This stunning, curly-haired actress spent five years on the daytime soap
Guiding Light before jumping in to prime time 1995 with a recurring role as an ambitious journalist on
NYPD Blue. A few short-lived series and supporting film roles later, she landed on the touchy-feely family drama
Providence as a doctor who moves back to her hometown. After the show folded, Kanakaredes made a handful of films and even starred in the Broadway revival of
Cabaret, but the small screen remained her medium and in 2004 she won her most popular role to date as a detective on
CSI:NY.
Melina Kanakaredes Fast Facts:- Began performing in community theater at age 8.
- After being crowned Miss Columbus, was first runner-up in the 1986 Miss Ohio pageant.
- Food factors heavily into her life; her family still runs a candy store in Akron, OH, and her husband is a chef and restaurateur.
- Still an avid swimmer, competed on the synchronized swim team while attending Ohio State University.
- Named one of People magazine's Most Beautiful People in the World in 1999.
- Recipient of a 2000 TV Guide Award for Favorite Actress in a Drama for Providence.
- Melina Kanakaredes Relationships:
- Aretta Kanakaredes - Sister
- Connie Kanakaredes - Mother
- Harry Kanakaredes - Father
- Karina Eleni Constantinides - Daughter
- Lia Kanakaredes - Sister
- Peter Constantinides - Husband
- Zoe Constantinides - Daughter
- College:
- Attended Ohio State University, Columbus, OH; Point Park College, Pittsburgh, PA (BFA, 1989)
