Sarah Jessica Parker

Sarah Jessica Parker was born on March 25, 1965, in Nelsonville, Ohio, to Barbara G. Parker (née Keck), a teacher who ran a nursery school, and Stephen Parker, a journalist. Her parents divorced, and her mother later remarried to Paul Forste, with whom she had four more children, bringing the total number of siblings to eight. Sarah now had three full siblings and four half siblings. Her father was of Eastern European Jewish ancestry, and her mother had German and some English roots. Trained in singing and ballet, Sarah was cast in the Broadway production of "The Innocents," which prompted her family to move to New Jersey. Already a professional performer (she studied at the American Ballet School and the Professional Children's School), Sarah appeared in "The Sound of Music" (along with four of her siblings) and landed the lead in the Broadway run of "Annie." After a year as the free-spirited orphan, Sarah attended Dwight Morrow High School, while continuing to add to her acting resume. She appeared in the made-for-TV movie *My Body, My Child* (1982), before being cast in one of the lead roles in the 1982 sitcom *Square Pegs* (1982), as high-schooler Patty Green. After graduating, Sarah decided to pursue a full-time acting career rather than further her education. Since *Square Pegs* (1982) did not last more than a year, she moved on to supporting film roles in movies such as *Footloose* (1984), *Firstborn* (1984), and the lead role in the teenage film *Girls Just Want to Have Fun* (1985). After more television appearances in series and made-for-TV movies including *A Year in the Life* (1986), *The Room Upstairs* (1987), and *Dadah Is Death* (1988), she landed the role of Steve Martin's bubbly lover in the 1991 comedy *L.A. Story* (1991). More substantial film roles soon followed, including a role opposite Nicolas Cage in *Honeymoon in Vegas* (1992) (which foreshadowed her comedic talent), *Hocus Pocus* (1993), and *Ed Wood* (1994). A big Woody Allen fan, she starred opposite the filmmaker in the television movie *The Sunshine Boys* (1996), and that same year, she landed a starring role in *Miami Rhapsody* (1995). 1996 was a film-intensive year with roles in *The First Wives Club* (1996), *If Lucy Fell* (1996), and *Mars Attacks!* (1996). While making a name for herself in film, she garnered attention as a stage actress, with her lead role as a dog in the off-Broadway play "Sylvia," and her Broadway roles in "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" (starring her present husband, Matthew Broderick), and the Tony-Award nominated revival of "Once Upon a Mattress." Her star rose significantly with her portrayal of Manhattan sex-columnist Carrie Bradshaw in the HBO series *Sex and the City* (1998). Her Golden Globe Best Actress win in 2000 only underscores the fact that she plays the role of Carrie as though it were written for her. She is married to Matthew Broderick. Before the marriage, she dated Robert Downey Jr. (with whom she lived), and the late John Kennedy Jr. She is a member of Hollywood's Women's Political Committee, and is UNICEF's representative for the Performing Arts.