Meg Ryan

Blue-eyed, blonde-haired with an exuberant personality, Meg Ryan was born Margaret Mary Emily Hyra in Fairfield, Connecticut, to Susan (Duggan) Duggan, the English teacher and one-time actress and Harry Hyra, a math teacher. Her ancestry spans Ruthenian, Polish and Irish and German. ("Hyra") is her Ruthenian surname, and "Ryan", is her maternal grandmother's maiden name. Meg graduated from Bethel high school in Bethel in June 1979. She relocated to New York and majored as a journalist at New York University. Meg Ryan was her new name, and she began acting to earn extra money during her time at university. 1981 was her big screen debut. She portrayed Candice Bergen's daughter in the film directed by George Cukor Rich and Famous (1981). She was cast in the character of Betsy in the soap opera The World Turns the World Turns (1956) after she was able to audition. She was part of the cast from 1982 to 1984. Meg was also part of the cast in the TV show One of the Boys (1982) However, this show was eventually cancelled. She relocated to Hollywood in 1984, where she was offered an opportunity to be a part of the western TV series Wildside (1985). Meg had a small role in Top Gun (1986), which led to her casting in Steven Spielberg's Innerspace (1987) in which she played alongside Dennis Quaid. She starred again with Quaid in the remake of D.O.A. (1988) and the couple tied the knot on Saint Valentine's Day in 1991. Meg appeared in When Harry Met Sally... (1989), which made the scene in the restaurant famous. Meg was nominated for 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. She also appeared in of the critically acclaimed Sleepless in Seattle (1993), where she received nominations for the Golden Globe. Meg took a stand against the trend in 1994, when she played the role of Meg's wife who is an alcoholic and motherin "When a Man Loves a Woman" (1994). Then, she went back to her "cute" I.Q. (1994) & French Kiss (1995). In 1994, Meg was awarded the Harvard Hasty Pudding Award for being "Woman of the Year" and was selected as one of "The 50 most beautiful women in the world 1994" by People Magazine.