Meg Ryan

Blue-eyed blonde with a lively personality, Meg Ryan was born Margaret Mary Emily Hyra in Fairfield, Connecticut, to Susan (Duggan) Duggan, she was an English teacher and one-time actress, and Harry Hyra, a math teacher. Her heritage includes Ruthenian, Polish and Irish, as well as German. ("Hyra") is her Ruthenian surname, and "Ryan", is her maternal grandmother's maiden. Meg graduated from Bethel High School, Bethel in May 1979. After moving to New York, she attended New York University where she majored in journalism. Meg Ryan was her name, and she started acting to earn a little extra cash as she finished her education. In 1981, she made her first big screen debut, with a brief appearance as Candice Bergen's daughter in George Cukor's final film Rich and Famous (1981). She auditioned and was selected to play Betsy in the day time soap as the World Turns (1956). She was a part of the show's cast from 1982 until 1984. Meg was also part of the television series One of the Boys (1982), which was quickly ended. Her move to Hollywood came in 1984 and got an opportunity to be a part of the western TV series Wildside (1985). Meg played a minor role in Top Gun (1986), which led her to be cast in Steven Spielberg’s Innerspace (1987) in which she co-starred with Dennis Quaid. She was again in the same role with Dennis Quaid in the remake of D.O.A. (1988), and got married on Saint Valentine's Day 1991. Meg was in When Harry Met Sally... (1989), which made the scene at the restaurant famous. Meg was nominated to both the Golden Globe and the BAFTA. In 1990, she co-starred with Tom Hanks in Joe Versus the Volcano (1990) and this time she played three roles as DeDe/Angelica/Patricia. In 1993, Meg starred alongside Tom in Sleepless in Seattle (1993), for which she was again nominated for the Golden Globe. Meg chose to stand out from the norm in 1994 when she played the role of Meg's drunken wife and mother "When a Man Loves a Woman" (1994). Then, she went back to her "cute" I.Q. (1994) and French Kiss (1996). People Magazine named Meg "Woman Of The Year" in 1994. She was also awarded the Harvard Hasty Pudding Award.