1-MINUTE RESUME FOR JESSICA SIMPSON

At 12, she was turned down for the Mickey Mouse Club (of which Britney Spears was a member), but she managed to get her singing career off the ground and became opening act for then-boyfriend Nick Lachey’s boy band, 98 Degrees. Eventually, her star eclipsed Lachey’s, in part because of their hit MTV show, Newlyweds. A pop idol for her singing career and TV show before ever attempting movies, Simpson made her on-screen debut in The Dukes of Hazzard. Not the most auspicious start (hey, she did turn down Coyote Ugly), but it was her first attempt at something new.

5 Things:

1. She announced on TV that she would remain a virgin until her wedding night.
2. She reportedly has an IQ of 160.
3. Her dad is a psychologist and Baptist minister in addition to managing her career.
4. She hates massages.
5. One of the people she most admires is Dolly Parton.

Quote:

“Nick and I both feel the weight of the tabloids on our shoulders. As long as we don’t believe it, as long as we love each other and we’re strong, everything is workable. I don’t even know if that’s a word, but it sounds right.”
Hollywood Life, July/August 2005

Family:

Husband: Nick Lachey, singer, born Nov. 9, 1973; married Oct. 26, 2002; filed for divorce Dec. 16, 2005
Sister: Ashlee Simpson, singer, born Oct. 8, 1984