Emmy Award-winning actress Rena Sofer joins the cast of "Just Shoot Me" this season as brash, opinionated Brooklyn hairstylist Vicki Costa, who -- after a chance encounter with Blush magazine editor Jack Gallo (George Segal) on the street -- ends up hired as the magazine's new fashion guru. 

Born in Arcadia, California and raised in Pennsylvania and New Jersey as the daughter of an Orthodox Jewish rabbi, Sofer was spotted as a teenager in a Greenwich Village boutique by a scout for a modeling agency. It took less than a month of going out on calls and auditions to convince the then 16-year-old that the life of a model wasn't for her. 

Acting, however, did appeal to Sofer. She took a drama class during her senior year of high school, and following graduation, attended acting classes in Manhattan. Still in her teens, Sofer landed a job on the daytime drama "Loving," in New York. She spent two years there before leaving to shoot a role in Sidney Lumet's 1992 drama, "A Stranger Among Us," with Melanie Griffith. 

Upon returning to California, Sofer was cast in the long-running daytime drama "General Hospital." The role of the brassy, Brooklyn-bred Lois Cerullo catapulted Sofer to fame and earned her an Emmy Award. 

While still on "General Hospital," Sofer starred in her first telefilm, "Hostile Advances." She has since starred in "Nightmare Street" with Thomas Gibson and Sherilyn Fenn, and "The Stepsister." During summer 2002, she also played a role in the NBC telefilm remake of "Carrie." 

Sofer's television series credits include regular roles in "Melrose Place," "The Chronicle" and "Oh, Grow Up." She also had a recurring role on NBC's "Ed" and has guest-starred on such hit series as "Friends," "Seinfeld," "Spin City," "NYPD Blue," "Ellen" and "Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place." 

On the big screen, Sofer most recently appeared in director Steven Soderbergh's highly acclaimed "Traffic." She also had a featured role opposite Edward Norton, Ben Stiller and Jenna Elfman in the romantic comedy "Keeping the Faith." 

She has also performed on stage, in "North of Providence" at the Ensemble Studio Theatre in New York. 

Sofer now resides in Los Angeles with her daughter. She enjoys all kinds of athletics, including roller blading, skiing and yoga. Her birthday is December 2.

Credit: renasofer.net