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Eva Jacqueline Longoria Parker (born
March 15, 1975) is a Golden Globe Award-nominated American film and
television actress. She plays Gabrielle Solis in the ABC television
series Desperate Housewives. She has also become an nationally
recognized model after appearing in several high-profile advertising
campaigns and numerous men's magazines. Longoria is also known for her high profile
relationship with NBA guard Tony Parker, whom she married in
2007.
Early life
Eva Longoria Parker 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). Her ancestry traces to Southern
Mexican immigrants who immigrated to the United States. 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. Eva 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 things
looked slightly better for them financially, only when she made it
in show business. 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.'"
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. With many family members still living in Corpus
Christi, she still returns to her home town for visits.
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.
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 prestigious 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 (both Douglas
and Sutherland noted that much to their surprise Eva whipped both of
them in gun practice). 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. In her most recently
released film, Harsh Times, she plays the character Sylvia and
co-stars with actors Freddy Rodriguez and Christian Bale.
In her interview with Ryan Seacrest on The Interview with Ryan
Seacrest on E!, she stated: "I don't want to be on 7th Heaven -- on
for 20 years and no one's really watching, and it's hanging on by a
thread." She has also stated multiple times that she will not renew
her Desperate Housewives contract once it is up. Instead, she has
set her sights on the film industry. At the time of her statements,
the length of her contract was not known, but she has since revealed
it to be 10 years, starting from the first season.
In 2006, Longoria appeared in Jessica
Simpson's music video "A Public Affair" along with Christina Milian,
Christina Applegate, Ryan Seacrest, Maria Menounos, and Andy Dick.
Longoria was on the cover of the September
2006 issue of Maxim Magazine. She sat down with Maxim and discussed
how contrary to belief, her life really is normal. "Tony [Parker]
and I spend most of our time in San Antonio. We have such a normal
life there. I mean, we hang out and have breakfast, go to his
parents', go to my parents'. Do laundry."
Longoria recently won a People's Choice
Award for Best TV Actress. In January 2007, Longoria was chosen to be the first face of Bebe
Sport. She will appear in the Spring/Summer 2007 campaign,
photographed by Greg Kadel. The actress also holds model contracts
with L?Oreal and Hanes, New York & Co. Longoria also hosted the 2007 NCLR ALMA Awards on
June 5, 2007, on ABC.
In 2007, the stars of Desperate Housewives each renewed their
contracts with ABC for four years, worth $40 million. In November
2007, Longoria won a Bambi award in Germany
for best TV Actress.
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