Jessica Claire Biel was born March 3, 1982, in Ely, Minnesota, but grew up in Boulder, Colorado with her brother Justin, after her family relocated to the rocky state.

A regular girl who loves to sing, dance, rollerblade, and mountain bike, Jessica was first discovered while competing at the International Modeling and Talent Association's Los Angeles Convention, in 1994. Her participation in the conference led to her being awarded a scholarship to the Young Actors Space, an acting society in LA.

Jessica has taken her acting abilities to the stage ever since she was 9 years old, starring in regional theatre productions of Beauty and the Beast, The Invisible People, Annie, and The Sound of Music, while her beauty took her to a 2-year modeling career, as a model for Limited Too.

The hazel-eyed beauty hit it big when she was cast as Mary Camden in the WB's successful family drama, 7th Heaven.

While playing one of seven siblings on the Aaron Spelling produced show, Jessica also proved to moviegoers that she can steal the spotlight on the silver screen. In 1997, she starred with Peter Fonda in Ulee's Gold -- which garnered attention at the Sundance and Cannes Film Festivals -- and her role as the rebellious teen made critics take notice.

One year later, she starred opposite teen Jonathan Taylor Thomas in I'll Be Home For Christmas.

Voted one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People in 1999, Jessica did a 180 with her career when she posed semi-nude for Gear magazine, while underage. In an attempt to break free from both her wholesome television image and her contract with Spelling, Jessica was ready to show men worldwide what she had, no holds barred.

But Spelling and the rest of 7th Heaven's production team were unhappy to say the least, and filed a lawsuit against the men's magazine.

Apparently, Jessica was trying to prove to Spelling that he does not own her (as opposed to her strict contract clauses), and that she can take on whatever projects she chooses. This was also in response to the alleged feeling that she is missing out on plum parts in Hollywood movies.

Despite the fact that she lost the role in American Beauty to Mena Suvari the girl-next-door beauty is still watching her career blossom. The summer of 2001 will see Jessica starring opposite teen flick staple Freddie Prinze Jr. in Summer Catch. Jessica is still making audiences drool in the fifth season of 7th Heaven, while attending full-time classes at Tufts University in Massachusetts. She's also an amateur photographer and collects vintage glasses in her spare time.