prime Suspect in 2011. The show was cancelled after only 13 episodes, but Bello quickly booked another television role, in the second season of Fox's Touch, opposite Kiefer Sutherland. That show was also canceled after that season, and Bello returned to film, reprising her role in Grown Up 2 in 2013.Active in social causes as well, Maria Bello co-founded the Harlem not-for-profit arts and education program, Dream Yard Drama Project for Kids.

Trivia: Los Angeles native Sasha Alexander honed her interest in acting with roles in school plays, but soon graduated to a professional career with roles on shortlived series like the drama Wasteland and the wild comedy Greg the Bunny, on which she shared an on-screen kiss with comedian Sarah Silverman. In 2003, Alexander took on the role of Agent Caitlin Todd on the series NCIS. She would play the role for many seasons to come, in addition to roles in movies like Yes Man and Love Happens, and other TV shows, like Rizzoli & Isles.

Trivia: Born in New York City on August 8th, 1968 and raised in Fairfield, CT, prolific film and television actor Michael Weatherly got his start on an episode of The Cosby Show before moving on to carve out an impressive career on screens both large and small. While many television viewers would recognize Weatherly from walk-on roles in such popular television series as Charmed and Ally McBeal, it was the actor's controversial age-disparity romance with Dark Angel co-star Jessica Alba that got tongues wagging around Tinseltown back in 2001. He could be seen opposite Alba on that sci-fi program throughout its two-season run (2000-2001). Later, Weatherly portrayed actor Robert Wagner in the made-for-television drama The Mystery of Natalie Wood before revealing a deeply personal secret about his onscreen girlfriend in Her Minor Thing. In 2003, Weatherly landed his most regular television role to date, as a Naval criminal investigator on NCIS.

Trivia: Born in Chile but raised in Miami, actress Cote de Pablo developed an impressive resumé on both stage and screen. In 2001, she appeared in a New York City Public Theater production of Measure for Measure, and in 2005, she made her Broadway debut in The Mambo Kings. In 2006, she joined the cast of the series NCIS, playing Mossad operative Ziva David. She made her big-screen in the western The Last Rites of Ransom Pride.

Trivia: Played clarinet in his high school band and sang in the choir. Theater debut was in a 1970 college production of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew. Taught an acting class at the Georgia State Penitentiary in the early 1970s. Made his big-screen debut in the 1989 thriller Black Rainbow. Has had recurring roles as an inmate on Prison Break and a former Naval Criminal Investigative Service agent on NCIS.

Trivia: Grew up in Richmond, Virginia and danced professionally with the Richmond Ballet.Focused on French and Postcolonial works while studying Literature at Harvard University.Served as the publicity manager for the Hasty Pudding Theatricals in 2003.Is fluent in French.Appears in the music videos for Counting Crows' "You Can't Count on Me" and Bon Jovi's "What Do You Got?"

Trivia: After debuting as the friend of Winona Ryder's character in the sentimental weepie Autumn in New York (2000), actress Liza Lapira landed bit parts in Tony Scott's feature Domino (2005); guest appearances on such series as Grey's Anatomy, Monk, and Law & Order; and recurring roles on such shows as Huff, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and NCIS. In 2008, Lapira ascended to supporting billing with a plum role as MIT student-turned-gambler Kianna in Robert Luketic's thriller 21. In the years to come, Lapira would appear on shows like Dexter, Dollhouse, and Traffic Light, and in movies like Crazy, Stupid, Love.

Trivia: A fiercely independent crooner who answered to no one and once paid the price for his stubbornness by being hurled through a Latin Quarter plate-glass window, popular singer Alan Dale made television history when the immensely popular Alan Dale Show became the first television program to be kinescoped for viewing across the country. Born the son of an Italian comedian in 1925, Dale began his career at the tender age of nine when the eager youngster bolted on-stage on an open invitation from the audience. Later graduating from Brooklyn's Lafayette High School, the singer was merely 20 years old when his popular television series debuted on the Dumont Television Network in 1948. Later moving to CBS, the overworked singer would gain much attention when, at one point, he collapsed on-air from exhaustion and an ulcer. Though he lost his television shows due to an extended recovery period, Dale made a comeback with a little help from friend and Coral Records A&R chief Bob Theile. Going on to record such hits as "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White" and "Sweet and Gentle," Dale's legions of fans could later catch the singer in the 1957 film Don't Knock the Boat. Many believe that his refusal to accept the offers made to him by figures in the mafia underworld directly correlated with his sagging career, the incident at the Latin Quarter, and a deliberate disappearance from the spotlight. In April of 2002, Alan Dale died in New York following an extended illness.

Trivia: Born in 1996, Mary Matilyn Mouser built a career as a voice actor in films like Bambi II and the series Me, Eloise before gaining prominence in live-action projects. In 2007, she was cast as Mia on the CW family drama Life Is Wild. And though that particular series failed to take hold, Mouser still managed to remain a farmiliar fixture to television viewers by joining the cast of ABC's Body of Proof four years later.

Trivia: Lead actress, onscreen from the late '80s.

Trivia: Possessing a dark but earthy beauty and a natural, winning smile, actress Rena Sofer has found notable small-screen success in such series as Melrose Place, Just Shoot Me, and Coupling after spending the majority of the 1990s in an Emmy-winning role on the daytime soap opera General Hospital. As the millennium turned, so did Sofer's cinematic aspirations, with keen-eyed movie lovers spotting her in such feature efforts as Traffic (2000) and March (2001). An Arcadia, CA, native, Sofer relocated to Pittsburgh when her Orthodox Jewish rabbi father and psychology teacher mother divorced. Spotted by a New York talent agent at the age of 15, it wasn't long before Sofer was appearing on the daytime drama Loving and landing roles on such small-screen efforts as Herman's Head and Saved by the Bell: Hawaiian Style. In 1992, she made her big-screen debut with a small role in Sidney Lumet's A Stranger Among Us with Melanie Griffith. Beginning a four-year run on General Hospital in 1993, Sofer would simultaneously appear in numerous made-for-television features before beginning her year-long run on Melrose Place in 1998. She made a notable leap back to the big screen with a small role in the 2000 comedy Keeping the Faith, and after following up with Traffic, Sofer settled back into sitcom life with a high-profile guest-starring role on Ed. In the 2002 made-for television remake of Carrie, her part as a sympathetic high school teacher proved a highlight of the otherwise forgettable effort, and in 2003, she headed the cast of Coupling, the highly anticipated American remake of the popular U.K. sitcom.

Trivia: Actress Lindsay Price began her career when she was just a little girl, appearing in commercials including a Toys "R" Us ad in which she sang the toy store's famous jingle. Price eventually grew into a young woman, attending the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA, but her interest in appearing onscreen only grew. She began making appearances on shows like Boy Meets World by the time she was 17 and two years later, in 1995, she scored a recurring role on the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful. Then, in 1998, she joined the cast of the night-time drama Beverly Hills 90210, which was beginning its tenth season. She brought a new, fresh energy to the series, leading to a string of appearances over the next few years, including a starring role on the American remake of the British series Coupling, as well as roles on Pepper Dennis and Lipstick Jungle. In 2009 she was cast in the short-lived TV series Eastwick, based on the popular novel and film The Witches of Eastwick. After welcoming a son with chef Curtis Stone in 2011, Price slowed down her acting work, though she still appeared in occasional guest spots on shows like Two and a Half Men and Hawaii Five-0.

Trivia: Was raised by her single mother and lived alternately with her mother and grandmother. Acted in church events and community theatre before high school. /Looked to her mother and drama teacher, Miss Lillian Monkus, as role models. Was on the track team at school. Started to appear in adverts while studying at University of Illinois at Chicago, Illinois, United States. In 2002, moved to Los Angeles to further her career. Travelled to Johannesburg, South Africa, before filming Strike Back to learn hand-to-hand combat and various military techniques. Starred in the series, How to Get Away with Murder, 2016-2017.

Trivia: Upon earning his BA at Bucknell University, Ralph Waite embarked upon no fewer than three careers before deciding upon acting. First, Waite was a social case worker in New York's Westchester County, a job he quit after running into the stone walls of indifference and bureaucracies. Then, after spending three years at the Yale School of Divinity, he was a practicing Presbyterian minister; this, too fell by the wayside due to Waite's unwillingness to conform to church protocol and his disenchantment over the perceived hypocrisy of his fellow clerics. Finally, he worked as a religious editor for the publishing firm of Harper & Row. This job might have panned out, but Waite, separated from his wife and suffering an identity crisis, felt the need to "prove himself" by entering a tougher, more competitive field. Thus, at the age of 30, Waite began taking acting lessons. His professional debut in the off-Broadway production The Balcony proved so disastrous that it is little wonder he chooses to regard his 1965 Broadway bow in Hogan's Goat as the true beginning of his career. After an excellent showing as Jack Nicholson's impotent brother in Five Easy Pieces (1971) the offers began pouring in. In 1972, Waite was cast as John Walton in the immensely popular TV series The Waltons. During the nine-season run of that ratings bonanza, Waite helped form the Los Angeles Actors' Theatre. He also was prominently featured in the blockbuster miniseries Roots (1977), and wrote and directed (but did not star in) the 1980 film On the Money. His post-Walton credits included the TV series Mississippi, the film Cliffhanger (1993) and TV movies Crash and Burn and Sin and Redemption. Towards the end of his career, he had a recurring role on Day of Our Lives as Father Matt, and played the father of two leading men on two long-running series - Gibbs on NCIS and Booth on Bones. Waite died in 2014 at age 85.

Trivia: After a string of guest roles on TV and bit parts in movies, actress Marisol Nichols gained prominence as the lead in the 2001 made-for-television romantic drama The Princess and the Marine. Playing an Arab princess who falls in love with an American Marine, Nichols delivered a performance that earned her the Outstanding Actress in a Made for Television Movie or Miniseries prize at the 2002 American Latino Media Arts Awards. More supporting roles on TV followed until 2005, when Nichols landed the female lead opposite Ron Eldard on the Steven Bochco-produced cop show Blind Justice. The series proved to be short-lived, but Nichols' status as a lead performer was cemented, and in 2006 she was cast on the Kyle MacLachlan legal drama In Justice. That same year, she appeared with Martin Lawrence in the comedy sequel Big Momma's House 2. In 2007, In Justice got the axe from ABC, but not before Nichols joined the cast of Fox's hit serial 24 as Nadia Yassir, a U.S. counter-terrorism agent of Middle Eastern descent struggling with an atmosphere of deepening distrust toward Arabs in the wake of a fictional terrorist attack. For the next few years it appeared as if Nichols was focusing all of her energies toward television, with featuerd roles in The Storm, The Gates, and GCB following in quick succession, and serving well to keep ehr in the public eye.

Trivia: Sean Astin had starred in ten movies, directed a short film, and formed his own production company all before his 21st birthday. The elder son of actress Patty Duke and actor/director John Astin, he knew the hazards of Hollywood life: As a popular child star, Astin refrained from drinking, drugs, and narcissism. He juggled acting with attending classes at Crossroads High School for the Arts and Los Angeles Valley College, eventually graduating cum laude from the University of California at Los Angeles with dual degrees in History and American Literature and Culture. When his younger brother, fellow kid actor Mackenzie Astin, temporarily fled Los Angeles to pursue journalism, Astin doggedly remained in town -- he once half-heartedly considered a law career, but could never part with being an entertainer. Astin was born in Santa Monica, CA, on February 25, 1971. His famous parents actively supported his childhood ambition to become an actor, and Astin was cast in TV specials, movies, and even series until 1983. Barely a year later, screenwriter Steven Spielberg handpicked the 13-year-old Astin to star as Michael "Mikey" Walsh in Richard Donner's children's adventure film The Goonies (1985). Astin earned his first Young Artist Award for his work on the film and went on to act in a host of teen pictures. He headlined the Disney Channel television movie The B.R.A.T. Patrol (1986), joined Kevin Bacon for the wilderness adventure White Water Summer (1987), and appeared with Dudley Moore and Kirk Cameron in the comedy Like Father, Like Son (1987).In 1988, Astin directed his first short film, a Vietnam picture about the unexpected relationship between an American GI and a Viet Cong soldier titled On My Honor. Astin's own production company, Lava Entertainment, financed the film. While continuing to develop projects through Lava Entertainment, Astin starred with Dermot Mulroney in 1989's Staying Together. He won his second Young Artist Award for his performance in the picture. Also in 1989, Astin portrayed the teenage son of feuding couple Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas in Danny DeVito's The War of the Roses. He finished off the '80s by enlisting in the all-star cast of Michael Caton-Jones' World War II drama Memphis Belle (1990). The film -- which also features Matthew Modine, Harry Connick Jr., Billy Zane, and Eric Stoltz -- followed the crew of the Memphis Belle bomber on their harrowing final run over Germany. Astin's stocky build and comic timing lent well to his incarnation as the group's tail gunner, Sergeant Richard "Rascal" Moore. When Astin initially lost the lead role in his next picture, Toy Soldiers (1991), to Wil Wheaton, he treated the film's director, Dan Petrie Jr., to a screening of Memphis Belle. Petrie was so impressed by his work that he relegated Wheaton to a supporting part and cast Astin as Toy Soldiers' hero, a rebellious student who saves his prep school from South American terrorists.In the spring of 1992, Astin starred with Pauly Shore and Brendan Fraser in Encino Man, a comedy about two California high school students who discover a caveman. He then reunited with Dermot Mulroney in the drama Where the Day Takes You (1992), which also stars Will Smith, Christian Slater, Lara Flynn Boyle, and Ricki Lake. 1993 saw Astin play the title character in Rudy, the memorable film about a tenacious boy determined to play football for Notre Dame despite the fact that he is too small. Football coaches around the United States still show the film before games to inspire their players, and, to this day, strangers still chant "Rudy! Rudy!" when they spot Astin on the street.After filming Safe Passage (1994) with Susan Sarandon and Sam Shepard, Astin appeared in the independent film The Low Life (1995), for which he won the Best Actor Award at the 1995 Fort Lauderdale Film Festival. That same year, he wrote, directed, and produced his second short film, Kangaroo Court. The picture tells the story of a police officer who is put on trial by an inner-city gang and stars Gregory Hines and Michael O'Keefe. It earned Astin an Academy Award nomination for Best Short Film (coincidently, John Astin was nominated in the same category for his film Prelude in 1969).Astin continued to work steadily throughout the '90s. In 1995, he starred in Showtime's adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut Jr.'s futuristic short story Harrison Bergeron. In 1996, he made a cameo as a doomed soldier in the first feature film to depict Desert Storm, Edward Zwick's Courage Under Fire. In 1997, he directed and starred in an episode of HBO's Perversions of Science called "Snap Ending" and was one of several narrators in the Academy Award-winning Holocaust documentary The Long Way Home. In 1998, Astin took a small role in Warren Beatty's Bulworth and began work on a string of independent films -- including Boy Meets Girl (1998), Dish Dogs (1998), Kimberly (1999), Deterrence (1999), and Icebreaker (1999). The decade also brought changes to Astin's personal life. On July 11, 1992, he married Christine Astin (born Harrell) at Patty Duke's Idaho farm. The couple met when she worked at Astin's talent agency and they co-founded Lava Entertainment together. Then, in 1994, Astin underwent DNA testing that revealed rock promoter Michael Tell to be his biological father (Patty Duke and Tell had been briefly married before her engagement to John Astin). Though the actor is friendly with Tell, he still considers those who raised him to be his parents. Two years later, Astin and his wife had their first child, Alexandra Louise, in November of 1996. In the summer of 1999, Astin landed the coveted part of portly hobbit Samwise "Sam" Gamgee in Peter Jackson's highly anticipated three-film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Auditions for the role were held over several months in every English-speaking country in the world. Astin's father had appeared in Jackson's horror film The Frighteners, and the veteran actor's fondness for the director made Astin determined to get the part. When he found that his only competition was an overweight English thespian, Astin gained 30 pounds to secure the role. All three installments of the trilogy -- The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Two Towers (2002), and The Return of the King (2003) -- were filmed simultaneously over an 18-month period in New Zealand. Astin's wife and daughter accompanied him to the shoot and Alexandra made her acting debut as a young hobbit in Sam Gamgee's family. The couple had a second child, Elizabeth Louise, between the release of the first and second films.After the success of the Lord of the Rings franchise, Astin kept busy with a slew of projects throughout the 2000s, like 50 First Dates, Click, and an arc on the TV series 24. Astin would also do extensive voice acting in the 2000s and 2010s, on kids shows like Special Agent Oso and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Trivia: A self-described "navy brat," William Russ travelled all over the country in his formative years. Russ settled down in one place long enough to attend the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor; here he studied drama with such classmates as Christine Lahti. After graduation, he toured Europe as a member of the Ann Arbor mime troupe. Back in the states, he attended New York's Neighborhood Playhouse on a scholarship. His subsequent New York stage credits include MacBeth, The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel (in which he appeared with Al Pacino) and Buried Child. In films since 1989's Disorganized Crime, Russ' largest and most rewarding movie role (thus far) was over-the-hill ballplayer Roy Dean Bream in 1991's Pastime. Russ is best known to the public at large for his TV work: he has played Burt McCowan in Another World, Roger Lococco in Wiseguy, Redmond Dunne in Capitol News and Terry Hannon in The Middle Ages. At present, William Russ -- billed under his nickname "Rusty" -- appears on a weekly basis as Ben Savage's father on Boy Meets World, taking occasional time-outs to co-star in such made-for-TV movies as Big Dreams and Broken Hearts: The Dottie West Story (1995).

Trivia: The daughter of film stars Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, Jamie Lee Curtis launched her film career as a "scream queen." After a nondescript supporting role on the TV series Operation Petticoat, Curtis rose to cult stardom playing the straight-laced teenage babysitter imperiled by an unknown slasher in Halloween (1978). Upon appearing in the film's sequel and in such spookers as The Fog (1979) and Prom Night (1980), she seemed in danger of being limited to blood-splattered horror films. But Curtis wasn't about to be typed this early in the game: with a meaty secondary role as a prostitute -- featuring several well-publicized nude scenes -- in the big-budget comedy Trading Places (1983), she made the transition from imperiled teen type to knowing adult with nary a hitch. Curtis didn't exactly have a string of box-office smashes after Trading Places, but she was always worth watching even when the films weren't. And when the good parts did come along, notably her roles in A Fish Called Wanda (1988) and My Girl (1991), she proved she was an actress of range and stature and not just another "movie star's kid." Taking a potentially humiliating role as the unknowing wife of a secret agent in the megabucks Arnold Schwarzenegger adventure True Lies (1994), Curtis delivered a sparkling performance, emerging as the only truly likable character in a loud and misogynistic melodrama. In 1997, she was reunited with the cast of A Fish Called Wanda (Kevin Kline, John Cleese, and Michael Palin) for Fierce Creatures, another comedy farce in the same vein as Wanda. Unfortunately, the film was largely disappointing; but, the following year, Curtis rebounded with a return to familiar territory in Halloween: H2O. The slasher flick, although less than a critical favorite, proved to be popular with audiences. In 1999, Curtis again ventured into the big-budget realm with the action thriller Virus, and had a supporting role in Daddy and Them, Billy Bob Thornton's sophomore writing/directorial effort. She could then be seen in Drowning Mona, a black comedy in which she played a waitress caught up in an affair with the husband of her town's most infamous dead woman.The 2000s have brought Curtis several interesting opportunities, including a live performance at Paul McCartney's benefit for the controversial animal rights organization PETA in 2000, and a no-holds-barred photo shoot with More magazine in 2002 -- the then 44-year-old actress wanted to emphasize that even high-profile celebrities look "normal" without the help of a team of makeup artists and digital alterations. In 2001, Curtis starred alongside Oscar-winner Geoffrey Rush and James Bond front man Pierce Brosnan in the espionage thriller The Tailor of Panama, and returned for a cameo appearance in Halloween: Resurrection, which supposedly marked her final role in the Halloween franchise. Curtis would return to more family-oriented pictures in 2003's spirited Freaky Friday with Lindsay Lohan, which featured the forty-something actress playing a punky teen whose spirit had magically been transferred to her mother's body; the success of that film led to the curdled comedy of the critically drubbed Christmas With the Kranks. She acted in Beverly Hills Chihuahua and You Again, but became better known in later years as a spokeswoman for Activia yogurt.Married to actor Christopher Guest since 1984, Curtis became a Baroness, Lady Haden-Guest, when her husband inherited the Barony in 1996.

Trivia: Like many of his Canadian contemporaries, actor Matt Craven broke into films by way of such adolescent sex comedies as Meatballs (1979) and Hog Wild (1980). Craven honed his acting skills on the off-Broadway stage, beginning with the 1984 production Blue Willows. He has since contributed supporting performances to films like Blue Steel (1990), A Few Good Men (1992), and Crimson Tide (1995). Matt Craven's TV-series roles include bartender Ritchie Massina in the Robby Benson starrer Tough Cookies (1986) and Bobby Kratz in the Alan Arkin vehicle Harry (1987). In 1998, Craven was part of an ensemble cast for the medical drama L.A. Doctors. In the 21st century he enjoyed a brief recurring role on the hit medical dram ER and appeared in moves such as Dragonfly and Timeline. He continued to work steadily on a wide variety of projects including The Life of David Gale, the TV series The Lyon's Den, the remake of Assault on Precinct 13, Disturbia, Public Enemies, and the superhero prequel X-Men: First Class.

Trivia: While other students at Berkeley were weaving flowers in their hair and blowing weed, Joe Spano was laying the groundwork for an acting career. After establishing himself on the San Francisco theatrical scene, Spano began showing up on screen in such supporting roles as Vic in American Graffiti (1974) and Ace in Roadie (1980). From January 1981 through May 1987, Spano could be seen on a weekly basis as Henry Goldblume, the bespectacled and bowtied community affairs officer on the TV series Hill Street Blues. In 1992, Joe Spano made his Broadway debut in a revival of Arthur Miller's The Price.

Trivia: Made her Broadway debut at age 8 in How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Also appeared on Broadway in Billy Elliot and Mary Poppins. Is an experienced equestrienne. Supports the ASPCA and PETA. Has appeared in commercials for Microsoft, Burger King, Sprint and AOL. Studied ballet, jazz, lyrical and tap dance.

Trivia: American actress Lauren Holly has herself admitted that turning down the female lead in the Jim Carrey vehicle Ace Ventura, Pet Detective (1994) may not have been the wisest career move. Holly was acting on instinct, having co-starred with another highly individual comedian, Andrew Dice Clay, in 1990's forgettable The Adventures of Ford Fairlane. But when profits from Ace Ventura soared, Lauren was more than willing to sign on for the subsequent Carrey vehicle, Dumb and Dumber (1995), during the filming of which she and Carrey became an item. The actress has kept busy ever since her first important TV role as Betty in Archie: To Riverdale and Back Again (1990) and a stint on the ABC soap opera All My Children. Prior to her recent film success, Holly was perhaps best known for her role as Deputy Maxine Stewart on the CBS drama Picket Fences .In 1995 the actress played a doctor in Sydney Pollack's remake of Sabrina, and went a different direction in 1996's comedy Down Periscope, in which she played Lieutenant Emily Lake. Holly took on a supporting role in Any Given Sunday (1999), a rousing sports drama from director Oliver Stone, and joined Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt to play a supporting role in 2000's romantic comedy What Women Want. The following year Holly would voice Chihiro's mother in the US rerelease of the acclaimed anime fantasy Spirited Away the following year, and from 2005 until 2008 became known for her role as Director Jenny Shepard on CBS' long-running police procedural NCIS. Holly voiced the character of Haulie on the Adventures of Chuck & Friends, an animated series for children in 2010, and continues to be active in film and television.