Joanna Krupa was born April 23, 1981, in Warsaw, Poland. The daughter of prominent hotelier Steven Krupa, she and her family moved to Chicago's Westside -- a huge Polish community -- when she was only 5 years old. "I grew up with the Polish food and even went to a Polish school for six years," she recalls. "We followed our Polish traditions." In addition to keeping in touch with her roots, Joanna also followed her showbiz aspirations, keeping busy with ballet and tap dancing classes. Following high school, Joanna enrolled at a local community college in nearby Lombard, Illinois. Despite her best intentions, she didn't stay there long. "I was miserable," she now admits in retrospect. "I wasn't that into school, because I always knew I wanted to go to work." Deciding higher education wasn't for her, Joanna left for the bright lights of L.A. to pursue a career in modeling. Joanna's move proved to be an immediate success as she quickly began to build her portfolio with a number of high-profile modeling assignments. "The jobs started coming in and I got the right people around me," she says modestly. Lucrative contracts for brands such as Skechers, Izod and Le Coup soon followed as Joanna continued to assert herself on the scene. "I worked my butt off," she admits. She also showed it off -- repeatedly. "The first time I did a sexy photo shoot, I was nervous that all the girls in America would hate me for it and think I was letting them down," she says. "It's really nice when a woman comes up to me and says, 'Oh, I loved your picture in such and such.'" Joanna's modeling work naturally led to film and television opportunities and, in 2000, she starred in an episode of the Baywatch parody, Son of the Beach. Additional appearances on The X Show and a small cameo in Tim Burton's Planet of the Apes followed in 2001. In 2002, Joanna continued her transition to TV by accepting a year-long recurring role as a Juggy Dancer on Comedy Central's The Man Show. "I knew it wasn't me," she admits, "but they didn't make me feel degraded so it was actually kind of fun. I dressed up in costumes and danced around to music. But every job and every experience helps you get something else and has a reason. Even though it was stupid, it gave me a little bit of recognition." That recognition and additional television experience helped Joanna to advance to the semi-finals of Star Search's spokesmodel competition in 2003. As exciting as her showing may have been, it also proved to be somewhat disorienting. "That period when I first left Star Search was hard," she says. "I remember having to do a photoshoot with a really famous photographer and I didn't know if I was coming or going. Part of me still felt like a really young girl." Nonetheless, that "young girl" was now jetting around the world and appearing on magazine covers with increasing regularity. Joanna became a familiar face to readers of publications like FHM, Stuff, Men's Fitness, Trump World, and many more. Joanna built on her Star Search success in 2004 with an appearance in the hit television series Las Vegas, as well as a starring role in the David Carradine action film Max Havoc: Curse of the Dragon. "At first I was scared to do a major role," she admits, "but the scariest part was when I found out they were giving me a lead role! It gave me more confidence in my acting ability because I got good feedback and was comfortable with the role." Joanna's greatest exposure was yet to come, however, as the Polish beauty appeared in the July 2005 issue of Play..boy. TV Media -- a prominent Austrian men's magazine -- also named her Model of the Year. Perhaps just as important, Joanna also fell in love as she began dating Smallville actor Jensen Ackles "He's so not Hollywood and not into being a star," Joanna raves. "He's absolutely amazing. I've never been more attracted to anyone in my life." Joanna was casted in major roles in the drama Ripple Effect (2006), the horror film Skinner Box (2006) and the offbeat comedy The Dog Problem (2006), starring Scott Caanand Don Cheadle.