Trivia: Arguably the preeminent Hispanic comedian of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, and one of the most influential Latino entertainers of all time, George Lopez broke new ground for Mexican-Americans by scoring many firsts. Most significantly, he clocked in as the first Hispanic comic since Freddie Prinze Sr. (whom he idolized) to headline his own blockbuster sitcom, thus providing Latinos with a much-needed television voice and role model to boot. Born in 1961 in Mission Hills, CA, Lopez was abandoned by his father at two months old; not long after his tenth birthday, his mother delivered him permanently into the hands of his working-class grandparents, a couple singularly lacking in parental skills, affection, and financial resources. Ingeniously, Lopez took the angst, desperation, impoverishment, and overwhelming dysfunction of these preadolescent and adolescent years and spun it into behind-the-mike fodder -- in other words, using his hard-hitting experiences as building blocks for exceptionally droll, inventive standup routines. Lopez foresaw standup comedy as his only desired option after high school, and thus reportedly worked the club circuit for almost two decades -- his exclusive gig until the late '80s and early '90s. At that point, Lopez tackled a few bit roles in junky comedies such as Ski Patrol (1989) and Fatal Instinct (1993), but turned a much-needed corner, and upped the prestige quotient, by signing on to work for the esteemed Ken Loach in that director's Bread and Roses (2000), a muckraking drama about Hispanic-American janitors. The finished film divided critics but unveiled new dimensions in the actor's ability. Lopez's eponymous sitcom commenced in 2002, with the schtickmeister cast as a variant of himself, George Lopez, who worked in an airplane-parts factory. The ABC program maintained high ratings well into its sixth season. In the meantime, Lopez branched out into feature-film roles -- this time with a more respectable cinematic pedigree -- in such pictures as The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl (2005), Yours, Mine & Ours (2005), Balls of Fury (2007), and Tortilla Heaven (2007).Following a two year run as a late night talk show host on Lopez Tonight, Lopez continued to appear in a number of movies, including Swing Vote, Valentine's Day, and Balls of Fury.

Trivia: Constance Marie floored audiences with her performance as Selena's mother in Selena (1997), the biographical drama about the pop artist's rise and the tragic ending of her life. Through extensive makeup preparation, Marie was transformed to look substantially older than her on-screen daughter, played by Jennifer Lopez -- the actual age difference between the two actresses was merely one year. Marie's emotional portrayal in the role left no doubt of her maturity as a performer, with or without the makeup.Born September 9, 1969, in Hollywood, CA, Marie's first role was playing Penny in the film spin-off series Dirty Dancing. In 1995, she starred in the Newline feature My Family, as Toni Sanchez, earning her substantial credit in the field. Her role in Selena two years later solidified her impression as a performer, and would veer her career toward dramatic roles both on television and in films.Marie had several roles on TV series, including one recurring on the NBC series Union Square in 1997. Additionally, her film credits continued to grow, mainly in the vein of drama. In 2000, she was featured in the Sundance Film Festival feature Dancing in September. She appeared in See Spot Run and as Yolanda in Tortilla Soup a year later. After a few years without much emphasis on her television career, she returned to the tube, appearing simultaneously on two different networks. She starred as Angie, the wife of standup comic George Lopez, in the 2002 ABC sitcom The George Lopez Show, and as Nina in the critically acclaimed PBS dramatic series American Family of the same year. Over the years to come, Marie would find additional success on the series Switched at Birth.

Trivia: A multi-talented performer, Masiela Lusha was born in Albania but eventually moved to Michigan, where she was discovered at an open casting call. After playing the daughter of George Lopez on his same-named sitcom for five seasons, she landed roles in the independent films Summoning and Cherry Bomb. More roles followed in the live-action remake of Blood: The Last Vampire and the acclaimed Albanian-German film Time of the Comet (2008). In addition to her impressive acting resumé, Lusha is also an accomplished writer, having published two books of poetry, as well as the novel The Besa.

Trivia: Standup comedians are famous for their neuroses, but Richard Lewis takes anxiety to a new level. On-stage, he energetically frets and overanalyses the most personal aspects of his life and wallows in his low self-esteem until the audience convulses with sympathetic laughter. He was born in Brooklyn, but raised in New Jersey. While attending Ohio State University as a marketing major, Lewis also studied communications. Upon graduation, he worked as the lead copywriter for an advertising agency. Four years into his career, he abandoned it to become a standup comedian, making his club debut in Greenwich Village in 1972. His first break came when he won a regular gig at Budd Friedman's the Improv comedy club and then debuted on The Tonight Show. Lewis became really well known in 1979 when he co-wrote and starred in Diary of a Young Comic, a show which gained him a cult following. Its success led him to become a television writer. In 1982, he made his first appearance on David Letterman's late-night talk show and from there embarked upon a three-year cross-country tour. Lewis had great success with his first cable TV special, I'm in Pain, in 1986. His second special, The Richard Lewis I'm Exhausted Concert, earned him a nomination for a Cable ACE award in 1988. Two years later his third special, I'm Doomed, was similarly nominated. He and Jamie Lee Curtis starred in the popular ABC sitcom Anything but Love from 1989 to 1992. In the early '90s, he took a break from standup. He launched his film career in 1988 with That's Adequate and continued to occasionally appear in supporting or character roles, notably in the independent film Drunks (1995) in which he won kudos for his dramatic portrayal of an alcoholic junkie. Lewis starred in a short-lived sitcom, Daddy Dearest (1993), and did not again try a television series until he and comic Kevin Nealon co-starred in Hiller and Diller in 1997. His 1995 standup routine "Magical Misery Tour" won considerable kudos and was the basis for a well-received 1996 cable special, shot live from the Bottom Line club in New York. Since 1987, Lewis was actively involved with HBO's annual Comic Relief benefits, large star-studded comedy shows in which all proceeds go toward helping the homeless.