Trivia: With her memorably statuesque figure and alluring countenance, African-American model-turned-actress Tracee Ellis Ross (the daughter of chanteuse Diana Ross and Robert Ellis Silberstein) plunged headfirst into print and fashion work with such enthusiasm and vigor that she became a frequent presence on the covers of such magazines as Essence, Jet, and Vibe Vixen, posing for such legends as Herb Ritts and Francesco Scavullo. Within this arena, Ross commandeered attention to rival any of her runway contemporaries. Ross segued into acting in the mid- to late '90s, with contributions such efforts as the low-key, ensemble-oriented psychological drama Far Harbor (1996, her cinematic debut) and Jim Yukich's romantic comedy A Fare to Remember (1999), and hosted the Lifetime talk program The Dish, before making her biggest splash as thirtysomething attorney-turned-restaurant proprietor Joan Clayton on the blockbuster UPN sitcom Girlfriends -- which enjoyed a lengthy run, maintained exemplary ratings, and netted more than a few industry awards for Ross. In 2007, the actress teamed up with writer/director Tyler Perry and actress Gabrielle Union for the big-screen romantic comedy Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls. A recurring role on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation followed in 2011, and that same year Ross starred opposite Cosby Show alumni Malcolm-Jamal Warner in the BET sitcom Reed Between the Lines, which followed a psychiatrist and a professor as they struggled to balance their careers with their roles as parents to three multi-racial children.

Trivia: The lithe and alluring African-American actress Golden Brooks began life in San Francisco in late 1970, and grew up in both the Bay Area and the City of Angels. As a young woman, she attended the University of California at Berkeley as a sociology major, later earning her master's degree from Sarah Lawrence College. Brooks first broke into films in the mid-'90s, with a small role in Spike Lee's phone sex-themed comedy drama Girl 6 (1996); the 2000 series Girlfriends, however, brought Brooks her first recognition in the American press. This rabidly popular sitcom -- which reeled in critical kudos and maintained a broad fan base -- constituted the pet project of Frasier star Kelsey Grammer and producer Mara Brock Akil. It told of four African-American female friends in the Los Angeles -- all white-collar women -- struggling to balance personal and professional demands. Brooks played an assistant at a legal firm and the only woman in the ensemble with a happy marriage and a growing family. After scattered roles in acclaimed features through the first several years of the new millennium, Brooks made the pivotal decision to join the cast of the Queen Latifah-starrer Beauty Shop, about the colorful proprietors and denizens of an Atlanta-based hair salon. The following year, she also starred in Sanaa Hamri's acclaimed dramedy Something New.

Trivia: Texas-born African-American actress and print model Jill Marie Jones (not to be confused with the musician/singer/songwriter Jill Jones, of Prince fame) first landed in the national spotlight for her regular role on the prime-time comedy drama Girlfriends, as Toni Childs, a slightly narcissistic and vociferous mother. Jones also starred in the 2007 black comedy Redrum, as a young woman who learns that she can pep up her flaccid marriage by committing cold-blooded murder. In terms of modeling, Jones maintained her highest profile gracing billboards and print ads for the Bailey's Irish Cream "Serve Chilled" campaign.

Trivia: American character actor Khalil Kain built a varied and substantial resumé from the early '90s onward, in a dazzling combination of films and television series. Though he debuted as Raheem in director Ernest Dickerson's urban crime drama Juice, Kain quickly broke the mold of roles traditionally offered to young African-American males by branching off into some unusual and variegated arenas. He followed up his Dickerson work with a turn as Private Roosevelt Hobbs in the Penny Marshall-directed, Danny DeVito-headlined service comedy Renaissance Man (1994), then landed guest appearances in such sitcoms as Suddenly Susan and Friends, and a plum role as porno star Venus, in Dan Ireland's romantic triangle-themed erotic dramedy The Velocity of Gary (1998). Kain returned to urban material (albeit unconventional urban material) opposite rapper Snoop Dogg in Dickerson's gruesome haunted-house movie Bones (2001). He also played Gene in the mockumentary Dave Barry's Complete Guide to Guys (2005), headlined by columnist Barry, actor John Cleese and footballer Dan Marino, and played Darnell Wilkes in the sitcom Girlfriends.

Trivia: A theatrically trained actor who has subsequently made a name for himself as a valuable film and television commodity, Rockmond Dunbar is much more than just another charismatic performer -- he's also a talented producer and director. It was Dunbar's role on the mid-'90s sci-fi show Earth 2 that first served to introduce the ambitious cinematic Renaissance man to viewers, with subsequent appearances on The Practice and Felicity preceding more substantial roles on Girlfriends and Soul Food -- the latter of which found Dunbar winning over critics and viewers as a dedicated family man and hardworking entrepreneur. Additional roles in such independent films as Punks, All About You, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and Dirty Laundry showed an actor who was as charismatic on the big screen as he was on the small one, with behind-the-scenes work on Dirty Laundry and the 2003 drama The Great Commission marking his arrival as a producer and director as well. In 2005, Dunbar resurfaced on the small screen in a role that couldn't have been more different than the one he previously played in Soul Food. Cast as hardened prison inmate "C-Note" on the hit Fox series Prison Break, Dunbar portrayed his most compelling television character to date. From inmate to medico, the versatile star named one of "Television's 50 Sexiest Stars of All Time" by TV Guide could next be seen as compassionate Dr. Tom Jonas on the small-screen medical drama Heartland. Dunbar continued to showcase strong TV work in the coming years, with guest roles on Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice and the Closer and long recurring arcs on The Game, The Mentalist and Sons of Anarchy.