Into the Limelight

Background:

On Friday, 3/31/1995, the popular Latin singer Selena was murdered by the president of her fan club, Yolanda Saldivar. In 1997 the movie biography of her life, titled Selena, was released with actress/singer Jennifer Lopez portraying the talented Selena Quintanilla-Pérezhit and a new star, Jennifer Lopez, was born.

Often viewed as one of the sexiest women on the planet, the singer, actress, model, clothing line owner, and dancer has been linked to some noteworthy men. Now married to singer Marc Anthony, Jennifer was once also married to choreographer and dancer Cris Judd and waiter/model Ojani Noa. Her former engagement to actor Ben Affleck and being romantically linked to hip-hop musician and producer P. Diddy kept the Paparazzi in a feeding frenzy.

With musical hits like "If You Had My Love" and over 35 million records sold worldwide, it is no wonder Jennifer Lopez can stay in the limelight. Add that to movies like Out of Sight (1998), also starring George Clooney and The Wedding Planner (2001), co-star Matthew McConaughey, and she is likely to stay there.

"It makes me laugh when she says she got offered Selena, which was an outright lie. If that's what she does to get herself publicity than that's her thing." Jennifer Lopez speaking about actress Salma Hayek.

"I'm living the life I always dreamed of living. From the time I was a youngster I wanted to be a celebrity. It's a great life. The only bad thing is that people are more interested in your personal life than they are in your work and it's freaky." Jennifer Lopez

Bronx Songbird

Childhood and Family:

Bronx girl Jennifer Lynn Lopez (nicknamed J Lo) was born on July 24, 1969 in Castle Hill, New York. The middle child of three daughters, Jennifer's parents, David Lopez (computer specialist) and Guadalupe Lopez (teacher) were both born in Puerto Rico but met only after moving to America. Jennifer attended Catholic school with her high school being an all-girl institution.

"I wasn't the most popular girl in class. I had my friends, but I was comfortable with myself. There's always those most popular girls and I wasn't one of those." Jennifer Lopez

"My parents wanted me to be a lawyer. But I don't think I would have been very happy. I'd be in front of the jury singing." Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lopez married singer Marc Anthony on June 5th, 2004. Being her third marriage many remain skeptical about the union. Jennifer's song, You Got Me, is about her relationship with Marc Anthony.

This Is Me...

Career:

Besides releasing records such as J.Lo, This is Me...Then and upcoming Rebirth, Jennifer Lopez has built her career out of clothing (Sweetface Fashion Company), television, and movies. Jennifer has appeared in numerous televised award shows, 2001's Jennifer Lopez in Concert, guest appearances, and TV's In Living Color, Nurses on the Line: The Crash of Flight 7, Second Chances, South Central and Hotel Malibu.

Jennifer Lopez's big screen debut begins with the movies My Little Girl (1986), Lambada (1990, My Family (1995), Money Train (1995), Jack (1996) and Blood and Wine (1996). In 1997 Jennifer hit the big time with the movie Selena (1997) based on Latin singer Selena Quintanilla-Pérez. After Jennifer's credibility as an actor was noted she went on to act in movies such as Anaconda (1997), U Turn (1997), Out of Sight (1998), The Cell (2000), The Wedding Planner (2001), Angel Eyes (2001), Enough (2002), Maid in Manhattan (2002), Gigli (2003), Jersey Girl (2004) and Shall We Dance (2004). In 1998 Jennifer shared her talented voice in the delightful animated film, Antz. Other famous voices in the project include such legends as Woody Allen, Dan Aykroyd, Anne Bancroft, Gene Hackman, Sylvester Stallone, Sharon Stone and Christopher Walken to name only a few.

One can catch Jennifer starring with Robert Redford and Morgan Freeman in 2005's An Unfinished Life, Jane Fonda and Michael Vartan in Monster-in-Law (2005) and Nicole Kidman in American Darlings (2005). "Living your life in public is a weird thing because people feel they have a right to judge what you do. I think, if you turn the media spotlight on any random person, they would have the same kinds of things going on in their lives, but mine would wind up on the front page." Jennifer Lopez

"People equate sexy with promiscuous. They think that because I'm shaped this way, I must be scandalous, like running around and bringing men into my hotel room. But it's just the opposite." Jennifer Lopez

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Kids' Choice Awards: Blimp Award - Favorite Female Movie Star (2002)
- ALMA Awards: Special Achievement Award - Female Entertainer of the Year (2001)
- Blockbuster Entertainment Awards: Favorite Actress - Science Fiction, THE CELL (2001)
- MTV Movie Awards: Best Dressed, THE CELL (2001)
- ALMA Awards: Special Achievement Award - Female Entertainer of the Year (2000)
- ALMA Awards: Outstanding Actress in a Feature Film in a Crossover Role, OUT OF SIGHT (1999)
- ALMA Awards: Outstanding Actress in a Feature Film, SELENA (1998)
- Imagen Foundation Awards: Lasting Image Award, SELENA (1998)
- Lone Star Film & Television Awards: Best Actress, SELENA (1998)