THE 59TH ANNUAL PRIMETIME EMMYS AWARDS

Mary-Louise Parker
Biography

* Birthplace: Fort Jackson, South Carolina
* Birthday: August 2, 1964

A versatile and pretty theater veteran with a distinctive voice and delicate features, Mary-Louise Parker was a well-traveled "army brat" who began her stage career in New York City during the mid-1980s. She earned a 1990 Tony nomination for her performance as a young bride who accidentally swaps souls with an old man in Craig Lucas' "Prelude to a Kiss" and later picked up an OBIE for her riveting portrayal of a victim of child abuse in Paula Vogel's Pulitzer Prize-winning "How I Learned to Drive" (1997). In between, she essayed roles as diverse as a woman driven to madness by the birth of a deformed child in "Babylon Gardens" (1991), a schemingly ambitious actress in the black comedy "Four Dogs and a Bone" (1993) and the vocally-challenged saloon singer Cherie in a 1996 revival of "Bus Stop", opposite Billy Crudup. In 1998, Parker won critical kudos as a Cockney dominatrix who overhears a dying man's confession and attempts to save his victims by traveling back in time in Alan Ayckbourn's razor-sharp comedy "Communicating Doors.” The actress' next stage appearance saw her offer an acclaimed turn (which netted her a Tony Award) as a mathematician coping with the legacy of her father in the Pulitzer-winning "Proof.”

Parker made her film debut as an abused girlfriend in "Signs of Life" (1989) and was the best friend of a gay man dealing with the AIDS crisis in "Longtime Companion" (1989), scripted by Lucas and directed by Norman Rene. She had a nice turn as a lonely secretary infatuated with her employer (Kevin Kline) in Lawrence Kasdan's "Grand Canyon", but it was her breakthrough part as an abused wife empowered by her friendship with a female cafe owner (Mary Stuart Masterson) in the sleeper "Fried Green Tomatoes" (both 1991) that really opened eyes to her facility for complex characterizations.

THE 59TH ANNUAL PRIMETIME EMMYS AWARDS

Minnie Driver

* Birthplace: London, England
* Birthday: January 31, 1971

Minnie Driver charmed the hearts of America as 'Benny' Hogan, the plump and plain Irish co-ed who wins Chris O'Donnell's heart in Pat O'Connor's "Circle of Friends" (1995). The tall, slender beauty gained 25 pounds and wore little make-up in her portrayal of the small-town girl who heads to a Dublin university and learns about love and life. Owen Gliberman in Entertainment Weekly wrote "Driver has a touchingly awkward prettiness. Her jaw may be as square as a picture frame, but her smile lights her up from within." Girl wins the boy in t…

THE 59TH ANNUAL PRIMETIME EMMYS AWARDS

Kate Walsh
Biography

* Birthplace: San Jose, California
* Birthday: October 13, 1967

Known best as vibrant redhead Dr. Addison Shepherd – the woman who came between intern Meredith Grey and Dr. “McDreamy” Shepherd – on "Grey's Anatomy" (2005- ), Kate Walsh's accomplished career has run the gamut, from Shakespearean drama to situational comedy. This attractive natural blonde had already enjoyed an extensive career encompassing television, film and theater before landing the high profile role on ABC’s hit medical drama.

Born Oct. 13, 1967 in San Jose, CA, Walsh was raised in both California and Tucson, AZ. As a student, Walsh pursued acting and regional theater at the University of Arizona. Soon, she relocated to Chicago where she continued her studies with the renowned Piven Theatre Workshop and, later, the Chicago Shakespeare Repertory. Walsh's theater work in Chicago included starring roles in productions of "Flesh and Blood," "Moon under Miami,” "Troilus and Cressida," and "Born Guilty," which she also performed as a radio play on NPR. To further her acting career, Walsh relocated to New York City, where she joined the comedy troupe, Burn Manhattan, honing her comedic skills in a number of Off-Broadway plays, including "Flight Courier" and "The Four Twins."

THE 59TH ANNUAL PRIMETIME EMMYS AWARDS

Eva Longoria
Biography
* Birthplace: Corpus Christi, Texas
* Birthday: March 15, 1975
Not one to shy away from her obvious sex appeal, actress Eva Longoria has thrived on playing seductive Latinas throughout her career. Born in Corpus Christi, Texas—an area she has frequently returned to over the years—Longoria was the youngest of four daughters growing up on the family ranch. Though stunning in her adult years, she has described herself as the proverbial ugly duckling as a kid—her family nicknamed her prieta fea—or ‘ugly dark one’—because she was the only daughter with dark hair, dark eyes and dark skin. After blossoming into a fetching young woman, Longoria attended Texas A&M University-Kingsville, where she earned her Baccalaureate in Kinesiology—the study of body movement. When she wasn’t studying, Longoria appeared on stage in university theater productions.

THE 59TH ANNUAL PRIMETIME EMMYS AWARDS

Katherine Heigl

* Birthplace: Washington, D.C.
* Birthday: November 24, 1978

With a beauty harkening back to old Hollywood, Katherine Heigl – a onetime Sears catalog child model who later paid her dues as a decidingly less-than-glamorous slasher film victim – finally earned widespread acclaim for her role as Dr. Izzie Stevens on the award-winning medical drama “Grey’s Anatomy” (ABC, 2005- ). A frequent sight on “Most Beautiful People” lists, the statuesque actress proved to be versatile and talented in much the same manner as her “Grey’s” character – also a former model who had a long road to accep…