Meg Ryan

Meg Ryan, blonde-haired and blue-eyed, was born Margaret Mary Emily Hyra in Fairfield Connecticut to Susan (Duggan) the former actor and English teacher and Harry Hyra, a maths teacher. She is of Ruthenian, Polish, Irish and German roots. ("Hyra" is an Irish and Ruthenian surname, and "Ryan" is the maiden name of her maternal grandmother). Meg graduated in June 1979 from Bethel high school in Bethel. She then moved to New York and majored as a journalist at New York University. Meg Ryan was her name and she began acting to earn additional money during her time at university. 1981 was her big screen debut. She portrayed Candice Bergen's baby girl in the film of George Cukor Rich and Famous (1981). She was cast in the character of Betsy in the TV soap The World Turns the World Turns (1956) after she was able to audition. She was a part of the cast from 1982 until 1984. Meg was also participant in the television show One of the Boys (1982) and was put on hold. In 1984, she moved to a town with a lot of tinsel and eventually landed an appearance in the western television series Wildside (1985). Meg played a minor role in Top Gun (1986), and was later cast in Steven Spielberg's Innerspace (1987) in which she starred with Dennis Quaid. For the remake of D.O.A., she starred in a second time with Quaid. (1988) They were wed on Saint Valentine's Day 1991. Meg played the lead role in When Harry Met Sally... (1989), that made the scene at the restaurant famous. Meg was twice nominated for the Golden Globe and 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 appeared again alongside Tom in the hugely successful Sleepless in Seattle (1993) for which she was again nominated for the Golden Globe. Meg was able to break away from the established norms in 1994 when she played the part of Meg's wife who is an alcoholic and mother "When a Man Loves a Woman" (1994). Meg returned to her role as "cute" following that film with I.Q. (1994) as well as French Kiss (1996). The year 1994 was the year that Meg won the Harvard Hasty Pudding Award as "Woman of the Year" and was also voted as one of "The 50 most beautiful women in the world 1994" by People Magazine.