MEG RYAN
Name: Meg Ryan
Birth name: Margaret Mary (Peggy) Emily Hyra
Born: 19 November 1961 Bethel, Connecticut
Meg Ryan (born November 19, 1961) is an American film actress whose lead roles
in four 1990s romantic comedies—When Harry Met Sally..., Sleepless in Seattle,
French Kiss and You've Got Mail—grossed over $670 million worldwide.
In 1995, critic Richard Corliss called her the "the current soul of romantic
comedy."
At age 18, through her mother's connections, Ryan booked her first television
commercial, doing chin-ups and giggling to promote "Tickle" deodorant.
After a role in Rich and Famous, Ryan played Betsy Stewart in the daytime drama
As the World Turns from 1982 to 1984; she was featured in a popular romantic
story arc. Several TV film and smaller movie roles followed, including
Amityville 3-D and Promised Land; for her role in the latter she received her
first Independent Spirit Award nomination. Ryan then appeared in two romantic
movies D.O.A. and The Presidio.
In 1986, she played Carole Bradshaw (wife of naval aviator Nick "Goose" Bradshaw;
played by Anthony Edwards) in Top Gun, and appeared in several memorable scenes.
Her first full-blown hit in a leading role was the romantic comedy When Harry
Met Sally... (1989) which paired her with comedic leading man Billy Crystal. Her
portrayal of Sally Albright, which earned her a Golden Globe nomination, is
memorable for her depiction of a theatrical faked orgasm in a Manhattan
delicatessen.
Sally Albright (Ryan) and Harry Burns (Billy Crystal) in When Harry Met Sally...
The film would be the first of three successful Nora Ephron films in which Ryan
would be cast as a bubbly, feisty, incurable romantic.
Ryan then starred in The Doors, and Prelude to a Kiss. Both films were
moderately successful. 1993 saw the release of the hugely successful romantic
comedy Sleepless in Seattle, which paired Ryan with leading man Tom Hanks for
the second of three times.
She made several attempts to break away from the romantic comedy ingenue
stereotype, and garnered critical acclaim for her work in When a Man Loves a
Woman in which she played an alcoholic and Courage Under Fire, portraying a
captain in the Gulf War. Both films were substantial successes at the box office.
Many of her films of the 1990s were hits not only in North America, but also
abroad. In 1994 Ryan won the Harvard Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year. That same
year, People Magazine dubbed her one of "The 50 most beautiful people in the
world."
In 1997 Ryan voiced the lead role in the animated film Anastasia, which garnered
good reviews and enjoyed box office success. In 1998 Ryan starred in two films.
The first, City of Angels, drew negative reviews, but became a huge financial
success, topping nearly 200 million worldwide. You've Got Mail, which once again
paired Ryan with Tom Hanks, earned her a third Golden Globe nomination and made
over $250 million worldwide.
Name: Meg Ryan
Birth name: Margaret Mary (Peggy) Emily Hyra
Born: 19 November 1961 Bethel, Connecticut
Meg Ryan (born November 19, 1961) is an American film actress whose lead roles
in four 1990s romantic comedies—When Harry Met Sally..., Sleepless in Seattle,
French Kiss and You've Got Mail—grossed over $670 million worldwide.
In 1995, critic Richard Corliss called her the "the current soul of romantic
comedy."
At age 18, through her mother's connections, Ryan booked her first television
commercial, doing chin-ups and giggling to promote "Tickle" deodorant.
After a role in Rich and Famous, Ryan played Betsy Stewart in the daytime drama
As the World Turns from 1982 to 1984; she was featured in a popular romantic
story arc. Several TV film and smaller movie roles followed, including
Amityville 3-D and Promised Land; for her role in the latter she received her
first Independent Spirit Award nomination. Ryan then appeared in two romantic
movies D.O.A. and The Presidio.
In 1986, she played Carole Bradshaw (wife of naval aviator Nick "Goose" Bradshaw;
played by Anthony Edwards) in Top Gun, and appeared in several memorable scenes.
Her first full-blown hit in a leading role was the romantic comedy When Harry
Met Sally... (1989) which paired her with comedic leading man Billy Crystal. Her
portrayal of Sally Albright, which earned her a Golden Globe nomination, is
memorable for her depiction of a theatrical faked orgasm in a Manhattan
delicatessen.
Sally Albright (Ryan) and Harry Burns (Billy Crystal) in When Harry Met Sally...
The film would be the first of three successful Nora Ephron films in which Ryan
would be cast as a bubbly, feisty, incurable romantic.
Ryan then starred in The Doors, and Prelude to a Kiss. Both films were
moderately successful. 1993 saw the release of the hugely successful romantic
comedy Sleepless in Seattle, which paired Ryan with leading man Tom Hanks for
the second of three times.
She made several attempts to break away from the romantic comedy ingenue
stereotype, and garnered critical acclaim for her work in When a Man Loves a
Woman in which she played an alcoholic and Courage Under Fire, portraying a
captain in the Gulf War. Both films were substantial successes at the box office.
Many of her films of the 1990s were hits not only in North America, but also
abroad. In 1994 Ryan won the Harvard Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year. That same
year, People Magazine dubbed her one of "The 50 most beautiful people in the
world."
In 1997 Ryan voiced the lead role in the animated film Anastasia, which garnered
good reviews and enjoyed box office success. In 1998 Ryan starred in two films.
The first, City of Angels, drew negative reviews, but became a huge financial
success, topping nearly 200 million worldwide. You've Got Mail, which once again
paired Ryan with Tom Hanks, earned her a third Golden Globe nomination and made
over $250 million worldwide.