Catherine Lisa Bell was born August 14, 1968, in London, England. Of British and Iranian descent (Catherine speaks fluent Farsi), a 3-year-old Catherine relocated to Los Angeles with her family.

Although she had appeared in some television commercials as a child, Catherine originally wanted to be an artist. She ended up going to UCLA to study medicine, with the intention of becoming a surgeon or a biomedical engineer, but she had a slight change of plans...

Catherine began modeling part-time while in college. She put her studies on hold when she headed to Japan to model for several months, but even though she was modeling, Catherine still felt that her shyness was holding her back.

That's where acting came in. Catherine hired an acting coach to help her get over her shyness. She was on the road to becoming a successful model, but fell in love with acting instead.

Her parents supported her decision to pursue acting (rather than the more secure medical field), but it took years of auditions to finally get the break she needed. Catherine started out with guest appearances on television shows like Dream On in 1994, Friends in 1995 ("The One with the Baby on the Bus"), Hotline in 1996, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys in 1997, and a recurring role in Sin City Spectacular in 1998.

Before landing her breakthrough role of Lt. Col. Sarah "Mac" MacKenzie on JAG, she was cast in the recurring role of Lt. Dianne Schonke, in one of the show's first seasons. She was killed of the show after only a couple of appearances, but the good news was that since the show's creator and executive producer was so impressed by her performance, she was made the female lead in 1997.

Catherine also has several film roles to her credit, including Isabella Rossellini's body double in 1992's Death Becomes Her; 1994's Men of War; 1996's Crash Dive; 1997's Black Thunder; the made-for-TV-movies Mother of the Bride and Alien Nation: Body and Soul; starring roles in Cab to Canada and The Time Shifters, and her appearance as a square in Hollywood Squares.

Lieutenant by day, Catherine is wife to Adam Beason, who she met on the set of Death Becomes Her as he was the director's assistant. Catherine and her husband live near LA, with their two Italian greyhounds, Zoe and Leo. The stunning actress dedicates her time to organizations like the Children's Hospital in Los Angeles and the Buoniconti Fund, and enjoys bungee jumping and motorcycles.