Reese Witherspoon: Snapshot
- Name
- Reese Witherspoon
- Birth Date
- March 22, 1976
- Birth Place
- New Orleans, La.
Along with her Blonde role, Witherspoon's list of unforgettable characters includes Tracy Flick in the off-base comedy Election and Southern belle Melanie Smooter in Sweet Home Alabama. But it was the part of June Carter Cash in Walk the Line that earned her the biggest praise and a Best Actress Oscar just days before her 30th birthday.
That year of triumph ended in sadness when Witherspoon's seven-year marriage to Cruel Intentions costar Ryan Phillippe fell apart. The couple, who first met at Witherspoon's 21st birthday party, have two children together.
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Reese Witherspoon: Five Fun Facts
- Reese Witherspoon has a French bulldog named Coco Chanel, who she likes to put with pearls on.
- When daughter Ava began preschool, Reese Witherspoon was the one in tears. "She just thinks Mom is a goofy lady," Witherspoon told PEOPLE.
- Reese Witherspoon is a descendant of John Witherspoon, a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
- Reese Witherspoon told Elle magazine: "Why do Southern women make bad prostitutes? Cuz we have to write so many thank-you notes!"
- Reese Witherspoon is "obsessed with Tupperware," she told PEOPLE, and can't walk by a Container Store without stopping.
Reese Witherspoon: Biography 
- 1983
A Budding Career
Witherspoon breaks into modeling and lands an acting gig at age 7, shooting a TV commercial for a florist. She continues doing local commercials and takes first place in a Ten-State Talent Fair at age 11.
- 1990
Girl Empowerment
The Nashville debutante develops her confidence while attending an all-girls high school. "I really believe in single-sex education," she tells PEOPLE in 2002. "There are no inhibitions. You can walk to school with your zit cream on and your hair in rollers and nobody cares."
- 1991
A Tender Debut
At 14, Witherspoon debuts in the coming-of-age drama The Man in the Moon, giving her first onscreen kiss to costar Jason London. She makes her television premiere the same year in the Diane Keaton-directed drama Wildflower.
Photo Credits
Top Left: Splash
BIOGRAPHY (top to bottom): RUSS HARRINGTON; Splash News; Samuel Goldwyn/Everett
