Trivia: Working as a Disneyland concessionaire in his teens, comedian Steve Martin's first experiences in entertainment were of the party performer variety -- he picked up skills in juggling, tap-dancing, sleight of hand, and balloon sculpting, among other things. He later attended U.C.L.A., where he majored in philosophy and theater before moving on to staff-writer stints for such TV performers as Glen Campbell, the Smothers Brothers, Dick Van Dyke, John Denver, and Sonny & Cher. Occasionally allowed to perform as well as write, Martin didn't go into standup comedy full-time until the late '60s, when he moved to Canada and appeared as a semi-regular on the syndicated TV variety series Half the George Kirby Comedy Hour. As the opening act for rock stars in the early '70s, Martin emulated the fashion of the era with a full beard, shaggy hair, colorful costumes, and drug jokes. Comedians of such ilk were common in this market, however, so Martin carefully developed a brand-new persona: the well-groomed, immaculately dressed young man who goes against his appearance by behaving like a lunatic. By 1975, he was the "Comic of the Hour," convulsing audiences with his feigned enthusiasm over the weakest of jokes and the most obvious of comedy props. His entire act a devastating parody of second-rate comedians who rely on preconditioning to get laughs, Martin became internationally famous for such catch phrases as "Excu-u-use me!," "Happy feet!," and "I am...one wild and crazy guy!" It was fun for a while to hear audiences shout them out even before he'd uttered them, but it wasn't long before Martin was tired of live standup and anxious to get into films. Though Martin had roles in Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1977) and The Muppet Movie, Martin's true screen bow was The Jerk (1979), in which, with the seriousness of Olivier, he portrayed a bumbling, self-described poor black child-turned accidental millionaire. Had he been a lesser performer, Martin could have played variations on The Jerk for the remainder of his life, but he preferred to seek out new challenges. It took nerve to go against the sensibilities of his fans with an on-edge portrayal of a habitual loser in Pennies From Heaven (1981), but Martin was successful, even if the film wasn't. And few other actors could convincingly pull off a project like Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1983), wherein, and with utter conviction, he acted opposite film clips of dead movie stars. After a first-rate turn in All of Me (1984), in which he played a man whose body is inhabited by the soul of a woman, Martin's film work began to fluctuate in quality, only to emerge on top again with Roxanne (1987), a potentially silly but ultimately compelling update of Cyrano de Bergerac. Though he participated in a fair amount of misses in the '80s and '90s (Mixed Nuts (1994), Housesitter (1992), Leap of Faith (1992), and Sgt. Bilko (1996), to name a few), Martin was unarguably full of surprises, as witnessed in his unsympathetic portrayal in Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1989), his hilariously evil dentist in Little Shop of Horrors (1986), his angst-ridden father in Parenthood (1989), his smooth-talking Italian in My Blue Heaven, and his callow film producer in Grand Canyon (1991) -- though the public still seemed to prefer his standard comic performances in The Three Amigos (1986), Father of the Bride (1991), and L.A. Story (1991). Martin then went out on yet another artistic limb with A Simple Twist of Fate (1994) -- a film update of that high-school English-class perennial Silas Marner. After starring in a very dark role in David Mamet's The Spanish Prisoner (1997) and an unsuccessful return to comedy in The Out-of-Towners (1999), Martin again won acclaim for Bowfinger, a 1999 comedy-satire that cast him as its titular hero, an unsuccessful movie director trying to make a film without the aid of a real script or real star. Martin -- who also wrote the film's screenplay -- played the straight man against Eddie Murphy, once again impressing critics with his versatility. According to rumor, Martin based Heather Graham's character on former flame Ann Heche.In addition to his Hollywood activities, Martin is well-known for his intellectual pursuits. His play Picasso at the Lapin Agile was produced successfully off-Broadway, and he has contributed numerous humor pieces to The New Yorker magazine, and penned the bestselling novella Shopgirl. Martin was also a featured artist in the PBS documentary series Art 21: Art in the 21st Century and discussed the visual arts as an integral form of self-expression. The 2000's found Martin in a slew of smaller roles, including a cameo as a heckler in Remember the Titans (2000), and a supporting role in director Stanely Tucci's historical comedy drama Joe Gould's Secret (2000). In 2001's Novacaine, Martin found himself playing dentist for the second time in his life, though this dentist would be decidedly less sadistic than the one he had played in camp favorite Little Shop of Horrors (1986). Despite an all-star cast (besides Martin, Novacaine featured Oscar-winner Helena Bonham Carter and Laura Dern) the black comedy was dismally received. Luckily, 2003's odd-couple comedy Bringing Down the House with Queen Latifah, rapper and surprising Oscar nominee for her role in Chicago, fared relatively well in theaters. Martin teamed up with the likes of Brendan Fraser, Jenna Elfman, and Bugs Bunny in Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003), in which he plays the evil Mr. Chairman, head of the monolithic Acme Corporation. A film version of Shopgirl starring Martin and Claire Danes is currently slated for a 2005 release. Martin would remain a vital comedic actor in the years to come, appearing in films like Baby Mama and It's Complicated.

Trivia: Blonde, vivacious actress Bonnie Hunt made a memorable film debut as the waitress who drops toothpicks after she is inadvertently intimidated by autistic savant Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man (1989). The sixth of seven children, Hunt was born in Chicago, on September 22, 1964. Her love of acting began in high school and, though she wanted to become a professional actor, her father pushed her toward nursing, the profession she pursued after graduation. Even after her father passed away while she was in nursing school, Hunt continued with the program and upon graduation worked in the oncology ward of Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Working with so many terminally ill cancer patients had a profound effect on her, inspiring her not to wait to pursue her original dream. While still working as a nurse, she landed roles in small plays and began studying at the Second City Improvisational Theater. She worked for a time with a different improv troupe before being invited to join Second City's touring company in 1986. Within a few weeks, she had proven to be such a gifted comedienne that she was promoted to the troupe's first string of performers. Shortly after debuting in Rain Man, Hunt accepted an offer to work with Second City's Los Angeles-based troupe; two months later, she left the troupe and within a few days of her initial unemployment was offered the chance to star in a sitcom on NBC. However, the show, entitled Grand, lasted less than a season. She made a second attempt at television, playing Jonathan Winters' daughter on Davis Rules, but she again found herself unemployed when it was cancelled. In 1992, Hunt made her first appearance on Late Night With David Letterman. The appearance proved to be an important juncture for Hunt as she not only charmed the irascible Letterman, but wowed the audience with her witty stories. Hunt became a personal friend of the talk show host and made frequent return visits. Around 1993, Letterman produced the short-lived CBS sitcom The Building, which Hunt had created and for which she penned 20 episodes. Hunt herself starred along with cronies from her Second City days; with the show's first airing, she became the first woman to write and star in her own series.In film, Hunt had her first starring role in Beethoven (1992), followed by a cameo role as a White House tour guide in the romantic comedy Dave (1993). She has subsequently alternated between supporting and leading roles. One of her best-known parts was the sharp-tongued Laurel in Cameron Crowe's Jerry Maguire (1996). She also appeared in Frank Darabont's The Green Mile (1999) as the wife of a prison security guard (Tom Hanks). In 2000, Hunt added feature film directing and screenwriting to her resume with Return to Me, a romantic comedy starring David Duchovny and Minnie Driver. Hunt also took on a supporting role in the film which went on to become a modest sleeper hit. After trying her hand behind the camera, in 2002 Hunt decided to take her fourth shot at the small screen (1995's The Bonnie Hunt Show was a flop too), producing and starring in ABC's Life With Bonnie. A mix of traditional sitcom and improv, the show proved to be a hit and netted the actress consecutive Best Actress Golden Globe nominations.In the wake of the show's success, Hunt returned to film, starring alongside Steve Martin in 2003's Cheaper by the Dozen. The film saw Hunt play the mother of twelve children and proved to by quite a success, raking in well over $100 million at the box-office. A featured role in Tim Kirkman's episodic indie-drama Loggerheads preceded a trip back into the realm of Pixar magic when Hunt provided the voice of sexy Porche Sally in 2006's computer animation hit Cars. Hunt rejoined Pixar in 2010 to voice Dolly the doll in Toy Story 3, and reprised her role as Sally for Cars 2.

Trivia: Actress Piper Perabo learned one of Hollywood's rules of self-preservation early on: lie. Auditioning for her first major film role in Whiteboyz (1999), a spoof of white homeboy culture, Perabo was asked if she knew how to rap. She replied that she did, even though she was completely clueless about the musical style. After getting the part, she took a two-week crash course in hip-hop and emerged well-versed in both the music and the art of securing employment. Although Whiteboyz failed to make much of an impression in theaters, Perabo did manage to attract attention in her role as the college-bound girlfriend of the film's protagonist and was soon being touted as the latest blonde, blue-eyed Next Big Thing to sashay across the collective psyche of the filmgoing public.A native of Toms River, NJ, where she was born in 1977, Perabo first became involved in acting through drama lessons at Manhattan's LaMama Theatre. After graduating summa cum laude from Ohio University with a BFA in acting in 1998, she worked on the stage and soon landed her role in Whiteboyz. On the heels of that film, Perabo was cast as FBI agent Karen Sympathy opposite Robert De Niro, Rene Russo, and Jason Alexander in The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and also bagged the lead in Jerry Bruckheimer's Coyote Ugly. Both debuting in the summer of 2000, neither film found much popularity among critics, but the latter--a flamboyant and fairly disconcerting blend of Flashdance, Cocktail, and an extended-play Budweiser ad--succeeded in putting Perabo in the summer spotlight.Over the ensuing few years, Perabo maintained most of her buzz despite failing to attach herself to any bonafide hits, appearing in such disparate films as the 2001 well-received indie-film Lost and Delirious and the 2002's DOA comedy Slap Her... She's French. Finally, at the end of 2003, Perabo hit paydirt, starring as the eldest of twelve children in the holiday blockbuster, Cheaper by the Dozen. She never had the breakout role she seemed destined for, but she worked steadily in projects like the Cheaper By the Dozen sequel, The Prestige, The Lazarus Project, and Beverly Hills Chihuahua. In 2010 she was cast as one of the leads in the TV series Covert Affairs.

Trivia: Born April 26th, 1977, actor Tom Welling is a former construction worker and soccer player who admits his indifference to comic books. After a few modeling jobs, he guest starred opposite Amy Brenneman on a few episodes of the CBS drama Judging Amy. In 2001 he was cast as the teenaged Clark Kent on the WB series Smallville. As the awkward young superhero with many opportunities to bear his chiseled chest, Welling won a Teen Choice award and was consequently branded a breakthrough star. He made his film debut in the 2003 remake Cheaper by the Dozen, along with fellow teen star Hilary Duff. He would also appear in the film's sequel in 2005, as well as a remake of John Carpenter's The Fog that same year, but mostly kept busy with his trademark role on Smallville, until the series ended its decade run in 2011. Welling took some time off once the show ended, but soon returned in the 2013 film Parkland (playing a secret service agent) and 2014's Draft Day (playing a professional quarterback).

Trivia: Teen actress Hilary Duff quickly rose to fame on the strength of her winning performance on the successful television series Lizzie McGuire. Born in Houston, TX, September 28, 1987, she developed an interest in dance at the age of six and began taking ballet lessons, later making her stage debut in a Christmas production of The Nutcracker. She developed a stronger passion for acting after being cast in a television commercial, and, in 1998, appeared in the direct-to-video Casper Meets Wendy as Wendy, a youthful witch. After taking on more dramatic roles in the made-for-TV movie The Soul Collector and a guest appearance on Chicago Hope, Duff was cast in the title role of Lizzie McGuire in 2001. A sitcom for young people, Lizzie McGuire concerned the trials and tribulations of middle-school student Lizzie as she and her animated alter ego deal with the funny side of adolescence. An immediate hit on The Disney Channel, the show made Duff a recognizable face to television viewers, and Disney quickly responded by casting her in a made-for-cable movie, Cadet Kelly, which earned high ratings. In 2002, the actress also made a brief appearance in the offbeat comedy Human Nature, playing Young Lila, a hirsute child who grows up to become Patricia Arquette. After the success of Lizzie McGuire, Duff branched out into music, writing and singing a song for the show's soundtrack album, and recording a Christmas album in 2002. Released in theaters in the summer of 2003, The Lizzie McGuire Movie provided the ideal cinematic alternative for pre-teen girls uninterested in the exploits of X2: X-Men United and too young to be swept up in the hype of The Matrix Reloaded. Taking in twice the cost of production in only four weeks at the box office, Duff stunned fans less than a month after the film's stateside release by announcing that, due to contract negotiation failures, she would be departing from the lucrative Lizzie McGuire franchise to pursue other career opportunities. By the time the show's finale aired in 2004, Duff had already kicked her film career into high gear, closing out 2003 with three hit films under her belt: Agent Cody Banks, the aforementioned Lizzie McGuire Movie, and the holiday blockbuster Cheaper by the Dozen.Hoping to keep her momentum growing, Duff would continue to appear in tween-friendly features like Raise Your Voice, Cheaper by the Dozen 2, and Material Girls. As the 2000's unfolded, however, Duff would take on slightly more adult roles, most memorably in movies like Stay Cool and on TV shows like Gossip Girl. She continued to find success in TV, booking guest roles on Raising Hope and Two and a Half Men and nabbing a main role on the series Younger.

Trivia: Actor Kevin Schmidt began his career with a series of guest appearances, playing small parts on shows like King of Queens and in movies like Cheaper by the Dozen. In 2008, the 20 year old landed the role of Noah Newman on the soap The Young and the Restless, remaining with the show for over a year.

Trivia: One of the more popular "tweener" stars during the 2000s, Toledo native Alyson Stoner followed the path of many a 21st century ingenue by entering show business courtesy of Disney. Born in August 1993, Stoner began performing at the age of three, with jazz, tap, and ballet classes at O'Connell's Dance Studio in Holland, OH; she also modeled from the age of six, courtesy of Toledo's Margaret O'Brien Modeling Studio. Stoner's laurels in a number of related New York competitions convinced her parents to whisk her off to Los Angeles, where she signed with an agent and began landing acting parts in numerous productions.Hollywood assignments commenced well before Alyson's tenth birthday and included voicing a character in the 2002 animated feature Lilo & Stitch and playing Sarah Baker in the two Steve Martin remakes of Cheaper by the Dozen. These initial projects laid down a pattern that Stoner followed in successive years, wherein she alternated between vocal work -- on several Holly Hobbie & Friends releases and various other projects -- and live-action parts, such as a supporting role in the Disney Channel telemovie musical Camp Rock (2008). In summer 2008, she starred in the "dance video hybrid" The Alyson Stoner Project. She appeared in the Camp Rock sequel, as well as Step Up 3D. In 2011 she lent her vocal talents to the animated projects The Little Engine That Could.

Trivia: Having acquired legions of loyal female followers with his portrayal of the ever-horny and dimwitted Kelso in the popular television comedy series That 70s Show, it may come as a surprise that male model-turned-actor Ashton Kutcher ironically majored in biochemical engineering at the University of Iowa before his "discovery" in an Iowa bar and subsequent stint on the catwalk for such fashion industry luminaries as Versace and Calvin Klein.Born in Cedar Rapids, IA, along with a fraternal twin named Michael, Kutcher was bitten by the acting bug in high school. Balancing his love for the stage with his talent for wrestling before gravitating toward the former in such high school productions as Annie, Kutcher worked numerous odd jobs during his tenure at the University of Iowa before winning the Fresh Faces of Iowa contest in 1997 and heading for New York. Competing in that same year's International Model and Talent Agency competition before being signed to the next agency, Kutcher relocated to Los Angeles the following year and soon landed his breakthrough role on That 70s Show. Though he had small roles in Down to You and Reindeer Games (both 2000), Kutcher's first major big-screen role was in Dude, Where's My Car? (also 2000), in which he teamed his airheaded goofiness with that of American Pie's Sean William Scott. Breaking out of the mold with a more serious turn alongside James Van Der Beek in 2001's Texas Rangers, a return to comedy wasn't far behind with a role in My Boss's Daughter scheduled for release later that same year. Though My Boss's Daughter would ultimately be pushed back to a late February 2003 release date, Kutcher and actress Brittany Murphy (8 Mile) scored a modest hit when Just Married was released into theaters in early January of the same year. Despite receiving only a lukewarm reception from critics, positive audience turnout ensured that Just Married would nevertheless hold on to a position in the box office top-ten for nearly a month after its release. Though My Boss's Daughter failed to stir up much at the box-office, the one-two punch of his immensely popular MTV prank show Punk'd and a high-profile romance with Demi Moore (whom he later married and then divorced) shot Kutcher's celebrity stock through the roof in 2003. He subsequently closed out the year with a self-depricating role in the holiday hit Cheaper by the Dozen.2004 saw Kutcher trying his hand at drama once again with the supernatural thriller The Butterfly Effect. Though the reviews were mixed, the film had its share of fans among critics and went on to makeup its budget more than three-times over. Kutcher continued finding success on the small-screen by producing the series Beauty and the Geek. In 2005 he teamed with Bernie Mac for the racial comedy Guess Who, and 2006 found Kutcher trying his hand at more action oriented fare teaming up with Kevin Costner for The Guardian. The actor would continue to find his place in the romcom niche with 2008's What Happens in Vegas, 2010's Valentine's Day and 2011's No Strings Attached, but made particular waves with a return to television, when he famously signed on to replace Charlie Sheen on the sitcom Two and a Half Men in 2011. His movie career slowed due to his television commitments, but he did find time to play Apple co-founder Steve Jobs in the 2013 bio-drama Jobs. Two and a Half Men wrapped up in 2015, leaving Kutcher free to return to movies and producing.

Trivia: A native of Rockville, MD, Paula Marshall maintained steady work on television starting at the beginning of the '90s. She scored small recurring parts on The Wonder Years and Life Goes On and one-off appearances on a variety of shows including Seinfeld and Diagnosis Murder. After landing parts in films as diverse as Warlock: The Armageddon and The New Age, Marshall was cast as a regular in a string of television programs that failed to last beyond their initial seasons; Wild Oats, Cupid, Snoops, and Out of Practice were among these shows. She also appeared in multiple episodes of such series as Spin City, Sports Night, and Just Shoot Me. After landing a four-episode gig on Veronica Mars, Marshall appeared in a few episodes of Californication and Shark, as well as taking on a recurring role during the fifth season of Nip/Tuck. Her character on the salacious plastic surgery series, Kate Tinsley, was a formerly overweight television actress who served as a love interest for Dr. Sean McNamara (Dylan Walsh).

Trivia: A supporting actor in theater, television, and feature films, Alan Ruck is best-known for playing the troubled Cameron opposite Matthew Broderick in John Hughes' Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986) and for co-starring on the ABC network situation comedy Spin City (1996-2002). A native of Cleveland, OH, Ruck's interest in acting began in high school. After earning a degree in theater from the University of Illinois, he spent five years actively involved in Chicago theater. Ruck made his feature film debut in 1983, appearing in two Chicago-produced films, Class and Bad Boys. Ruck's television career began around the same time, when he appeared in the telemovies First Steps and Hard Knox. His subsequent TV credits include guest appearances in shows such as Going Places and in movies like The Ransom of Red Chief. He took his first Broadway bow in the original 1985 production of Neil Simon's Biloxi Blues. Over the coming years, Ruck would remain active on screen, playing recurring characters on shows like The Bronx is Burning, Greek and Persons Unknown.

Trivia: A balding supporting actor with a grin that suggests he knows something you don't, Richard Jenkins has become one of the most in-demand character actors in Hollywood. Though he has worked steadily since the early '80s, Jenkins may have made his most memorable impression, at least to HBO subscribers, as the patriarch of the family of undertakers on the hit 2001 drama Six Feet Under. His character was killed off in the first episode, but Jenkins continued to appear as a spirit lingering in the family's memory -- a good metaphor for the actor's lingering impact on viewers, even when he appears in small roles.Jenkins, who shares the birth name of Richard Burton and sometimes appears as Richard E. Jenkins, was born and raised in Dekalb, IL, before studying theater at Illinois Wesleyan University. The actor developed a long and distinguished regional theater career, most notably a 15-year stint at Rhode Island's Trinity Repertory Theater, where he served as artistic director for four years. He snagged his first role as early as 1975, in the TV movie Brother to Dragons, but did not begin working regularly until a small role in the Lawrence Kasdan film Silverado (1985). Supporting work in such films as Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), The Witches of Eastwick (1987), and Sea of Love (1989) followed, and Jenkins spent the early '90s specializing in made-for-TV movies, including the adaptation of Randy Shilts' AIDS opus And the Band Played On (1993).It was not until the late '90s that Jenkins started gaining wider appreciation, especially as he indulged in his talent for comedy. His appearance as an uptight gay FBI agent who gets accidentally drugged was one of the highlights of David O. Russell's Flirting With Disaster (1996), allowing him to convincingly (and riotously) act out an acid trip. Working again with Ben Stiller, Jenkins appeared as a psychiatrist in There's Something About Mary (1998), which launched a relationship with directors Peter and Bobby Farrelly, who hail from the state (Rhode Island) where Jenkins did much of his stage work. Jenkins appeared in the Farrelly-produced Outside Providence (1999) and Say It Isn't So (2001), as well as in the Farrelly-directed Me, Myself & Irene (2000). The actor then shifted over to another set of brother directors to portray the father of Scarlet Johansson's character in Joel and Ethan Coen's noir The Man Who Wasn't There (2001). In 2001, Jenkins also appeared in the first season of HBO's Six Feet Under as Nathaniel Fisher Sr., the sardonic funeral home director whom the characters remember as an impenetrable mystery, frugal with his praise and emotions.Jenkins continued working steadily, carrying on his role on Six Feet Under, while turning in supporting work in varied projects like Changing Lanes, Shall We Dance, and Fun With Dick & Jane. With 2005's North Country he earned strong reviews as the father of a sexually harassed woman. After decades in the business, he won his first starring role in Tom McCarthy's The Visitor. For his work as the repressed professor who learns to engage in life again thanks to an unexpected friendship with a Syrian immigrant, Jenkins earned an Oscar nomination for Best Actor, as well as a SAG nomination. That film was the highlight of his 2008, a very busy year for the actor that also saw him reunite for a third time with the Coen Brothers in Burn After Reading, and play opposite Will Ferrell and John C. Riley in Step Brothers. The coming years would continue to earn the actor both a wider audience and more accolades, in projects like Burn After Reading, Let Me In, The Rum Diary, and The Cabin in the Woods.

Trivia: An accomplished character actor most readily at home playing average and undistinguished domestic types (particularly fathers and husbands), Holmes Osborne appeared in scattered projects very occasionally during the 1970s and '80s, but his career only took off at the tail end of the 1990s, culminating with a small role in Alexander Payne's critically worshipped high-school satire Election (1999) -- as the father of class jock Paul Metzler (Chris Klein) and "bad girl" Tammy Metzler (Jessica Campbell). Osborne went on to grace the casts of several key Hollywood and independent films during the next several years, including Donnie Darko (2001), Windtalkers (2002), Cheaper by the Dozen (2003), and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004), in addition to scattered appearances on such television programs as Ally McBeal, The Drew Carey Show, and Invasion. In 2006, Osborne re-teamed with Darko director Richard Kelly for the filmmaker's epic-sized dystopian black comedy Southland Tales.

Trivia: American leading and supporting actress Vanessa Bell Calloway got her first major break playing Imani Izzi in Eddie Murphy's Coming to America (1988), one year after she had made her film debut. The winner of an NAACP Image Award, Calloway has also appeared in numerous other films, including voicing a character in the animated film Bebe's Kids (1992), What's Love Got to Do With It? (1993), and Crimson Tide (1995). Her television credits include a recurring role as Yvonne Caldwell on the daily serial All My Children, during the 1984-1985 season and in 1987.

Trivia: With his bald head and beefy exterior, Hollywood character player Rex Linn quickly built up an acting resumé replete with many portrayals of toughs, feds, cops, thugs, and -- occasionally -- unremarkable, beleaguered everymen. Born in the panhandle of the Lone Star State, Linn came of age in the small Texas town of Spearman. He discovered a lingering interest in drama during his teenage years, but buckled under the weight of discouragement from an acting coach, and put acting on the shelf to focus on career pursuits in banking and the oil industry. Dissatisfied with these fields, Linn convinced an Oklahoma talent agent to sign him, and made the leap from commercials to feature roles with his portrayal of serial murderer Fred Epps in the Peter Masterson-directed thriller Night Game (1989), opposite Roy Scheider. The pleasure of this experience prompted Linn to head to the West Coast, where he worked construction, landed intermittent acting assignments, and studied the craft under the tutelage of Silvana Gallardo in Studio City, CA. Linn was memorable as the rogue treasury agent who assists terrorist John Lithgow in the Sylvester Stallone vehicle Cliffhanger (1993), which brought the actor the recognition he so persistently sought and led to a series of supporting roles in dozens of feature films. Linn's portrayal of Frank McLaury in Wyatt Earp (1994) marked the first in a series of several onscreen collaborations with Kevin Costner that also included the romantic comedy Tin Cup (1996) and the laborious sci-fi epic The Postman (1997). Linn also landed guest appearances on such series as JAG and 3rd Rock From the Sun. He is best known, however, for his fine portrayal of Miami-Dade Police Department detective Frank Tripp on the hit crime series CSI: Miami.

Trivia: Versatile American character actor Wayne Knight has been frequently on stage, screen and television since the late 1970s. In the early '80s, he temporarily left acting (after appearing over 1,000 times in the play Gemini) to become a private detective. In 1986, Knight returned to film in The Sex O'Clock News. He has worked with a number of distinguished directors including Oliver Stone, Kenneth Branagh and Steven Spielberg playing roles ranging from comics to villains. On television, he is best known for playing the oily, self-serving postman Newman on the long-running sitcom Seinfeld, and Officer Don on the outworldly comedy Third Rock From the Sun.

Trivia: With a background in improvisational comedy and a reputation as a class clown, Dax Shepard seemed the obvious choice for the role of a Punk'd field agent -- and the opportunity to put one over on some of the biggest names in show business must have been impossible to resist. Though it wasn't his first onscreen role, Punk'd provided Shepard with the recognition needed to further his onscreen career, and just a year after debuting with Ashton Kutcher's merry band of pranksters, the up-and-coming comic actor was scheduled to appear in no less than three major film releases. A native of Milford, MI, Shepard studied improv with the famed Groundlings troupe before moving to Los Angeles to study anthropology at UCLA. A minor part as a partygoer who couldn't hold his liquor in the 1998 romantic comedy Hair Shirt offered Shepard his first film role, and though there would be a five-year gap between that role and a minor supporting role in the 2003 comedy Cheaper by the Dozen, the exposure that he would subsequently gain from Punk'd more than made up for any lost time before the cameras. In 2004, Shepard appeared opposite Seth Green and Matthew Lillard in the wide-release comedy Without a Paddle, with supporting roles in Sledge: The Untold Story and Mike Judge's long-delayed sci-fi comedy Idiocracy following soon thereafter. Small-screen work on My Name Is Earl and Robot Chicken served well to keep the bills paid as Shepard climbed into astronaut gear for Jon Favreau's enjoyable 2005 fantasy Zathura. As 2006 dawned, Shepard continued to stick with his genre roots for several screen comedies. The typically placid and low-key actor donned a sav-mart clerk's uniform and waged war on Dane Cook to vie for the affections of bombshell Jessica Simpson in the madcap comedy Employee of the Month, produced by The Cosby Show's Carsey-Werner Entertainment and released in November 2006. At about the same time, Shepard geared up for a quartet of roles throughout 2007 and 2008. He would appear in Let's Go to Prison!, a kind of scaled-down comic update of the 1940 Millionaires in Prison, about a career criminal (Shepard) and a rich man (Will Arnett) thrown into the same prison cell (Mr. Show's Bob Odenkirk directs). He had a fine supporting turn in the Tina Fey/Amy Poehler comedy Baby Mama, and in 2010 he became a regular on the television series Parenthood. Two years later he directed the action comedy Hit & Run, co-starring his then girlfriend Kristen Bell, who he married in 2013. He had supporting rolex in the ensemble dramedy This Is Where I Leave You and the drama The Judge in 2014, before wrapping up his run as Crosby Braverman on Parenthood.

Trivia: A teenage heartthrob extraordinaire on movie screens during the mid- to late 2000s, fair-haired Cody Linley actually undertook one of his first forays into cinema as a preadolescent. He played the aptly named Spit McGee, a bully who harasses the protagonist, in Jay W. Russell's nostalgic coming-of-age drama My Dog Skip (2000). A lead followed in John Schultz's offbeat comedy When Zachary Beaver Came to Town (2003), as did prominent billing in Hoot (2006), a family-oriented adventure about a group of teens who attempt to save some rare owls. Linley achieved broadest recognition, however, for his portrayal of Jake Ryan, opposite Miley Cyrus, in the second season of the blockbuster sitcom Hannah Montana. He competed in the 7th season of Dancing With the Stars in 2008 and followed that up with the horror film Forget Me Not and the drama The Playroom.

Trivia: Hosted her own travel show, Amy's Japan, while living in Japan. Worked with the Asian American Theater Company in San Francisco. Trained at the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco. Appeared in Lincoln Center's stage production of Twelfth Night. Created and performed a three-part one woman show in the 1990s, based on her childhood and her mother's life.

Trivia: The seventh child of nine siblings.In 1984, moved to Germany for two years to play basketball.Attended the same high school as Gilmore Girls costar Sally Struthers, together they played husband and wife.Has performed with the Actors Co-op Theatre Company.Both of his children were born in Ethiopia.Has taught acting at Portland State University and George Fox University.

Trivia: Began training in classical violin while in elementary school. Began training in martial arts at age 6. Worked for Elite Model Management in Atlanta and New York City. Was a member of the University of Georgia Symphony Orchestra. Was an original member of the Dave Matthews Cover Band while in college. Was crowned Miss University of Georgia in 2002. In a 2006 TV Guide.com interview, described herself as "klutzy." Found out that she won the role of Esther in the biblical film One Night With the King (2006) when her pastor announced it in church. Works with the girls ministry program at her church. Hobbies include bowling, walking and playing the violin (for fun now). Has traveled extensively in Europe.

Trivia: Though best known as the jovial but lovably sarcastic host of the American talk show sensation Live with Regis and Kelly (and its earlier incarnation, Live With Regis and Kathie Lee), television personality Regis Philbin (born August 25th 1931) has sustained an astonishingly varied career that bridges not only a myriad of broadcast formats -- from daytime and late-night talk to game shows to televised parades and news magazines -- but multiple mediums as well, including books, feature films, and even musical recordings that found Philbin crooning along to old standards. A native New Yorker, Philbin grew up in the South Bronx and later graduated from the University of Notre Dame. After a stint in the Navy and a series of entry-level jobs in Hollywood, he hosted the talk programs The Regis Philbin Show (on KGTV in San Diego) and Philbin's People in Los Angeles, and developed a revolutionary style of televised chat that involved peppering his commentary with witty asides and opinions, and involving the audience in the on-set conversation. In time, Philbin secured a spot as co-host on the late-night talk program The Joey Bishop Show from April 1967 to December 1969. During the 1970s, Philbin hosted the morning talk show Temp on Los Angeles's KHJ-TV, and emceed two game shows on ABC. In 1983, he launched The Morning Show, a local talk program in New York City; it eventually evolved into Live With Regis and Kathie Lee in 1985, after Kathie Lee Gifford signed on as co-host. That program, of course, became a national institution, and continued even after Gifford left, with Kelly Ripa replacing her as co-host. During the late '90s, Philbin also made television history by emceeing one of the most lucrative game shows in the history of the broadcast medium: the U.K. import Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, on ABC.Cinematically, Philbin made a number of cameo film appearances in various Hollywood features over the years -- often, though not always, playing himself. These included the uproarious 1972 Woody Allen film-a-sketch Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex, But Were Afraid to Ask (as one of the panelists on a perverted game show), and the awful Mae West 1978 musical Sextette (as a reporter). Regis and second wife Joy Philbin lent darkly amusing cameos as themselves to the Irwin Winkler-directed psychological drama Night and the City (1992) -- in which they appear as restaurant patrons, hounded by obnoxious flim-flam man Harry Fabian (Robert De Niro). In the early 2000s, Philbin's film appearances included cameos in Little Nicky and Cheaper by the Dozen, and a small role in Shrek the Third, as the voice of Mabel, one of Cinderella's ugly stepsisters.The entertainer reprised his voice role in Shrek Forever After in 2010. Philbin announced his departure from LIVE! With Regis and Kelly during an emotional episode in February of 2011.

Trivia: Kelly Ripa, the bubbly, blonde, and garrulous host of Live With Regis and Kelly (formerly Live With Regis and Kathie Lee), made the leap from semi-obscurity to American icon in early 2001, when the producers of that nationally syndicated daytime talk program selected her as the replacement for 15-year hostess Kathie Lee Gifford. Born October 2, 1970, to parents of mixed Irish and Italian heritage, the photogenic Ripa began her career as an actress -- first in high-school productions, then as a participant on the USA channel's Dance Party USA, and finally as a soap opera star on All My Children. Her portrayal of psychologically tortured teenager Hayley Vaughan on that program spanned 12 years, from 1990 through 2002. During her time with that series, she also met and married co-star Mark Consuelos, and eventually had several children with him. The actress' assignment on Live With Regis represented the denouement of a long, suspenseful, and nationally publicized search after Gifford withdrew in mid-2000. In the final analysis, many insiders felt that executive producer Michael Gelman and others had clearly made the right choice, for then-30-year-old Ripa's ascent to the co-host's chair helped the show reel in the highest ratings of its multi-decade run. Moreover, the program's fans asserted that the central banter between "Reege" and his hostess had never once been livelier, more entertaining or more fluid.In mid-2003, the peppy Ripa signed for another popular small-screen gig, albeit in a completely different venue: she and Faith Ford (Murphy Brown) played reunited sisters -- Ripa one of the glitterati, Ford a low-key suburban wife and mother -- on the situation comedy Hope & Faith. The program debuted that fall and lasted for three seasons. Ripa guest-hosted Saturday Night Live in November 2003; she and Regis are also frequent guests on Late Night with David Letterman. In addition to small-screen work, Ripa's resumé includes a bit part in the Muppet specials Sesame Street: Elmo's World -- Happy Holidays! and It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, as well as the Steve Martin comedy remake Cheaper by the Dozen (2003).