Biography
Jennifer Anne Garner was born on April 17, 1972 in Houston, Texas to
Bill &
Pat Garner. Bill is a retired chemical engineer and Pat is a retired college
English teacher. Her parents were always supportive of Jennifer and helped her
to pursue her dreams. Raised in Charleston, West Virginia, Garner began
appearing in television and film in the mid-1990s. While growing up Jennifer
studied ballet for six hours a day which helped teach her discipline that would
help her later in life. Jennifer graduated from George Washington High School in
the class of 1990 and went on to attend Dennison University. She started college
majoring in Chemistry. She later changed her major to drama when she realized
that her passion for the stage outweighed her love of science. After graduating
from Dennison in 1994 she headed to New York City to pursue her career.
Jen scored her first television role as Melissa Gilbert's daughter on the
miniseries "Zoya" based on Danielle Steel's book. The next few roles that
Jennifer received were in two Hallmark Hall of Fame fims, "Harvest of Fire" and
"Rose Hill". Jennifer did a few other feature films before landing her first
role on a television series, "Significant Others". Also featured in the ABC
miniseries "Larry McMurtry's Dead Man's Walk" (1996), Garner made her big screen
debut in 1997, with roles in Agnieszka Holland's adaptation of the Henry James
classic "Washington Square" as well as the modern NYC tale "Deconstructing
Harry" and the comical "Mister Magoo". The recurring role that got Garner some
increased notice and also landed her a husband (she and Foley married in 2000),
was portrayal of Hanna, the musician girlfriend of laid-back resident advisor
Noel (Scott Foley).
Though "Significant Others" didn't work out, Garner was eager to try another
series, and was cast opposite popular Jennifer Love Hewitt in "The Time of Your
Life" but it was out of time by mid-2000 due to unexpectedly low ratings.In
2000, Garner returned to film with a fun supporting role as the increasingly
fed-up girlfriend of Ashton Kutcher's lame-brained hero in the goofy comedy
"Dude, Where's My Car?". The following year she had the third female lead in the
Michael Bay actioner "Pearl Harbor", playing a thoughtful military nurse
stationed at the embattled site, doing her best with a disappointingly
underdeveloped role.
2001 saw Garner get back on the TV series horse, starring as a graduate student
with a secret life as a spy in the ABC adventure "Alias." In 2002, she earned an
Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in A Drama Series for her role in
"Alias" and expanded into feature films: She had a brief but memorable turn as a
beautiful fashion model with an intriguing sideline in director Steven
Spielberg's "Catch Me If You Can" (2002), then followed up in 2003 with the
pivotal role of the martial artist and assassin Elektra, the enemy and lover of
the Marvel Comics superhero "Daredevil" (Ben Affleck). Promising a smooth
transition from small-screen superstar to A-list actress, Garner next signed on
to star in "13 Going on 30" (lensed 2003), a sort of girl power version of "Big"
in which she plays the thirty-year-old transformation of an awkward teenage
girl.
Named one of People Magazine's 'Breakthrough Stars of 2001'.
Named one of the 50 Most Beautiful People by People Magazine - May 2002.
Named the #1 sexiest woman of 2001 by MAXIM men's magazine.