Helen Mirren

Hopefully I'm on the downhill side of my project.

I'll do my best to keep up a once a day post.

Helen has her own site. It is here. Go visit!

Find Helen Mirren stuff here.

Helen was born on July 26, 1945 in Chiswick, London, England, UK as Ilyena Lydia Vasilievna Mironoff (Wow, did not know that. -ed.). She is 5' 4" [1.63 m] tall.

There is not enough space for me to tell you about Helen Mirren. I'll just say this, using some of the slang we used to use… "At the age of 66, she's still a looker."

Factoids:

• Daughter of Vasily Mironoff and Kathleen Rogers.
• Her grandfather Piotr Vasilievich Mironoff was a Tsarist (White Russian) aristocrat who was in London negotiating an arms deal during World War I when the 1917 Russian Revolution stranded him there. His wife and son (Helen's father) joined him in London. (Wow. -ed.)
• Used to work in Southend on Sea; Essex; UK at an amusement park "The Kursaal" as a "blagger" to attract customers on to rides. (I would have been one. -ed.)
• She was awarded the Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2003 Queen's Birthday Honours List for her services to drama.
• John Boorman said he cast her opposite Nicol Williamson in Excalibur (1981), against both of their protests, because he felt their dislike of each other made them perfect as rivals Morgana and Merlin.
• Nominated for Best Actress, Laurence Olivier Theatre Award for her performance of "Orpheus Descending" at the Donmar Warehouse. [2001]
• Nominated for Best Actress, Laurence Olivier Theatre Award for her performance in "Mourning Becomes Electra" at the Royal National Theatre: Lyttelton Stage. [2004]
• Nominated for Best Actress, Tony Award for "Dance of Death" by August Strindberg. [2002]
• Despite her Russian birth name and ancestry, she does not speak Russian, but is fluent in French.
• Her great-great-great-great-grandfather was field-marshal Kamensky, one of the Russian heroes of the Napoleonic wars.
• She is the only actress to play both Queen Elizabeth I (in "Elizabeth I" (2005)) and Queen Elizabeth II (The Queen (2006)).
• At the premiere of The Queen (2006) at the Venice Film Festival, her performance received a 5 minute standing ovation.
• Member of the jury at the Venice Film Festival in 2004.
• Played a Queen a total of six times: The Queen (2006), "Elizabeth I" (2005), The Prince of Egypt (1998), The Snow Queen (1995), The Madness of King George (1994), and Caligula (1979).
• Became the third person, after Sigourney Weaver and Joan Plowright, to win two Golden Globes for acting in the same year. The characters she played were both Queens of England, Queen Elizabeth I and Queen Elizabeth II.
• She dedicated her BAFTA win for The Queen (2006) (for Best Actress in a Leading Role) to Ian Richardson for playing a huge part in her success story. She said (in her acceptance speech) that Richardson was very supportive towards her when she started out acting, and without him she may not have been so successful. She dedicated this award two days after Richardson died. [2007]
• Nominated for Best Actress, Tony Award for "A Month in the Country" by Ivan Turgenev. [1995]
• She won an Oscar for playing Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen (2006), making her the most recent of 12 actors to win the Award for playing a real person who was still alive at the evening of the Award ceremony (as of 2007).
• Won Film Achievement, Greatest Britons. [2007]
• Won 29 major awards for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen (2006), including all the awards that are considered the biggest (except Cannes). She was also nominated for 3 more awards for the same film.
• Is one of eight actresses to have won the Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Critics' Choice Award, Golden Globe Award and SAG Award.
• Has a tattoo of a star on her left hand, acquired at a Native American reservation in Minnesota.
• Met husband-to-be Taylor Hackford when he directed her in White Nights (1985). When the couple married in the Scottish Highlands, Hackford was dressed in a traditional Scottish tartan kilt.
• According to an article in People Weekly (November 3, 1980) her tattoo is an American Indian symbol meaning "equal but opposite".
• Nominated for the 2002 Tony Award (New York City) for Actress in a Drama for "Dance of Death".
• Was in consideration for the part of Sarah/Anna in The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981) but Meryl Streep, who went on to receive a Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance, was cast instead.
• Plays Prospero (now Prospera) in The Tempest (2010/11), and Hobson in Arthur (2011). Both roles were originally written for a man, and had in fact previously been played by John Gielgud. Both films also cast her opposite Russell Brand.
• Placed her hand and footprint in cement in front of Graumann Chinese theatre on March 28, 2011.

Quotes:

• The trick in life is learning how to deal with it.
• [About the Academy Awards] It's the creme-de-la-creme of bulls**t.
• Actors are rogues and vagabonds. Or they ought to be. I can't stand it when they behave like solicitors from Penge." "I'm a would-be rebel. The good girl who'd like to be a bad one.
• All you have to do is to look like crap on film and everyone thinks you're a brilliant actress. Actually, all you've done is look like crap.
• Flesh sells. People don't want to see pictures of churches. They want to see naked bodies
• [on becoming Dame Helen Mirren in 2003] In England, it's a big deal. I do feel it's a great honor. But I had to think about it quite seriously for a couple of weeks. It does sort of squash you into the establishment thing. In the end, my baser feelings got the better of me. I succumbed to pride.
• [In 2006] Being me right now is sort of amazing.
• [Part of her BAFTA acceptance speech, BAFTA Film Awards, 2007] This is great. What an honor, especially to be nominated - just to be nominated - amongst those incredible powerhouse performances this year from women. - I applaud them. I think they were absolutely fantastic. Write more roles for us like that please.
• [on Ian Richardson, BAFTA Film Awards, 2007] Many years ago, when I started off as an actress, I had the immense good fortune to work with an actor that was so generous at sharing his craft - He became a mentor to me, he helped me believe in myself. Ian Richardson, I'm not too sure I would be here today if it wasn't for you.
• [on her role in National Treasure: Book of Secrets (2007)] I get half-drowned, jump across an abyss and fly. I loved every minute of it. Getting attached to wires and flying was the most glorious feeling. It's a lot easier than acting!
• [on the participation of celebrities in social movements] I've been involved with Oxfam on the proliferation of the illegal sale of small arms throughout the world, which is causing such, such devastation. The only way you can sometimes garner attention is by sending someone like me as a front person.
• There's nothing sexy about doing a nude scene. It's rather uncomfortable. I like dressing up rather than dressing down.
• I was never going to be anyone's mum or grandmother. But I can dig that beautiful earth-mother thing, feeding the masses. I'm thinking of Nigella Lawson. Does she have children? She does. Do you know what I mean? She's sort of gorgeously fertile. That's sexy.
• I actually won my first Golden Globe for something called Losing Chase (1996) (TV). Kyra Sedgwick and me fell in love with each other, and it was a lovely piece about women loving women. In my heart of hearts I love women more than I love men. I mean sexuality aside - I'm heterosexual. I guess I'm heterosexual. I loved my friend I had at college because there was a sense of camaraderie and physical closeness that doesn't have to be sexual.
• [on asking to be interviewed by male rather than female journalists]: ...I prefer male journalists because there's a streak of female journalism - the bitches - who are mean-spirited and nasty because you are another woman and want to make you feel crap. It's very upsetting. I'm more careful when I'm being interviewed by a woman because, from experience as well as reading articles about other women, I know there is a little stiletto knife hidden behind the back.
• No, I am not confrontational at all. I met a great guy, then another great guy, and had a series of fantastic relationships with nice men. [And that healed me.] Until that point I was thinking men were horrible; they were boring, boorish, vulgar, selfish and arrogant. Then I met a guy who was funny and lovely to me and I loved him. That was Ken, my first boyfriend (Sadly, it was not me. -ed). I learnt from wonderful men, wonderful relationships. They gave me support, made me feel good and made me laugh. Now I think men are absolutely great.
• My poshed-over voice was learnt and assimilated. I was an Essex girl.
• You can't ask people: "Did you cast me in this because I won an Oscar?" They'd always deny it: "No! No! We would've had you anyway!" Liars!
• I didn't cry when I got my Oscar [for The Queen (2006)], but I cried then [when applauded by baggage handlers at Heathrow Airport]. I had my Oscar in my bag, so I got it out. I was shameless, but they loved it.
• [on going to the Oscars] Oh, it's such a palaver! It's like a day's work. You have to decide what you're going to wear. You put on your costume. You do your performance. It's exhausting. And if you win, everyone wants a piece of you. Of course, it's the mother ship of all ceremonies. And it's a fantastic, wonderful, carnival that you just can't resist. You jump aboard the roundabout, get whizzed round until you're vaguely nauseous and stagger off happily at the end, back to reality.
• [on filming Red (2010/I)] I should be going to the gym now but I just don't want to do it. I don't do anything like that regularly at all. But because I'm filming, I should.
• [on performing in television versus onstage] Theatre is more tiring, demanding, more frightening, everything. Film, you have to get up early in the morning, and I hate that. Both are powerful mediums. But the great thing about theatre is you do material you don't normally do on film. And you're the editor of your performance onstage.

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In the movies below, Helen plays a Ex-spy who is an expert marksman, Morgana, the Sorceress and the Queen of England... how's that for a range of characters?

Find more Helen Mirren stuff here.

Find more Helen Mirren stuff here.

Jennifer Aniston

I'm feel like I'm on the "back 9" on the project I've been working on,

so hope fully I can get back to 8 images per day again.

Find Jennifer Aniston stuff here.

Jennifer was born on February 11, 1969 in Sherman Oaks, California as Jennifer Joanna Aniston. She is 5' 4½" [1.64 m] tall.

At one point in her career she was probably the best known "Jennifer" out there and she caught Brad's eye first before Angelina snag him. Not sure on the gossip about all that but it was much less hoopla than I expected. She kept her composure throughout that mess and came out looking better, in my opinion for it.

I did have thought for a screen play were Brad, Angelina and Jennifer play themselves and Matthew McCaunghey plays Dirk Pitt, a literary fictional character but and plays the fictional character of Brad's family, like a brother. Jennifer, still mad about the whole Brangelina affair, makes up a plausible story about a treasure that interest Brad and asks his brother, the treasure hunter Dirk to help him find it. Of course Angelina joins in the hunt and Jennifer has a whole lot of fun sending them on red herrings to the fake treasure but the twist is that the plausible treasure that Jennifer made up, is a real treasure and now Jennifer wants to get to it before they do.

What do you think? I thought it would be fun like an "Oceans 11" kind of thing. I know it would draw men and women to a movie like that, don't you think?

Factoids:

• While hosting "Saturday Night Live" (1975) in 1999, she did a skit satirizing boyfriend Brad Pitt's stalker, aspiring actress Athena Marie Rolando. Pitt was promoting Fight Club (1999) at the time.
• Daughter of actors John Aniston and Nancy Dow.
• Raised in Greece and New York City.
• The late Telly Savalas was her godfather.
• When she was 11, a painting she had done was displayed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
• Attended Fiorello La Guardia School of Music, Art & Performing Arts, New York City. Also known as the "Fame" School.
• Suffered minor injuries in auto accident in Los Angeles. [January 15, 2002]
• She offered to be Matthew Perry's personal trainer in a bid to help him lose weight. [2002]
• Won award: International Star of Stars - The Scorpio Multimedia Cable TV Awards. [2002]
• Long-time friend of actress Andrea Bendewald (US Actor -ed.). They both attended Manhattan's High School for the Performing Arts. Bendewald was maid of honor at Aniston's wedding and Aniston was matron of honor at Bendewald's wedding.
• Her older half-brother, John T. Melick, worked as 2nd assistant director for the award winning Thirteen (2003), starring Holly Hunter.
• Was a schoolmate of Chaz Bono.
• Often plays a waitress - her characters in "Friends" (1994), Office Space (1999), The Iron Giant (1999) and Along Came Polly (2004) were all waitresses.
• At one point in 2003, was filming "Friends" (1994), Bruce Almighty (2003), and Along Came Polly (2004) simultaneously.
• Has a fear of flying.
• Stepdaughter of Sherry Rooney.
• Had worked as a telemarketer, bike messenger and waitress before making it as an actor.
• Her middle name, Joanna, was her father John Aniston's mother's name.
• Though she's half Greek, she does not like Greek food, but loves Mexican. She and Brad Pitt used to eat Mexican food and drink margaritas three times a week. She is also not fond of Chinese, Indian or and other spicy foods.
• Was known as a class clown in high school.
• Godmother of Courteney Cox and David Arquette's daughter, Coco.
• She and "Friends" (1994) co-star Lisa Kudrow both auditioned to be regular cast members of "Saturday Night Live" (1975) prior to their success on "Friends" (1994).
• Invented "The Rachel", a famous hairstyle in the '90s, which was copied by a lot of women and drew much attention to her.
• Has a younger half-brother, Alexander.
• Appeared in Heineken TV commercial frequently aired before UEFA Champions League (in Europe).
• Behind the scenes of "Friends" (1994), Aniston was very close friends with co-star Matthew Perry.
• Met ex-husband Brad Pitt on a blind date.
• Best friend of Courteney Cox.
• Was originally slated to play Mariane in A Mighty Heart (2007).
• Good friends with Andrea Buchanan. They both directed the short film, Room 10 (2006).
• Has two dogs, Norman and Dolly.
• Said that yoga helped her to recover from her divorce.
• Her niece was born in 1998.
• Her birth name is Jennifer Aniston, not Jennifer Anastasakis. Her father John Aniston had changed the spelling of his last name to Aniston from Anastasakis before his marriage to Nancy Dow, and the last name that appears on Jennifer's birth certificate is Aniston.
• Granddaughter of Yaya Joanna Aniston, Gordon McLean Dow and Louise Grieco Dow.
• One of 115 people invited to join AMPAS (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences -ed.) in 2007.
• Noted that she was inspired to direct Room 10 (2006) by actress Gwyneth Paltrow, who directed a short film in 2006.
• She started to train in karate, encouraged by her best friend, Courteney Cox Arquette, who holds a brown belt in the sport.
• Is of Greek (father's side) and Italian and Scottish (mother's side) descent.
• Good friend of Catherine Keener and Jason Bateman, since 1995.
• Good friends with Adam Sandler.
• Her hand and footprints are in Grauman's Chinese Theater.

Quotes:

• When somebody follows you 20 blocks to the pharmacy, where they watch you buy toilet paper, you know your life has changed.
• It's impossible to satisfy everyone, and I suggest we all stop trying.
• I always say, "Don't make plans, make options."
• If we can say, "I loved, and I received a lot of love," then great. That's enough.
• I've learned that you can get through things that hurt. Nothing will kill you. Nothing. People are unbelievable. We have such resilience.
• The most unconditional love that you can encounter is with a dog. They're excited the minute you come home, and they show the same amount of excitement everyday. They're loyal and they're always, always faithful.

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Find more Jennifer Aniston stuff here.

Find more Jennifer Aniston stuff here.

Lena Headley

Going to be slim picken's for a while.

I'm actually working on a "real" project, so might miss a day or two if I get in a jam.
Bear with me… thanks everyone!

Find Lena Headey stuff here.

Lena was born on October 3, 1973 in Bermuda, UK as Lena Headey. She is 5'5½" [1.66 m] tall.

You've noticed something about the people I use for the images the last few times. I've been picking them, so I thought, randomly. I guess I've been picking them from my subconscious. No, not because they play roles of "kick-ass" women, though, that is part of the appeal to me anyway. You know or at least get the feeling that they can take care of themselves when push came to shove. And, I mean this sincerely, they are like my that way. Whether they need to kick some teeth in or just survive, they keep on going. Oh, did you figure out what my subconscious is picking? It's picking vegetarians. I'm not one and none in my family are but for some reason these actors are vegetarians. Go figure.

Factoids:

• Had a tattoo on her arm saying 'Jason' in Thai. (an early boyfriend way back in 1994. -ed.)
• Born in Bermuda, and move to Huddersfield, Yorkshire at age 5 where she lived until age 17.
• Her father, a police officer, was sent to train in Bermuda shortly before Headey was born.
• Lena has a son named Wylie Elliot Loughran.
• Friends with actress Anna Torv as well as Piper Perabo.
• She is a vegetarian.
• She practices yoga but also boxing.

Quotes

• We've all had that moment where you look into someone's eyes and there's some kind of recognition there, whether you act on it or not.
• Shooting guns is not something I would do in my spare time. I really don't understand why Americans can purchase guns so easily and why they use them for sporting purposes. (Oh those crazy Brits. -ed.)

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Find more Lena Headey stuff here.

Find more Lena Headey stuff here.

Michelle Rodriguez

Going to be slim picken's for a while.
I'm actually working on a "real" project, so might miss a day or two if I get in a jam.
Bear with me… thanks everyone!

Michelle has an official web site... go visit!

Find Michelle Rodriguez stuff here.

Michelle was born on July 12, 1978 in San Antonio, Texas as Mayte Michelle Rodriguez. She is 5' 4" [1.63 m] tall.

Michelle is know for portraying the "tough" chick in films like "Avatar," "Battle: LA" and "Resident Evil." But there is a softer side to her... okay, so I imagine there is a softer side to her and if you look on the web for images of her, you can see she can dress like a "girly-girl." Heck, you can get posters of her looking, umm, well, hot... you know, right? but make no mistake, she can look soft but she don't throw like a girl. I'll take her into a "situation" any day, actor or not.

Factoids:

• Was raised in Texas, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and in Jersey City.
• Is of Puerto Rican and Dominican descent.
• She beat out 350 other girls for the role of Diana Guzman in Girlfight (2000).
• Girlfight (2000) was her first acting audition, and she got the role. The Fast and the Furious (2001) was her second audition, and she also got that role.
• Is an avid in-line skater.
• Didn't have a driver's license before filming The Fast and the Furious (2001) and had to obtain one during her training for the car chase sequences.
• Plays the piano.
• Has two half-sisters on her father's side.
• Has two older twin brothers named Raul and Omar.
• Dropped out of high school at 17, but later obtained a G.E.D. equivalency certificate.
• She was the original choice for the title role in Æon Flux (2005).
• When interviewed to join the cast of "Lost" (2004) as a tough LAPD cop, she insisted that she would only sign on for one year because she is a "nomadic spirit". The producers came up with a story line and sold the idea of the short contract to the network.
• Is often seen singing karaoke alongside Lindsay Lohan, Bo Barrett, Emile Hirsch, and Nicole Richie at Beverly Hills hot spot "Guys" .
• Has Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD).
• Was considered for the part of Christine Thayer in Crash (2004/I).
• Is a vegetarian.

Quotes

• I think empathy is a beautiful thing. I think that's the power of film though. We have one of the most powerful, one of the greatest communicative tools known to man. It's a form of communication and it's gonna reach you in a way of growth- most of the time.
• I don't want people thinking of me sexually. I don't want people to be like, 'She's hot-looking,' you know? I want them to listen to me for what I am saying. And I think the best way to do that is to sniff my armpits, and like, sit and burp every now and then. It just completely throws people off. I had a couple of offers to do some hot scenes in the shower with some guy and to make it real hot and sexy. The next thing you know, I'd be the next J.Lo or something. But that's easy. I want [success] the hard way.
• My favorite part of my body is my brain. I think no matter what my body looks like I won't be satisfied unless I know how to use it.
• I don't think it's narcissistic at all to love yourself and believe in yourself. I think some people are really scared to do that. I have to. If I don't, I would not succeed in what I do.
• No matter what, people are so narrow minded that it won't ever be Michelle Rodriguez the actress, it will always be Michelle Rodriguez the Latin actress. And it's just something that I have to live with, because of the fact that people need labels to understand things. I can't even get into this ignorance that I'm dealing with. So I just ignore it, you know? Ignore the ignorance.
• [on why she always plays the "tough girl"]: Well, could you really imagine me playing the girlfriend that needs rescuing? Or the girlfriend?
• You can keep knocking me down forever, I'll keep getting up and trying.

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Find more Michelle Rodriguez stuff here.

Find more Michelle Rodriguez stuff here.

Salma Hayek

Going to be slim picken's for a while. I'm actually working on a "real" project, so might miss a day or two if I get in a jam. Bear with me… thanks everyone!

Find Salma Hayek stuff here.

Salma was born on September 2, 1966 in Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, Mexico as Salma Valgarma Hayek-Jimènez. She is 5' 2" [1.57 m] tall.

I'm on a roll with the International thing, so, Salma is keeping it going. I think the first time I saw her on the big screen was the movie "Desperado," though at the time I did not know I was viewing a soon to be superstar… Okay, I give it to you that she might not be a superstar to you, but after "Frida," which I did not see, she was nominated for a bunch of awards, including an Oscar for leading female actor. Besides all that, I think her best role was being Serendipity in "Dogma." She's also done a voice in the movie, "Puss in Boots" another desperado movie with Antonio Banderas if you think about it.

Factoids:

• Is dyslexic.
• Frequently collaborates with Antonio Banderas and Robert Rodriguez, and is godmother to Rodriguez's children.
• Is of Spanish and Lebanese descent, and fluent in Arabic, Spanish, Portugese and English.
• Was originally considered for the part of Alicia Larde in A Beautiful Mind (2001) because the character in real life is from El Salvador. But the character for the film was later changed to American and given to Jennifer Connelly.
• Salma is an Arabic name that means "peace" or "calm".
• She was sent to a boarding school in Louisiana at age 12, but was soon sent back home after getting in trouble for frequently terrorizing the nuns!
• Father was born in Lebanon and came to Mexico to start a small business where he met her mother.
• Studied international relations and drama at college in Mexico City.
• Won Best Newcomer at the 1989 Novela Awards for "Un nuevo amanecer" (1988).
• Has her own production company, Ventanarosa.
• Is the second Latin American actress to be nominated for the Best Actress in a Leading Role Academy Award, for her performance in Frida (2002). Brazilian veteran Fernanda Montenegro was the first, for Central Station (1998).
• Good friends with Penélope Cruz, Ashley Judd and Valeria Golino.
• Member of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 2005
• Played a (mythological creature disguised as a) stripper twice: in From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) and in Dogma (1999) (A Vampire and a Muse respectively).
• Visited Guatemala from 2 May 2005 to 5 May 2005 as ambassador to Youth/AIDS, to promote the prevention of the mortal disease. Ashley Judd and Colombian pop singer Juanes also came with her.
• As the announcer for the Oscars 2007, she was able to announce best friend Penélope Cruz' nominations for Best Actress for Volver (2006/I).
• Diagnosed with diabetes while pregnant (July 2007).
• In 2009, musician Prince included a song on his CD "Lotus Flow3r/MPLSound" that is about Salma Hayek. The song shares the same name as her daughter, Valentina.
• Returned to work five months after giving birth to her daughter Valentina in order to begin filming Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (2009).

Quotes:

• I keep waiting to meet a man who has more balls than I do.
• I act tall!" "But look how short I am...I can't even act to be tall. I'm five-two. I can't even create the illusion that I am tall!
• "I don't believe in the so-called Latino explosion when it comes to movies. Jennifer Lopez doesn't have an accent. She grew up in New York speaking English not Spanish. Her success is very important because she represents a different culture, but it doesn't help me. I grew up in Mexico, not the US, and the fact is that there just aren't any parts for Latin actresses. I have to persuade people that my accent won't be a problem, but an asset. Everyone's afraid of doing something a bit risky. Everyone wants a $200 million hit and anything they think might get in the way of that kind of success is considered a liability".
• What worries me the most is that most men are so weak. Because of that they act like they don't care and like machos - because they are too fragile inside. They're scared of confrontation and afraid of so many things. And because of this they build up their life so they have to deal with their feelings as little as possible. I find feminine men unbelievably sexy. But most men are completely incapable of getting in touch with their feminine side. What am I supposed to talk about with a man who doesn't know what it's like to be a woman?
• At the beginning [my career] was hard. People were like, 'Who is this Mexican jumping bean?'
• "In my twenties I was offered lots of parts where there wasn't much to do but act sexy. I still get offered those roles - but now I take it as a compliment." Woman's World (7-11-06)
• "If I go on a diet and work out, I'm always in a bad mood. I'd rather be a little heavier but nice." -quoted in Woman's Day 8-15-06 issue
• In my world, you have to be so beautiful, so skinny, so rich, so famous and I don't believe you really have to be any of those things. You simply have to be who you are. I do have thighs and a butt. I have cellulite. Don't be too impressed with me. Don't try to dress like me or wear your hair like mine. Find your own style. Don't spend your savings trying to be someone else. You're not more important, smarter, or prettier because you wear a designer dress. I get them free and I'm too lazy to go out and look for my own. I, a rich girl from Mexico, came here with designer clothes. And one day, when I was starving in an apartment in Los Angeles, I looked at my Chanel blouses and said, 'If only I could pay the rent with one of these.'
• If a man lets all of my dogs sleep in the bed with us, then that is the most romantic thing. You must love my dogs in order to love me. A man who is nice to my animals and doesn't shoo them away - well, that's the height of romance.
• It sounds trite to go after men who are nice but when you've been hurt a lot it becomes appealing.
• [on being pregnant] You are like a swollen whale and never looked worse in your life. And somebody goes, 'You're glowing.' They don't have the courage to tell you how bad you look.

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Find more Salma Hayek stuff here.

Find more Salma Hayek stuff here.

Yifei Liu

Going to be slim picken's for a while. I'm actually working on a "real" project, so might miss a day or two if I get in a jam. Bear with me… thanks everyone!

Yifei, or called XiXi by her mother (closest pronunciation might be Gigi, correct me on this if I'm wrong. -ed.) was born on August 25, 1987 in Wuhan, Hubei, China as An Feng. She changed her name after her parents divorced to Liu Ximeizi. In 2002 she began an acting career and began to be known as Liu Yifei. (In the Oriental way, the last name comes first and first name comes last, so you may see her listed as "Liu Yifei." Her last name or family name in the "Western" style is Liu. -ed.) She is 5' 7" [1.70 m] tall.

Just trying to keep an International thing going with a Chinese born actress. You might have seen her in a movie called "The Forbidden Kingdom" with Jet Li and Jackie Chang. Though born in China, she moved to New York City and then moved back to China!

Factoids:

• Favorite actress: Audrey Hepburn and Vivian Leigh.
• Her song "Mayonaka no Doa" as recorded by Sony Music appeared on television as one of the ending themes to "Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z". 

(Sorry for such a short list of Factoids. If you have any to add, let me know. -ed.)

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Carrie Ann Moss

Going to be slim picken's for a while.
I'm actually working on a "real" project, so might miss a day or two if I get in a jam.
Bear with me… thanks everyone!

Find Carrie Ann Moss stuff here.

Q: What do Yvonne Strahovski and Carrie-Anne Moss have in common? (Answer at the bottom of this page.)

Carrie-Anne was born on August 21, 1967 in Vancouver, British Columbia as Carrie-Anne Moss.
She is 5' 8½" [1.74 m] tall.

I only have one word. Trinity.

(...but only the first one. Talk about a train wreck with 2 & 3.)

Factoids:

• Her husband, Steven Roy, is an actor.
• Was a character in a television show also named "Matrix" (1993).
• Has starred with each of the three main actors from The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994) in separate films: Hugo Weaving in The Matrix (1999), Guy Pearce in Memento (2000) and Terence Stamp in Red Planet (2000).
• Recommended Joe Pantoliano for Memento (2000)
• Was named after The Hollies' 1967 song "Carrie Anne", which was on the charts when she was born.
• Appeared in three movies with Joe Pantoliano within the space of two years: The Matrix (1999), New Blood (2000) and Memento (2000).
• Favourite drink is coffee (lots of cream, but no sugar).
• Best friend is actress Maria Bello.
• She's godmother of Maria Bello's son Jack
• Maria Bello is the godmother of her first son, Owen
• Toured Europe with her high school choir.
• Has been good friends with Jada Pinkett Smith since the filming of The Matrix Reloaded (2003) and The Matrix Revolutions (2003).
• Graduated from Magee Secondary School in Vancouver, B.C., Canada.
• Graduate of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts 1988.
• Is a vegan.

Quotes:

• After The Matrix, I cannot wear sunglasses. As soon as I put them on, people recognize me.
• I wouldn't play another character like Trinity out of respect to her and respect to the film. I don't want to be the leather-clad, kicking-butt girl with another name. It would be like cheating on Trinity.

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Find more Carrie Ann Moss stuff here.

Find more Carrie Ann Moss stuff here.

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Q: What do Yvonne Strahovski and Carrie-Anne Moss have in common?
A: They both worked on the video game "Mass Effect 2."

Yvonne Strahovski

Going to be slim picken's for a while. I'm actually working on a "real" project, so might miss a day or two if I get in a jam. Bear with me… thanks everyone!

Find Yvonne Strahovski stuff here.

Yvonne was born on July 30. 1982 in Sydney, Australia as Yvonne Strzechowski (Stra-hov-ski, like how she spells it now). She is 5' 9¼" [1.76 m] tall (Hey, Yvonne, do you really need the ¼ on your height? You make me feel short already without it!).

I first saw Yvonne on the TV show called "Chuck." It has been on the radar of cancellation for all the years that it has been on air. 2011-2012 is the last season… officially. It's too bad because it was one of those shows that geeks like me loved… a smart guy who went to a great university, gets a rotten job and still ends with a hot girlfriend who doesn't mind dressing up as Leia Organa for Holloween (see bonus image below).

She was in a movie called "Killer Elite" and "Canyon" but haven't seen either. I'll finish "Chuck" before I hear her speak with her real accent for now.

Factoids:

• Sent in her audition tape for the show "Chuck" (2007) in the United States while in the states doing an audition for two other shows (see special features of disk 3 of "Chuck" (2007) Season 1 "Chuck's World". She sent in an audition tape while waiting to hear from the other two jobs. She was contacted by the producers of "Chuck" (2007) the next day to come in to "run lines" with Zachary Levi A.K.A. Chuck Bartowski/Charles Carmichael. The chemistry was undeniable and the producers of "Chuck" (2007) called her back a week later letting her know she got the job. Six months later, she moved to the United States and was cast as the leading lady on "Chuck" (2007) three days later.
• Was a straight-A student in school.
• Had a nose ring for five years and says that the hole is still visible from close-up.
• Is of Polish descent and speak Polish fluently.
• After her acting success, mother and father moved to the United States to be near her. Yvonne's remaining relatives reside in Poland.
• Yvonne's last name, Strahovski, is the phonetic spelling of how to pronounce her actual last name, Strzechowski.

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Find more Yvonne Strahovski stuff here.

Find more Yvonne Strahovski stuff here.

Olivia Wilde

Find Olivia Wilde stuff here.

Olivia was born on March 10, 1984 in New York, New York (sorry, can't find a burrough) as Olivia Jane Cockburn. She is 5' 7½" [1.71 m] tall.

Those of you who are sic-fi geeks like me would know Olivia from "Cowboys and Aliens" and "Tron: Legacy" but if you are into science-like television, like me, you would know Olivia as "13" on the once formerly good TV show "House." Now the show is called "House, M.D." and it stinks, not only because this show and so many other shows has become a soap-opera but also because Olivia is no longer in the cast. Perhaps Fox News is starting to influence Fox TV, but I digress...

Olivia seems to be able to somehow become the age of the character she is playing. For some reason, she just looks ageless… well, to me anyway. Doing the math, as of today (11/8/11) she is 27 years old but I guarantee you that she can play 18 or 35 without make-up. Any younger would be almost unbelievable unless they ugly her up a bit with acne & other teenage angst and any older she would have to have more wrinkles.

Her next/current movie is a must see for sic-fiers, "In Time" but she has two in the can (done, no more filming), one in post (final touches) and three in pre (preparing to film). She is a busy young lady and hopefully she will be for a long time.

Factoids:

• Daughter of Andrew Cockburn and Leslie Cockburn.
• Attended Georgetown Day School in Washington, DC, through 8th grade.
• Attended Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin, Ireland.
• Spent one month on the set of The Girl Next Door (2004) before being asked to join the cast.
• Raised in Washington, DC.
• Graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts.
• Has a dog named Paco.
• Won Best Actress at HBO's US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, 2006 for her role in Bickford Shmeckler's Cool Ideas (2006).
• Has dual citizenship between Ireland and the United States. (I alway have to answer this question about dual citizenship. The United States does not recognize another country's citizenship if you are a citizen of the United States. In other words, if you're American, you're American and nothing else from the point of view of the United States... under oath, you renounced other countries if you were naturalized. Other countries, however, will recognize other citizenships, so, Ireland must recognize U.S. citizenship and Irish citizenship, hence, from the Irish government's point of view, you have dual citizenship. -ed., who is a naturalized U.S. citizen)
• Once won a pancake eating contest while in Australia.
• Is a natural blond. (I thought the other way around, didn't you? -ed.)
• Is a vegan.
• Is Irish-American.
• Was rumored to play the lead Bond girl in Bond 23. (I can see that. -ed.)
• Replaced Kate Hudson in "Butter."
• A lifelong lover of classic cars, the actress owns a 1958 Chevy Biscayne and a 1959 Thunderbird Convertible. Once owned a 1966 Lincoln Continental with suicide doors. (We used to own one of those Lincolns too. -ed.)
• Adopted her professional name "Wilde" after she developed a profound respect and admiration for Irish poet and writer Oscar Wilde and his body of literature.
• Has an older sister named Chloe, and a younger brother named Charlie.
• Mick Jagger was once her parents' dinner guest at their Washington D.C. home, and she had an impromptu brownie-eating contest with Chris Farley when, at age 10, she visited the set of "Saturday Night Live" (1975).
• Her well-connected journalist parents once helped her get a casting office job in Los Angeles, hoping the experience would dissuade her from taking up acting.
• Her paternal grandmother, Jean Ross, was the inspiration for Christopher Isherwood's character "Sally Bowles", portrayed on film in "I Am a Camera" (1955) by Julie Harris, and "Cabaret" (1972) by Liza Minnelli.

Quotes

• (In the interview Wilde at Heart to Sara Vilkomerson to The New York Observer on April 15 2007) When people saw "The Black Donnellys" (2007), they didn't know it was the same girl from "The O.C." (2003). I'm a natural blonde, but I feel like a brunette. I feel like people treat me now how I should be treated. People used to be shocked, when I was blond, that I wasn't stupid. I used to get these comments that I swear people thought were compliments. Like, 'Oh! You're smart!' - like they couldn't believe it.
• Trying to find this industry's tendency to celebrate the physical is a waste of time. So I'm happy to play the game. But I am also thirsty for input. I'm not a dunce whose only skill is knowing how to take a photograph, you know? And at the end of the day I think it makes me slightly less replaceable.
• [on TRON: Legacy (2010)] It was an effort to get into that suit, but if I was a real astronaut I wouldn't expect that to be easy either. It's all part of the process, it's a challenge and that is what creates the rewards.
• I wanted to be on "Saturday Night Live" (1975) as a cast member. So I went to my mom at ten years old and said, 'This is what I want.' And she said, 'Great, well, you're going to have to go to Second City and you're going to have to audition.' And she took me seriously. And I think that's what always kind of helped propel me and take myself seriously is that I had supportive parents that were in no way pressuring me to do anything. But if I declared that I wanted something, they took me seriously. And that is often what it takes when you decide to be an artist. (I hope my son says something like this when he's rich and famous. -ed.)  

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Find more Olivia Wilde stuff here.

Find more Olivia Wilde stuff here.