Hollywood Actress 2011

One wouldn't guess it by listening to the sexually suggestive lyrics in her music, but Katy Perry is actually the daughter of two pastors and grew up singing in church until she was 17. Perry was also a fan of gospel music, and in her freshman year of high school, the California native dropped out to pursue a career in music. Perry's church singing turned the heads of some music veterans, who brought her to Nashville to hone her songwriting skills. Her first album (which she released under her original name Kate Hudson) was rooted in gospel and proved to be an unmitigated failure.

After changing her name and moving to California, Perry recorded a rock album for Island Records with super-producer Glen Ballard, though it was never released. After a continued series of falling outs and shelved projects with a variety of record labels, Perry's undeniable talent and star quality captured the attention of a Capitol Music executive who signed her in 2007.

katy perry kisses a girl and likes it

While the first song released off Katy Perry's debut album called "Ur So Gay" created online buzz and controversy for obvious reasons, it was the official lead single "I Kissed A Girl," that established Perry as a bona fide pop sensation. The racy tale of woman-on-woman love soared to the top of the Billboard charts where it remained for seven weeks, while drawing the ire of gay and lesbian groups across the country. Perry's mother, an Evangelical Christian, was one of the song's most vocal critics, calling it "shameful and disgusting." Still, its injection into the cultural zeitgeist was undeniable, as was its success, earning Perry a nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 51st Grammys. Her debut album One of the Boys featured a string of equally successful singles including "Hot N' Cold" and "Waking Up in Vegas," making it a platinum-selling disc with a 71 week-long stay on the charts.

katy perry saddles up with russell brand

With her professional career progressing full steam ahead, all Katy Perry lacked was stability in her personal life. Ironic, then, that she began a courtship with notorious British bad-boy Russell Brand. After a rocky on-and-off again relationship with Gym Class Heroes singer Travis McCoy, Perry began seeing Brand after the two met at the MTV Video Awards, and their relationship has progressed into a highly publicized engagement under constant scrutiny from the tabloids. Set to marry this October, the couple is very vocal about their love for one another, and often share intimate details with the press. Though Brand -- a former drug addict -- will forgo the bachelor party festivities, Perry's bachelorette is being thrown by her good friend Rihanna. And yes, we're still waiting for our invitation in the mail.

katy perry looks to dominate the summer

When Katy Perry released "California Gurls" -- the infectious first single from her coming sophomore effort Teenage Dream, it instantly became the front-runner for the coveted "Song of The Summer" crown. The Snoop Dogg-featuring electro banger soared to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, which certainly bodes well for Perry's latest disc, released in the U.S. on August 24th. Perry claims that the song is a direct response to Jay-Z's Big Apple big-up "Empire State of Mind," igniting the fiercest coast wars since Tupac and Biggie went at it in the '90s.

katy perry takes on lady gaga

Speaking of feuds, Katy Perry must have been looking to shake up the pop landscape when she tweeted "using blasphemy as entertainment is as cheap as a comedian telling a fart joke," which was perceived as a direct shot at Lady Gaga and her controversial video for "Alejandro." Perry immediately clarified that her statement was directed at blasphemous pop stars in general, not just at Gaga, insisting that she's in fact a fan of the megastar. Millions of men around the world hoping for the world's sexiest cat fight just let out a simultaneous groan.

Michael Jackson was born into what later became one of the most well-known and flat-out successful musical families ever created. Having displayed a keen appreciation for music before his 5th birthday, Michael Jackson took his greatest inspiration from the song and dance moves of James Brown and enjoyed sharing his musical gifts with others. In school, he performed for his classmates before joining his brothers Jermaine Jackson, Marlon Jackson, Tito Jackson, and Jackie Jackson to form a musical group that became The Jackson Five. As the youngest member of the group, Michael Jackson started as a backup performer, but much greater things were in store. By 1966, he became the face of the group and its lead singer.

In the wake of taking the top prize at a musical talent contest, Michael Jackson and his brothers worked with Indiana-based music label Steeltown, before hitting it big with a recording contract in 1968 from the legendary Motown Records. A year later, the group released its debut song "I Want You Back," the first of four consecutive singles (the others being "ABC," "The Love You Save," "I'll Be There) that topped the Billboard Hot 100 and become favorites for future generations. Barely older than 10, Michael Jackson had already earned the nickname of "genius" by Rolling Stone and appeared as a musical guest on the highly rated Ed Sullivan Show. His giddy performance style made him an audience favorite, but off the stage, life wasn't nearly as happy. Although his father, Joseph Jackson, was the architect of the group, he inflicted physical and emotional abuse on Michael Jackson. The group's runaway success and busy recording schedule also prevented Michael Jackson from having a normal childhood. Even with these obstacles, he did find a friend in musical legend Diana Ross, who lived with him temporarily and offered him further musical inspiration that came through in much of his later material.

During his time with Motown, Michael Jackson began branching out as a solo artist, with his first No. 1 single as a solo musician being 1972's "Ben." While filming a role as The Scarecrow in 1978's The Wiz (which starred Diana Ross), Michael Jackson met musical producer Quincy Jones, and the two soon began an album collaboration for Epic Records. The finished product was 1979's Grammy-winning Off the Wall, which sold more than 20 million units around the world and spawned hits like "Rock With You," "Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough" and "She's Out of My Life." Even though the album was the first one in U.S. history to have four Top 10 singles, Michael Jackson -- always the perfectionist -- believed that he was capable of something even better.

In 1982, that "something even better" arrived in the form of Thriller. With the album, Michael Jackson raised the musical bar to a success level that no one else has ever reached and also revolutionized the ways that people saw and heared music. The album became the biggest seller in music history and boasted seven singles that reached the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. One of them was "Beat It," a rock anthem featuring a guitar solo from the one-and-only Eddie Van Halen, while another one was "Billie Jean," a song that first brought Michael Jackson (and black artists) to the attention of MTV. A now legendary live performance of "Billie Jean" was done by Michael Jackson at the 25th anniversary of Motown in 1983, complete with a dance move now universally known as The Moonwalk. The success of the song was especially ironic given that producer Quincy Jones had initially wanted it removed from the album. The title track from Thriller took on a zombie theme for its memorable video -- a short film that became one of MTV's most popular videos ever and spawned dance moves copied around the world by fans and even prisoners.

In the midst of the success of Thriller, Michael Jackson signed an advertising contract with Pepsi, but during the filming of a commercial in 1984, the singer suffered burns to his scalp. His overall appearance began to change, most noticeably his nose and skin color. Where music and popularity were concerned, he stayed in the celebrity driver's seat by cowriting the 1985 all-star charity single, "We Are the World," and starring in his own movie (Moonwalker) and 3-D film Captain Eo (from director Francis Ford Coppola). 1987 saw the release of his next album, Bad. While it didn't sell to Thriller-like numbers, the album did provide more instant classics like "Dirty Diana," "The Way You Make Me Feel," "The Man in the Mirror," and "Smooth Criminal." The latter song featured a patented dance move known as The Anti-Gravity Lean, while the album's title anthem was made into a memorable gang-themed video that was directed by Martin Scorsese.

The release of Bad was followed by a concert tour that played to 4.4 million guests and brought in $125 million, a Guinness World Record. Even so, the years between Bad and the release of Michael Jackson's 1991 album, Dangerous, featured more questions about his appearance and increasingly bizarre rumors. While he lived on the grounds of his privately funded amusement park, Neverland, Michael Jackson was alleged to have bought the bones of John Merrick (aka The Elephant Man) and thought to be regularly sleeping in an oxygen chamber. Both of these rumors were false, but Michael Jackson did disclose that his pale skin was the result of a skin disease called vitiligo.

Dangerous went on to be the singer's second biggest album after Thriller with "Black or White" (a music video featuring Macaulay Culkin), "Remember the Time" (which starred Eddie Murphy and Magic Johnson), and "Will You Be There?" (the anchor to the Free Willy soundtrack) being among the most memorable songs. While the singer's immensely popular 1993 Super Bowl halftime performance showed that he was still a global entertainment force, allegations of child molestation later that year and a substantial multi-million dollar payment from Michael Jackson to his accuser forever tainted his legacy.

After marrying Lisa Marie Presley, Michael Jackson sought to rehabilitate his career with the release of HIStory: Past, Present, and Future, Book I in 1995. The album, which featured the hits "Scream" (the most expensive music video ever made) and "You Are Not Alone" had more longevity than the marriage. By the time Michael Jackson's year-long concert tour for HIStory had ended, he was married to Debbie Rowe and a soon-to-be father. Save for two inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a 30th anniversary reunion with his brothers at Madison Square Gardens in 2001 and his marginally successful 2001 album, Invincible, Michael Jackson slowly began to fade into eccentric obscurity by wearing surgical masks in public and displaying the effects of cosmetic surgery gone terribly wrong. His career and personal life came to a grinding halt when he was brought to trial in 2005 on counts relating to another accusation of child molestation, but Michael Jackson was ultimately vindicated with a verdict of not guilty.

Four years removed from a Santa Monica courthouse, Michael Jackson offered up a number of shocking surprises in 2009. A full 12 years after his last concert tour, he announced a series of 10 concerts in London that were titled This Is It. Intended as a thank you to his fans and a chance for his own children to see him perform, the concerts were meticulously planned with a number of larger-than-life elements, like 3-D technology, eye-popping sets, aerial dancing, and short film clips. Any questions about Michael Jackson's level of popularity were answered when the enormous degree of public interest expanded the concert series to 50 shows, making them into "must-see" musical events. Michael Jackson described the concerts as "the final curtain call" and he was eerily correct.

On June 25th, 2009, the world stopped when he died suddenly of cardiac arrest from a lethal drug combination. An unprecedented musical memorial service -- watched by over 30 million Americans and featuring the likes of John Mayer, Mariah Carey, Jennifer Hudson, and Stevie Wonder -- came next, as did a spike in album sales and digital downloads that reintroduced the music of Michael Jackson to the world all over again. While the concert series never came to be, This Is It still served as Michael Jackson's curtain call for live performing. The surviving rehearsal footage was edited into a concert film. London audiences never got to see him perform in person, but Michael Jackson's colossal legion of fans got to see him on stage and in action one final time when the musical documentary was released worldwide.

Jessica Ann Simpson was born in Abilene, Texas, on July 10, 1980, and grew up in the small town of Richardson. Her life was textbook happy and included her father Joe, who was a psychologist and also served as youth minister in the local Baptist church (he later went on to not only become Jessica's manager, but her sister's manager as well).

With this background, it was only normal for young Jessica to participate in church activities and so she sang in the choir. Such was her gift that at the age of 12, she auditioned for The Mickey Mouse Club.

When she reached the finals, she froze and choked completely. Unfortunately, she didn't get the job.

jessica simpson and tommy mottola

She returned to Richardson, Texas, and bit into the Christian music she had been brought up with. Her father Joe (now her manager) took his daughter on the road, where they worked the Christian Youth Conference circuit. Jessica Simpson sang and sold her home-recorded album after performances. This was a winning formula and while she was still in junior high, Jessica was performing with famous gospel acts like Kirk Franklin and Ce Ce Winans.

It wasn't only Christian music fans who got into her music; pop lovers everywhere were being charmed by her voice. This was just the encouragement Jessica needed to pursue a middle-of-the-road pop music career. Sure enough, news of Jessica's success reached important people in the industry. Tommy Mottola of Columbia Records/Sony Music was one of them and he was stunned by Jessica Simpson's voice and skills.

jessica simpson's sweet kisses

Mottola believed Jessica Simpson had the talent to reach mainstream audiences. Still, Jessica Simpson made it clear that she would only be onboard if she could maintain her identity. Luckily, Mottola understood what she believed in and supported her decision.

After signing up with the music giant, her debut album, Sweet Kisses, was released in 1999, giving way to the singles "I Wanna Love You Forever" and "I Think I'm In Love With You." She then hit the road and showed audiences worldwide what the Jessica Simpson craze was all about.

Simpson joined boy band 98 Degrees on its tour and it didn't take long for her to fall in love with one of its members, Nick Lachey. Their budding romance only helped the release of their duet, "Where You Are," off Sweet Kisses.

In June 2001, her sophomore album Irresistible was released. The title track was a smash hit and it went as high as No. 3 on the Top 40 chart. After some remixes, her third album In This Skin was released in August 2003. However, Jessica Simpson's life was about to take a drastic turn.

jessica simpson on mtv's newlyweds

After a short breakup, Jessica and Nick finally got married in October 2002, and the celebrity marriage was rejoiced in gossip columns everywhere. As a result, MTV offered the couple a reality show based on their everyday life as a couple, much like The Osbournes.

The deal was struck and August 2003 marked the debut of Newlyweds: Nick & Jessica. Although the show overshadowed Jessica Simpson's new album, it became an incredible hit and it was picked up for second and third seasons.

Since the world couldn't seem to get enough of their goofy antics, the couple was offered a TV variety special reminiscent of The Sonny and Cher Show.

jessica simpson in the dukes of hazzard

Around the time of her marriage to Nick, Jessica Simpson appeared in three episodes of That '70s Show (between 2002 and 2003) as Kelso's love interest. She also appeared on The Twilight Zone in 2002, all of which led the way for her 2005 big-screen debut wearing sexy "Daisy Dukes" in the film version of The Dukes of Hazzard (costarring Johnny Knoxville and Seann William Scott). The film coincided with the release of Jessica Simpson's remake of Nancy Sinatra's "These Boots Are Made For Walking." In 2006, she appeared in Dane Cook's film Employee of the Month.

jessica simpson in a public affair

At the dawn of Jessica Simpson's budding film career she and Nick Lachey filed for divorce, which was finalized in June 2005 on the basis of irreconcilable differences. On the heals of her divorce, she released her fifth album, A Public Affair, in 2006.

jessica simpson is no. 47 on 2008 top 99 and no. 70 in 2009 top 99

In 2006, Jessica Simpson started dating musician John Mayer and they were together for over nine months. The couple hooked up at Christina Aguilera's New Year's Eve party and were spotted months later as affectionate as can be at a post-Grammy bash. They split up in May 2007. And in November 2007, Jessica Simpson began dating Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo.

She signed on to take the lead in two 2008 movies -- The Love Guru and Major Movie Star -- and although both of those movies were critically panned, she has stayed true to her music roots and released a country album, Do You Know.

Do You Know has become a hit on the country charts, but during her tour supporting the album she started getting criticized in the tabloids for having gained weight. What started out as a petty observation escalated into a full-on media battle, leading to numerous emotional appearances for Jessica while she battled the criticism about her curves.

Despite the scrutiny and because of all her hard work and penchant for staying in the spotlight, the beautiful and curvaceous Jessica Simpson ranked at No. 70 on AskMen.com's Top 99 Most Desirable Women of 2009 list. In the summer of 2009, Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson ended their relationship.

jessica simpson is "sexual napalm"

After coming in at No. 82 on AskMen.com's Top 99 Most Desirable Women of 2010, Jessica Simpson was set to make her return to the spotlight with the March premiere of her VH1 docu-series The Price of Beauty, about the lengths women go to around the world to meet their respective culture's standard of beauty. For better or for worse, Simpson's ex-boyfriend John Mayer beat her to the punch when he told Playboy magazine in an interview that Simpson was "sexual napalm." Simpson responded to Mayer's remarks on Oprah by saying that, she doesn't “want people to know how [she’s] in bed.” Fair enough.

You'd never guess that Emma Watson spent the first five years of her life in Paris, thanks to her upper-crust British accent. When her parents, both British lawyers working in France, divorced in 1995, Emma moved with her mother Jacqueline and younger brother Alex to Oxfordshire, England. While growing up, the aspiring actress learned to sing, dance and act at the Oxford branch of Stagecoach Theatre Arts.

emma watson gets cast in harry potter and the sorcerer's stone

Emma Watson starred in a number of school plays from age six to nine, but no films of the Hollywood variety. In fact, she had no films at all on her resume. When casting began for the film adaptation of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Emma's theater teacher directed casting agents to the budding actress. Eight auditions later and Watson, along with her then-future castmates Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint, landed the leading roles that would soon change the course of their lives. Sure, that might sound cliche, but when you're nine years old and you star in the highest grossing film of the year, life takes you by the hand and says, "Guess what, you're not going to be like anyone else you've known up until this point. Take a mental picture now and brace yourself."

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone went on to make $975 million worldwide, en route to becoming one of the most lucrative movies of all time. Emma Watson reclaimed her role as bookworm Hermione for Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005). How many people get to watch not only themselves but their character grow up on camera?

emma watson and teen vogue

Along the way, Emma Watson has been featured on the cover of Teen Vogue a total of three times, acted with luminaries like Richard Harris and Gary Oldman and has become a regular on the talk show circuit. In 2007, she starred in the fifth installment, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

emma watson in harry potter and the half-blood prince

After lending her voice to the animated flick The Tale of Despereaux, which costarred Dustin Hoffman, Sigourney Weaver and Matthew Broderick, Emma Watson began Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, which came out in July of 2009. Prior to the opening of The Half-Blood Prince, the Potter flicks had already taken in over $4.5 billion worth of ticket sales.

emma watson finishes filming the harry potter series

Emma Watson recently wrapped up filming Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I (out in 2010) and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II (out in 2011). Where will you see her post-Potter? University, most likely. "Until something comes along that I feel as strongly about as I did Hermione -- like, I felt that it was life or death -- I don't want to act again," says the young actress who plans to study English literature and art at an Ivy League school this fall.

emma watson and burberry

Emma Watson won't be completely out of the limelight any time soon, and not just because Harry Potter films will be in theaters until 2011. Emma will star in Burberry's Fall/Winter 2009, shot by none other than world-renowned photographer Mario Testino.

Gaining more and more attention as a style icon, one of Emma Watson's favorite fashion houses is Chanel and, given that she herself admits she has enough money never to work again, we can understand why. The actress had the opportunity to meet Chanel's head honcho, the eccentric Karl Lagerfeld, when he recently photographed her for French magazine. "I'd met Karl a few times before, at parties or something where we really couldn't talk," says Emma. "But this was a dream come true." Yes, she gets to call him "Karl."

By now the story of how Justin Bieber came to be is the stuff of legend. In an age where fame is only a viral video away, Bieber’s meteoric ascension to pop super stardom is still an exception, not yet a rule. Born in Stratford, Ontario, to a single, teenage mother, Bieber grew up playing sports, while secretly teaching himself how to play the piano, drums, guitar, and trumpet.

It wasn’t until he was 12, that Bieber was ready to show the world what he could do. After placing second in a local singing competition, his mother posted a video of his performance on YouTube for friends and family that weren’t able to attend. The video went viral, and Bieber’s mother continued uploading videos of Bieber covering a string of syrupy hits by the likes of Usher, Justin Timberlake and other future colleagues.

When the former marketing executive of So So Def, Scooter Braun, accidentally stumbled upon Justin Bieber’s YouTube channel (he was actually trying to track down a different singer) he knew he had found a star. Braun literally hunted Bieber down -- tracking down former teachers, school board members and even unearthing footage of Bieber busking in front of a theater.

Though Bieber’s mother originally envisioned her son serving God through his music, she gave in to Braun’s aggressive advances. After continuing to build his profile on YouTube, Braun arranged a meeting between his keen protege and R'n'B impresario Usher. Bieber’s natural charisma and talent immediately impressed Usher -- who had once been in Bieber’s shoes -- who signed him to Raymond Braun Media Group. Just like that, the prepubescent tween from Stratford, Ontario, had a record deal with Island Records, and a new home in Atlanta, where his path toward super-stardom began.

By the time Justin Bieber released his debut EP My World in 2009, he already had the luxury of a mass following shrewdly constructed by his management team on YouTube. In short, there was no way this thing would fail. Couple Bieber’s arsenal of syrupy confection of R’n’B pop, with his newly polished urban teenybopper aesthetic (thanks in large to his Usher-appointed swagger coach Ryan Good) and tween girls everywhere had found their ultimate crush. The record debuted at No. 6 on the Billboard charts with four singles landing safely in the Top 100. It wasn’t long before Bieber-mania was as ubiquitous as text messaging, with the mop-topped one performing for everyone from Ellen DeGeneres to Mr. and Mrs. Obama.

When Justin Bieber released “Baby,” the infectious lead single off his follow-up disc My World 2.0, he had become one of the music industry’s foremost saviors -- a camera-ready Messiah in purple sneakers and a straight-brimmed cap. The single propelled My World 2.0 to No. 1 on the Billboard charts, making Bieber the youngest male solo act to top the chart since Stevie Wonder did it in 1963. But by now, Justin Bieber had become more than just a best-selling pop star -- the pint-sized pipsqueak from Stratford, Ontario had become a genuine cultural phenomenon. Gigs on Saturday Night Live, The View and The Late Show meant that in 2010, there was no escaping Justin Bieber.

Justin Bieber’s omnipresence in the media, and his lightning-quick rise to fame were sure to inspire backlash, especially in the quick-to-hate blogosphere. Bieber’s shrewd embracing of social media (the boy tweets!), and his easy-to-pick-on effeminacy (lesbians who look like Justin Bieber has become its own meme) made him an easy target for both critics and creeps.

Internet trolls have perpetuated a string of maliciously preposterous rumors about the Biebster; no he does not have syphilis, no he has not joined a cult, and as far as we know he’s not dead. But despite his many critics, Bieber has been embraced by the cred-solidifying hip-hop community; he pals around with Drake, Ludacris appears on his album; and Kanye West’s admitted fandom led to a much-tweeted about remix of Bieber’s “Runaway Love” featuring none other than Wu-Tang’s street disciple Raekwon.

If Justin Bieber was the prince of 2010, he may just end up being the king of 2011. So for all the haters out there, a warning: Justin Bieber is here to stay. With his best-selling tour wrapping up in December, Bieber has spent the last year dominating the internet (he was the most searched celebrity in July), inspiring riots and hysterics everywhere he went (remember the riot in Long Island?) and performing in some of the most revered venues in the world. Bieber’s recent gig at Madison Square Garden was filmed for his upcoming 3-D biopic due next winter, and his new album will feature at least two songs produced by Dr. Dre. Yes, Dr. Dre -- he of gun-toting NWA fame -- is producing two songs for the grinning charmer with pearly whites from Stratford, Ontario. Is it the end of the world as we know it?

Shakira is a two-time Grammy Award-winning and seven-time Latin Grammy Award-winning artist and celebrity. She has been a major figure in the pop music scene of Latin America since the mid-1990s, but in 2001, she made her mark in the English-speaking world with the release of "Laundry Service".shakira is the only child of Nidia del Carmen Ripoll Torrado, a Colombian of Spanish and Italian ancestry, and William Mebarak Chadid, of Lebanese descent.

Name: Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll
Famously known as: Shaki
Birth date: 02-02-1977
Birth place: Barranquilla, Atlántico, Colombia
Parents: Nidia del Carmen Ripoll Torrado and William Mebarak Chadid
Profession: Singer-songwriter,dancer,music video director, record producer, philanthropist,actress
Genre: Pop, latin pop, rock en Español, pop-rock, R&B
Instruments: Vocals, guitar, harmonica, drums

Engaged to: Antonio de la Rúa(in 2001)

Shakira

Shakira

Shakira wallpaper

Nadya Denise Suleman was born October 12, 1975, in Fullerton, California. The only child of a high school teacher and a Realtor, she always hoped to have a large family of her own. “I just longed for connections and attachments with another person that I really lacked, I believe, growing up,” she says.

Nadya Suleman came one step closer to starting a family of her own in 1996 when she married Marcos Gutierrez. Unfortunately, she and her husband could not conceive children. “I went through about seven years of trying,” she explains. “And through artificial insemination... medication.... all of which was unsuccessful.” Upon closer examination, doctors discovered she had lesions in her fallopian tubes, thereby further complicating her attempts to become pregnant.

Nadya Suleman never abandoned her dream of having children. She began saving for in vitro fertilization (IVF) by working around the clock as a psychiatric technician at Metropolitan State Hospital in Norwalk, California. “I was able to work double-shifts, constantly working double-shifts, 'cause I was hoarding my money, and I was saving it and nonstop working,” she says. “I was so driven, so determined, I wouldn't give up. There's no way I would have ever allowed any obstacle… to get in my way of my dream.” Creepy.

Nadya Suleman had already saved enough money for several procedures by 1999 when she suffered a severe lower back injury in a riot at the hospital. The ensuing trauma left her unable to work, and she began receiving disability payments. She also fell into a deep depression which, coupled with her inability to conceive children, led to the termination of her marriage in 2000.

Still determined to become a mother, Nadya Suleman convinced a platonic friend to donate his sperm and, on May 18, 2001, she finally gave birth to a baby boy named Elijah. “I kept praying,” she says. “And it worked.” Suleman underwent another IVF treatment soon after, and 13 months later gave birth to a little girl named Amerah. And she didn’t stop there. Another IVF treatment resulted in the birth of a second boy named Joshua in August of 2003. “At that point, the doctor's like: ‘You're the only one who's come back more than twice,’” she says. “But he knew I wanted a big family, and this [was] my only option.” She then gave birth to Aidan in 2005 and to twins Caleb and Calyssa in 2006, giving her a total of six children in just five and a half years. Still unable to work, Suleman supported her children through her rapidly diminishing savings, student loans and her disability checks.

Nadya Suleman made another life-changing decision the following year when she opted to use the frozen embryos left over from the batch that produced her twins. “I couldn't live with the fact that if I had never used them, [I’d] be 70 years old and regret the fact that I didn't allow these little embryos to live,” she explains. The first two IVF treatments were unsuccessful, but then, in June of 2008, she was informed that all six embryos had been successfully transferred. “I embraced it fully,” she says.

Nadya Suleman’s pregnancy progressed well until the fifth month when the extraordinary weight of the fetuses snapped several of her ribs, forcing her to go on bed rest. She was then brought into hospital at 30 weeks for an emergency C-section after doctors expressed concern that one of the babies was not growing. Suleman was still in for one more major surprise when doctors discovered she was carrying eight babies and not seven as previously thought, meaning that two of her six embryos had resulted in twins. “I actually started crying,” she admits. “It was an overwhelming feeling of shock.”

Public reaction to the birth was at first positive until news started to leak that Nadya Suleman was unmarried, unemployed and already had six other children under the age of eight. Protesters eventually gathered in front of her home and even threatened her life. Despite the negative backlash, Suleman says she does not regret her decision to have more children and believes strongly that she is a responsible mother. “I'm providing for my children,” she says. “I'm providing myself to my children. I'm loving them unconditionally, accepting them unconditionally. I have a plan.”

Nadya Suleman’s babies are now out of the hospital and have since become the longest surviving octuplets in U.S. history.

Olga Kurylenko was born and raised in the small town of Berdyansk, in southern Ukraine, and dreamed of getting away from there to live a more exciting and glamorous life. When she was 15, she went to Moscow for a week's vacation at the suggestion of her mother, and it was there that she was "discovered" by a scout from a modeling agency. Olga was soon living in Paris where she began working immediately. Her first gig was a photo shoot in sunny Cuba.

Olga Kurylenko eventually became interested in acting, as she began studying at a theater school during her spare time. She landed her first big screen role playing Iris in the French drama L'Annulaire. The film became a favorite at the 2005 Toronto Film Fest, and earned her the Certificate of Excellence as Best Actress at the Brooklyn International Film Festival. In 2006, Olga Kurylenko portrayed The Vampire, opposite Elijah Wood's Tourist, in the ”Quartier de la Madeleine” segment of Paris, je t'aime, and also appeared in the French-Swiss telefilm Le Porte-bonheur.

Next Olga Kurylenko appeared in Suspectes, a mini-series which aired on French television during the spring of 2007. Her other credits for that year included the role of sexy seductress Sofia in the thriller Le Serpent (aka The Snake) as Nika, and opposite Timothy Olyphant's Agent 47 in Hitman, based on the video game of the same name. She also played Mina Harud in the sci-fi drama Tyranny, which was introduced as a web-series before hitting the big screen sometime in 2008.

Olga Kurylenko became the next Bond girl, Camille, for the '08 flick Quantum of Solace, a role that finally solidified her place in Hollywood.

Look for her in '09 in the film Kirot.

Canadian thespian Ellen Page didn't grow up anywhere close to Hollywood, or even Hollywood North (Vancouver) for that matter. Her humble beginnings came in Nova Scotia, where she alternated between competing interests in tree-climbing, action figure duels, soccer, and performance. An aspiring performer since age 4, she developed her interest further by appearing in school productions like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, in which she played Charlie, and courses at her hometown's Neptune Theatre School. She would make her screen debut at 10 by playing Maggie in 1997's Pit Pony, a TV movie that would later be picked up as a TV series. In 29 episodes on the show, Page would hone her craft while also being rewarded with nominations at the Young Artist Awards and the Genie Awards.

Ellen Page continued to develop her acting reputation through intense training and impressive credits. On the training side, she moved to Toronto, where she took on a heavy drama-infused course load at Vaughan Road Academy. On the acting side, she enjoyed a recurring guest role as Treena Lahey on the Canadian TV favorite, Trailer Park Boys, before winning the female ACTRA Maritimes Award for Outstanding Performance for her work in the searing family drama Marion Bridge. The first of two Gemini Awards for Ellen Page would come via another family drama, where she played a girl coping with the loss of her mother in Mrs. Ashboro's Cat. Now a pro at playing it nice, Page would soon turn the tables on her screen type and come out stronger on the other side.

Not wanting her fans and industry observers to prematurely conclude that she could only play nice, Ellen Page played a pair of darker characters in 2005 that deservedly bolstered her acting credibility and overall awareness. In Mouth to Mouth, she aptly played an impressionable teen in who gets caught up in the ill-advised activities of a European youth gang. For her subsequent effort, Hard Candy, she portrayed a conniving girl who squares off against a suspected pedophile (Patrick Wilson). The merciless on-screen battle would feature her using a scalpel and a bag of ice in ways that would be enough to make any man squirm.

Following this pair of serious-minded indies, Ellen Page sent some love to the comic book crowd for the 2006 superhero sequel, X-Men: The Last Stand. As Kitty Pryde, the mutant gifted with the superhuman ability of phasing, Page gamely established the character as her own after following in the footsteps of two different predecessors. Page's string of engaging performances -- and especially her work in Hard Candy -- caught the eye of director Jason Reitman, who made her his first choice to play the opinionated and very pregnant teen title character in the 2007 indie dramedy, Juno. She accepted the role and the resulting film became a surprise blockbuster, grossing more than $230 million around the world. As Juno-isms like "honest to blog" became rampant across pop culture and teen pregnancy's like Bristol Palin's became fodder for "copycat pregnancy" accusations, Page reaped the benefits of increased popularity and success by netting an Oscar nomination for her endearing performance. Marion Cotillard, was eventually crowned the winner.

At this point in her career, moviegoers and pop culture observers couldn't get enough of Ellen Page. To go along with kudos from Entertainment Weekly, FHM and Time, Ellen Page hosted Saturday Night Live in 2008 and appeared in animated form on The Simpsons a year later. For the latter, she poked fun at entertainment tween queen Miley Cyrus by voicing the satirical character, Alaska Nebraska. Where movies were concerned, she joined the 2008 Dennis Quaid-Sarah Jessica Parker ensemble dramedy, Funny People, which was followed by Whip It, the cinematic ode to roller derby that cast Page as a Texas teen who learns to "Be your own hero." The film was also Drew Barrymore's directorial debut.

In 2010, Ellen Page joined the cast of what would become her biggest film to date -- Christopher Nolan's mind-bending thriller, Inception -- which was top-lined by Leonardo DiCaprio. Besides being yet another prime showcase for her talents, the film was also notable for Ellen Page in its casting of her previous Oscar competition, Marion Cotillard, in a supporting role. Following Inception, Ellen Page traded barbs with Rainn Wilson of The Office in the superhero comedy, Super, before going the cable route opposite Diane Keaton for Tilda, a series about DeadlineHollywood.com creator, Nikki Finke.

Elisabeth Moss was born on July 24, 1982, and raised in Los Angeles. The daughter of a jazz musician and a harmonica player, Elisabeth Moss was raised by parents who encouraged her to indulge in her every artistic whim. She subsequently enrolled in ballet classes at the tender age of 5, and began auditioning for a variety of movies and television shows shortly thereafter.

In 1990, Elisabeth Moss made her professional debut with a bit part in an obscure made-for-television movie entitled Bar Girls. That same year, she worked side-by-side with such fellow up-and-coming actresses as Sandra Bullock, Shawnee Smith and Nicolette Sheridan in the Emmy-winning miniseries Lucky Chances. Elisabeth Moss spent the next several years appearing in a whole host of movies and television shows, including the 1994 Harvey Keitel drama Imaginary Crimes and The Last Supper, a 1995 black comedy starring Cameron Diaz, Bill Paxton and Annabeth Gish.

It was also around that time that Elisabeth Moss got her first taste of success on the small screen after she landed a recurring role on the popular David E. Kelley drama Picket Fences. Her work on the critically acclaimed CBS show opened doors for her all over Hollywood, and Elisabeth Moss soon found herself appearing alongside such familiar faces as Michelle Pfeiffer, Natalie Portman and Jason Lee in a variety of projects.

In 1999, Elisabeth Moss joined the predominantly female cast of Girl, Interrupted and quickly found herself propelled to an entirely new level of fame thanks to her searing performance opposite Winona Ryder, Angelina Jolie and Brittany Murphy. That same year, Elisabeth Moss kicked off a run of 25 episodes on the Emmy-winning series The West Wing in which she took on the high-profile role of President Bartlet’s daughter Zoey. Elisabeth Moss proved that she could more than hold her own opposite such powerhouse performers as Martin Sheen and Allison Janney, and her efforts eventually landed her a nomination for Best Performance in a TV Drama Series - Guest Starring Young Actress at the 2001 Young Artist Awards.

The turn of the century found Elisabeth Moss appearing in a variety of critically acclaimed independent projects, with her work alongside Robin Wright Penn in the 2003 drama Virgin earning her a nod for Best Female Lead at the 2004 Independent Spirit Awards (she lost to Charlize Theron). She followed that up by taking on a series of guest spots on shows like The Practice, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Medium, though it wasn’t until she successfully auditioned for a starring role on the made-for-AMC series Mad Men that Elisabeth Moss finally took her place in the limelight.

The series became an instant hit among critics and discerning viewers, with its bracingly authentic look at the lives of 1950s era advertising executives eventually landing it a record number of Emmy nominations. Elisabeth Moss’ work has been singled out for its complexity and depth, and it’s certainly not surprising to note that she is, along with Jon Hamm and Christina Hendricks, considered one of the show’s breakout stars.

Rachael Taylor hails from the island of Tasmania, off the coast of mainland Australia. With her pretty, natural looks, she started out as a teenage model with the Skye-Jilly International agency, and also entered the Miss Teen Tasmania and Miss Universe/Miss World state finals.

At the urging of her college English professor/modeling agent, Rebecca Miller, Taylor relocated to Sydney to advance her modeling and acting careers. During this time, she entered the University of Sydney to study history and politics.

Taylor made her acting debut in 2004, appearing as Maryann Marinkovich in the Peter Bogdanovich-directed TV movie The Mystery of Natalie Wood, which was filmed in Sydney. In 2005, she was featured as Catherine Oxenberg in another U.S.-produced telefilm shot Down Under: Dynasty: The Making of a Guilty Pleasure. That same year she costarred as Teri Richards in the gory sci-fi flick Man-Thing, made a guest appearance on the Aussie series McLeod's Daughters, and played the Sphinx in the TV movie Hercules.

Taylor left her studies after landing a regular role on the Australian soap opera Headland, which debuted in the fall of 2005. The part of Sasha Forbes afforded the actress her first opportunity to speak on-screen using her native accent. The series ended its run in February 2006, and despite the fact that the show was off the air for a couple of months, she earned a Logie Award as Most Popular New Female Talent that spring. In May, she appeared as Zoe in the horror movie See No Evil.

Taylor got her big break when she landed the role of Maggie Madsen in Michael Bay's Transformers, one of the most anticipated films of 2007. Despite mixed reviews, the action-packed flick cleaned up at the box office, helping to increase her profile immensely.

She was cast in the 2007 thriller The Tourist with Ewan McGregor and Hugh Jackman, and in a remake of the Thai horror movie Shutter (2008).

Whitney Eve Port was born on March 4, 1985, in Los Angeles, California. Whitney Port’s bubbly demeanor has been in place right from childhood, so it’s not surprising to note that she was an extremely popular student during her time at Warner Avenue Elementary -- as evidenced by her stint as school president in fifth grade. Her interest in the arts led her to enroll at Santa Monica’s prestigious Crossroads School for the Arts and Sciences, which counts among its alumni such familiar faces as Zooey Deschanel, Jake Gyllenhaal and Kate Hudson.

After high school, Whitney Port began taking gender studies at the University of Southern California where, in addition to her place within the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority, she shared a room with Christina Schuller (who rose to fame in the hit reality show Laguna Beach). Whitney Port’s keen interest in fashion and the arts, coupled with an intense drive to succeed, resulted in a summer internship at Women’s Wear Daily, though she also spent some time at W magazine.

In 2005, Whitney Port landed an internship at Teen Vogue alongside Lauren Conrad -- with their efforts documented on the hit MTV reality series The Hills. After spending the summer of 2006 working for the magazine in Paris, Whitney Port’s clout within Teen Vogue had reached a point where she successfully interviewed for a position within the organization as a direct supervisor to all of its interns. Whitney Port’s stint at Teen Vogue was featured prominently on The Hills, with her ongoing rivalry with Emily Weiss providing the series with plenty of backstabbing drama.

Despite her ascent within the ranks at Teen Vogue, in 2007, Whitney Port decided to leave the publication in favor of a position within the fashion PR firm People's Revolution. Working alongside boss Kelly Cutrone, Whitney Port found herself forced to adopt a bicoastal lifestyle -- she still lived in Los Angeles, even though People's Revolution was located in New York City. Whitney Port’s work for the firm included a variety of high-profile events within the fashion world, including Los Angeles’ Fashion Week, and she was eventually joined at People's Revolution by Hills castmate Lauren Conrad.

In 2008, Whitney Port was offered the chance to have her own MTV reality show: a spin-off from The Hills entitled The City. The series revolves around her efforts to move seamlessly from her hometown of Los Angeles to New York City when she takes on a job at the prestigious fashion outfit Diane von Furstenberg. Although she has since left Diane von Furstenberg, Whitney Port’s burgeoning profile has played an instrumental role in the creation of her own fashion line called Whitney Eve. She's now back at People's Revolution, and the company represents her fashion line.

Gabrielle Anwar was born on February 4, 1970, in Laleham, Middlesex, England. Gabrielle’s father, Tariq Anwar, is an Oscar-nominated film editor, while her mother, Shirley, is an actress. Gabrielle attended Laleham Church of England Primary and Middle School starting at age 5, and as early as 1982, she was performing in school productions. Originally, Gabrielle planned to be a dancer and she was trained at ballet school.

At 15, an injury forced Gabrielle to transfer to the drama department of her school. Gabrielle’s parents didn’t want her going into show business, she later quipped, “because they’re smart.” But within months of her switch to acting, Gabrielle was getting professional work. Gabrielle had already been kicked out of one school for fighting, and the competition for drama school was fierce, so she made up her mind to start acting professionally. Gabrielle debuted in Hideaway, a British miniseries, in 1986, and appeared in several other British TV shows while continuing her education with a private tutor.

While working in London, Gabrielle met American actor Craig Sheffer, with whom she would have a lengthy relationship through to the mid-'90s. In 1989, Gabrielle relocated with Sheffer to Los Angeles. She appeared in If Looks Could Kill (1991) and Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken (1991), and she guest-starred on a 1992 episode of Beverly Hills, 90210. But it was Gabrielle’s seven-minute tango lesson with Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman (1992) that really got the young actress noticed in Hollywood.

Bigger roles in more prominent movies followed: Gabrielle starred in the Body Snatchers remake the following year, and appeared alongside Michael J. Fox in For Love or Money. Also in 1993, Gabrielle played Queen Anne in Disney’s version of The Three Musketeers, with Charlie Sheen and Kiefer Sutherland. Gabrielle was nearly replaced for her Disney role as she was a few months pregnant with her first child, Willow, during filming. A few costume adjustments and careful filming hid her condition, although Gabrielle’s custody dispute with Willow’s father, actor Reyn Hubbard, was harder to cover up.

Gabrielle continued to work steadily as the '90s progressed. After an unsatisfying role in Things to Do in Denver When You’re Dead (1995) with Andy Garcia, Gabrielle spent the next decade on the B-list. She appeared in a number of movies with ex-boyfriend Craig Sheffer, including In Pursuit of Honor (1995), The Grave (1996), Turbulence 3: Heavy Metal (2001), Flying Virus (2001), Save It for Later (2003), Water Under the Bridge (2003), and Long Lost Son (2006). In the meantime, Gabrielle married actor John Verea, had two children with him, and subsequently got divorced.

Gabrielle’s star has risen once again, but this time it’s on cable television. In 2006, she co-starred with Noah Wyle in The Librarian 2 on TNT, and she starred as Henry VIII’s sister, Princess Margaret, on Showtime’s hit historical drama The Tudors in early 2007. Gabrielle followed that up as a regular on the USA Network’s comedy series Burn Notice, playing Fiona Glenanne, the IRA-connected ex-girlfriend of series star Jeffrey Donovan. Between acting gigs, raising her three children and taking care of her dog, Gabrielle likes to write screenplays and children’s books.

What else do you need to know?

As Lyla Garrity on Friday Night Lights, Minka Kelly was a picture of perfection: head cheerleader, dating the high school quarterback, born again Christian, and eventual college student. It was hard to believe that Kelly’s own upbringing didn’t somehow mirror her coming of age on the show. Well, not quite.

Kelly was born out of wedlock; her mother was an exotic dancer in Vegas and her father a sometime guitarist for Aerosmith. Kelly was raised by her mother in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and her childhood was, in her own words, “pretty rough” (Stinka Smelly rolls right off the tongue, doesn’t it?). But with the support of her mother -- with whom she was close -- Kelly graduated high school and moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in show business.

During a model casting, Minka Kelly was approached by a former Playmate, who offered to manage the young ingenue. The plan was to have Kelly work as a receptionist at a plastic surgeon’s office until she earned herself a pair of fake breasts, making her a shoo-in for Playboy’s Playmate of the Year honors. The only problem was that Kelly liked the way she looked, and canceled the surgery days before it was scheduled. Instead, she decided to pursue a career in nursing, and save for a few small roles on some bargain-bin television shows, Kelly seemed destined for a life of changing diapers and bedsheets.

In an industry that fetishizes youth, a 26-year-old Minka Kelly was already over-the-hill when she was cast as head cheerleader Lyla Garrity in NBC’s football drama Friday Night Lights, especially since she was charged with the task of playing a high school student. But play her she did, with as much conviction, poise and heart as some of Hollywood’s most seasoned actresses. Even The New York Times called the young actress’ performance “heartbreaking.”

When Kelly left the show after four seasons, she had all the momentum of most young actresses coming off hit shows, except that she was already pushing 30, and the offers weren’t coming in. Bit parts opposite Jamie Foxx in The Kingdom and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in (500) Days of Summer proved that Kelly was equipped with the tools to command the big screen, but the offers just weren’t coming.

Past winners of Esquire’s “Sexiest Woman Alive” have starred in films like Match Point, Monster’s Ball and Mr. and Mrs. Smith. They’ve worked with directors like Woody Allen, Oliver Stone and Paul Haggis. They’ve been nominated for and won Oscars. This year’s winner has appeared in episodes of American Dreams, What I Like About You and Parenthood. Her current claim to fame is her relationship with one of the winningest baseball players of all time, Derek Jeter. OK, so maybe we’re being a little hard on Minka Kelly. Her figure is near perfect and her face is liable to start wars, but isn’t she just a more syrupy version of another brunette whose name rhymes with Fegan Mox?

Perhaps her selection was Esquire’s way of “thinking outside the box” or maybe no A-list actress was willing to appear on the cover, for fear that it might forever relegate them to that dreaded “sexpot” category, vanquishing all aspirations of a serious acting career (even Angelina Jolie has trouble playing anything other than a seductress). Whatever the case may be, we’re sure Minka Kelly isn’t complaining. With her thriller The Roommate (costarring Leighton Meester) on the way, the sexy cover and inside photo spread has been burning a hole through the interweb, and drumming up just enough publicity for her upcoming film to make it a hit. Isn’t 30 the new 20 anyways?

Lady Gaga Photo

Lady Gaga Photo

Lady Gaga Photo