HEATHER GRAHAM
Date of Birth: January 29, 1970
The 1998 Details Movie Awards voted Heather Graham "Breakout of the Year" for her freewheeling performance as "Rollergirl"
in Boogie Nights (a role which - unsurprisingly - also won her "Best Undressed Female"). Her breakout is well deserved, because Graham's "overnight success" is the
result of over a decade's worth of sexy, quirky performances.
The UCLA English major was an usher at the Hollywood Bowl and a doctor's office assistant before getting into the movies. She was the prerequisite blonde bimbo in a couple of teen comedies (including License to Drive with the two Coreys, Haim and Feldman) before quickly landing her first "breakout" role, that of a seizure-faking junkie in Gus Van Sant's Drugstore
Cowboy.
The lithe beauty with the haunting eyes often brings a touch of sensual sorrow to the roles she plays. This quality is well on display in her role as Annie Blackburne on David Lynch's surreal TV series Twin Peaks (a part she reprised in the show's big screen prequel, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me), and
in Doug Liman's testosterone-drive indie smash, Swingers.
When she was asked to explain her job in 15 words, Graham once replied "Create illusion." Pressed further, she responded "Play pretend." Obviously, this very confident performer is a woman of few words (and, sometimes, fewer clothes).
In January 2006 TV season, Graham landed the starring role in the ABC sitcom Emily's Reasons Why Not. Later that year, she shared a Hollywood Film Award with the cast of Bobby (2006).