Born: December 4, 1964

Age: 50

Known for: Her three-decade-long career as an Italian American actress in film, television and theatre.

Fun facts: She has dual citizenship with The United States and Italy. Despite growing up surrounded by the arts, no one in her family has an artistic background. Her parents loved theatre and she fell in love with it as well when they took her to Broadway shows.

Bio: Tomei was born in and raised in the Midwood area of Brooklyn, New York by Italian American parents with roots in Tuscany. Growing up, she was fascinated by Broadway and theater and was drawn to a career in acting. In junior high school, Tomei started acting in school theater performances; for example, she played Hedy LaRue in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.

Tomei attended Boston University for a year until she was cast in the role of Marcy Thompson in the daytime television soap opera As the World Turns. She continued acting in feature films and off-Broadway productions until her breakout film performance in 1992 as Mona Lisa Vito in the film My Cousin Vinny co-starring Joe Pesci and Ralph Macchio. She won an Academy Award in the Best Supporting Actress category for her performance. However, after the win, Tomei accepted roles that didn’t do her talent justice and struggled to achieve success.

After a few critical and commercial letdowns, she transitioned into Indie films in the late 90’s. After her best reviews since Vinny in the film Slums of Beverly Hills, she made her Broadway debut in a revival of Wait Until Dark with actor and director Quentin Tarantino. After 2000, Tomei’s career continued to make an upward shift. In the film In the Bedroom she proved her skills as a dramatic actress, for which she received her second Academy Award nomination.

Since then, her success has continued. She was nominated for another Academy Award for her supporting role as a struggling stripper in The Wrestler. Her recent successes include the dramas The Lincoln Lawyer, and The Ides of March, and comedies such as Crazy, Stupid, Love, and Parental Guidance. In total she has 69 film and television credits, 4 Broadway credits, 37 award nominations and 24 award wins.

Why she inspires us: Tomei made a splash with her iconic portrayal of Italian American New Yorker Mona Lisa Vito in My Cousin Vinny. Yet she struggled to gain footing in the industry after her initial success, dogged by poor reviews and what were considered lackluster performances. Despite these setbacks, though, Tomei continued to follow her passion for acting, ultimately proving her mettle with a solid comeback in her recent films. She is a great role model who shows what hard work and perseverance can do to put you on the track to success.