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Eva Longoria Parker
Longoria at the NBA All-Star Weekend, 2006
Born	Eva Jacqueline Longoria[1] March 15, 1975 (1975-03-15) (age 33) Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S.
Other name(s)	Eva Longoria Parker
Spouse(s)	Tyler Christopher (2002-2004) Tony Parker (2007-present)
Awards won Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Ensemble - Comedy Series 2004 Desperate Housewives 2005 Desperate Housewives

Eva Jacqueline Longoria Parker (born March 15, 1975) is a Golden Globe Award-nominated American film and television actress. She rose to fame by playing Isabella Braña Williams on the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless. She now plays Gabrielle Solis in the ABC television series Desperate Housewives, and stars in the film Over Her Dead Body. She has also become a nationally recognized model after appearing in several high-profile advertising campaigns and numerous men's magazines, reaching #14 in the FHM "Sexiest Women 2008" poll.^[2] Longoria is also known for her high profile relationship with NBA guard Tony Parker, whom she married in 2007.

Biography

Early life

Longoria was born Eva Jacqueline Longoria in Corpus Christi, Texas, the daughter of Mexican-American Catholic parents, Enrique Longoria, Jr. (born in Rachal, Brooks County, Texas) and Ella Eva Mireles (married in Falfurrias, Brooks County, Texas).

She has three older sisters: Elizabeth Judina, Emily Jeannette, and Esmeralda Josephina. The family lived and worked on farmland that had been handed down to them from past generations, but they often had very little money; Enrique and Ella struggled for many years to give their children a decent upbringing. Longoria showed viewers an introspect into the hardship she faced in her formative years growing up poor on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2006; she took cameras on location to the family farm, and showed how spartan they were still living. Longoria admitted that only when she made it in show business did things begin to look better for them financially. In an interview with Dateline's Stone Phillips, Longoria also revealed the snubbing she received from her siblings. She said "I grew up as the ugly duckling. They used to call me 'la prieta fea,' which means 'the ugly dark one.'"^[3]

Longoria originally wanted to be a fashion model and sent in photos to a modelling agency but was declined because of her height. Longoria attended Marvin P. Baker Middle School and later Roy Miller High School, receiving her Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology at nearby Texas A&M University-Kingsville. During this time, she won the title of Miss Corpus Christi, USA in 1998. After completing college, Longoria entered a talent contest that led her to Los Angeles; shortly after, she was spotted and signed by a theatrical agent.^[4]

Career

Longoria landed her first television role in 2000, guest-starring in an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210. Another guest appearance in General Hospital the same year brought her big break on the popular American soap opera The Young and the Restless, in which she played psychotic Isabella Braña Williams from 2001 to 2003. People en Español listed her among its "Most Beautiful People" for 2003. After leaving The Young and the Restless, she was seen on the now-cancelled Dick Wolf revival of Dragnet. Although it lasted only two seasons, the show gave Longoria another leading star credit to her name. Following Dragnet, she starred in two ill-fated productions - Señorita Justice, a poorly received direct-to-video film, and a television film titled The Dead Will Tell. In 2004, Longoria landed a role that elevated her to the A-List. She starred as adulteress Gabrielle Solis in the worldwide break-out ABC hit Desperate Housewives. As the show became an overnight sensation, Longoria's career was well and truly launched. But she has never considered her career to have jumped off so suddenly, "I think it’s funny when people say I’m an overnight sensation, because I’ve been working at it for 10 years."^[5]

Shortly after her debut on Desperate Housewives, Longoria starred in a poorly received direct-to-video film titled Carlita's Secret, for which she was also co-producer. In 2005, she was rewarded for her performance as Gabrielle Solis in Desperate Housewives when she was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy along with her co-stars. Even though neither Longoria nor any of the rest of the cast won, she was awarded the ALMA Award and named entertainer of the year. She also starred opposite Michael Douglas and Kiefer Sutherland in the 2006 thriller The Sentinel, which was her first major role in a theatrical movie. In her most recently released film, Harsh Times, she plays the character Sylvia and co-stars with actors Freddy Rodriguez and Christian Bale.

Longoria continues to be included in lists of Hollywood's Most Beautiful and was listed #1 in Maxim's Hottest Female Stars of 2005 and 2006, becoming the first woman to top the list in two consecutive years. She was ranked #9 in the magazine's Hot 100 of 2007 list.^[6] In honor of Maxim's 100th issue in 2006, Longoria was featured on a 75-by-110-foot vinyl mesh replica of its January 2005 cover located in the Las Vegas, Nevada desert.^[7]

Endorsements

Eva Longoria in Cannes, 2008

In January 2007, Longoria was chosen to be the first face of Bebe Sport. She appeared in the Spring/Summer 2007 campaign, photographed by Greg Kadel. The actress also holds model contracts with L’Oreal and Hanes, New York & Co.^[8]

She also has started a contract with Magnum Ice-Cream^[9] and with L'Oréal.^[10]

Personal life

Longoria was married to General Hospital star Tyler Christopher from 2002 to 2004.^[11]

On November 30, 2006, she became engaged to Spurs point guard Tony Parker.^[12] The couple were officially married on July 7, 2007, because French law requires couples who marry to make their vows official at a city hall. They had their lavish church wedding on July 7, 2007, in Paris.^[13] Their marriage had its first ordeal, when the French model Alexandra Paressant claimed to had had an affair with Parker.

In 2008, she opened a restaurant in Los Angeles called Beso (which translates to "kiss" in Spanish).^[14]

Charity work

In 2006, Longoria founded Eva's Heroes, a charity which helps developmentally disabled children.^[15] She is the national spokesperson for PADRES Contra El Cancer.^[16] She signed shoes for the Spirit of Women Red Shoe Celebrity Auction. Longoria also supports the Clothes Off Our Back Foundation, the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, the National Stroke Association, Project HOME and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.^[17]

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Eva Longoria

• Eva Longoria Parker at the Internet Movie Database
• Eva Longoria Parker Interview
• Eva Longoria Parker at Rotten Tomatoes
• Eva Longoria Parker at TV.com
• Eva Longoria Parker at People.com
• Eva Longoria Parker 2007 short film on Funny Or Die