Jennifer Lopez
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"J.Lo" redirects here. For Jennifer Lopez's album, see J.Lo (album). For other uses, see J.Lo (disambiguation).
| Jennifer Lopez | |
|---|---|
 Lopez performing during the Dance Again World Tour, June 2012 | |
| Born | Jennifer Lynn Lopez July 24, 1969 The Bronx, New York, US |
| Other names |
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| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1986–present |
| Net worth |  $250 million |
| Spouse(s) | Ojani Noa (m. 1997–1998) Cris Judd (m. 2001–2003) Marc Anthony (m. 2004) |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Lynda Lopez |
| Website | |
| jenniferlopez.com | |
Jennifer Lynn Muñiz (née Lopez; born July 24, 1969) is an American entertainer, businesswoman, producer and philanthropist. She became interested in pursuing a career in the entertainment industry following a minor role in the 1986 film My Little Girl, to the dismay of her Puerto Rican parents, who believed that it was an unrealistic career route for a Hispanic. Lopez gained her first regular high-profile job as a Fly Girl dancer on In Living Color in 1991, where she remained a regular until she decided to pursue an acting career in 1993. She received her first leading role in theSelena biopic of the same name in 1997. Lopez became the first Latina actress to earn over $1 million for a role the following year, with the film Out of Sight. She ventured into the music industry in 1999 with her debut studio album, On the 6, joining a select few in successfully converting from a film to a music career.
With the simultaneous release of her second studio album J.Lo and her film The Wedding Planner in 2001, Lopez became the first person to have a number one album and film in the same week. Her 2002 remix album, J to tha L–O! The Remixes, was the first in history to debut at number one on the US Billboard 200, while her fifth studio album, Como Ama una Mujer (2007), received the highest first-week sales for a Spanish album in the United States. Lopez has established herself as a prominent figure in both the film and music industry, in a career spanning four decades. With records sales of 75 million and a cumulative film gross of over $2 billion, Lopez is the most influential Hispanic performer in the United States, as well as the highest-paid Latin actress. Her "rags to riches" story is considered a "rarity", having innovated Latin influence in the entertainment community which it lacked for decades.
Lopez's public image and personal relationships have attracted worldwide media attention. Lopez's first high profile relationship was with media mogulSean Combs, who accompanied her to the 2000 Grammy Awards where she wore the infamous Green Versace dress. She became romantically involved with actor Ben Affleck, who would later became the muse of her third studio album This Is Me... Then (2002), while still married to her second husband Cris Judd. Lopez wed long-time friend Marc Anthony in 2004 and gave birth to their twins, Emme and Maximilian, in February 2008. The entertainer has used her position as a global icon of pop culture to begin her own empire, consisting of various clothing lines, accessories, fragrances,a production company, television shows and a charitable foundation among other activities. As of 2012, Lopez has an estimated net worth of $250 million.[1]
Biography
Childhood and early career (1969–96)
Jennifer Lynn Lopez was born on July 24, 1969, in the Castle Hill neighborhood of The Bronx, New York.[2] The middle child of Puerto Rican parents Guadalupe Rodriguez and David Lopez, she has an elder sister, Leslie, and a younger sister, Lynda.[3] David worked the night shift at the Guardian Insurance Company, before becoming a computer technician at the firm, while Guadalupe was a homemaker. When Lopez was born, the family was living in a small apartment. A few years later, her parents had saved up enough money to be able to purchase a two-story house, which was considered a big deal for the relatively poor family.[4]At the age of five, Lopez began taking singing and dancing lessons. She toured New York with her school when she was seven years old.[5] Her parents stressed the importance of work ethic and being able to speak English. They encouraged their three daughters to put on performances at home; singing and dancing in front of each other and their friends so that they would stay "out of trouble".[5] Lopez spent her entire academic career in Catholic schools, finishing atPreston High School.[6] In school, Lopez did gymnastics, ran track on a national level and was a member of the school's softball team.[7] She excelled athletically rather than academically, competing in national track championships.[5] In 1984, at the age of fifteen, she began dating David Cruz, her first boyfriend.[4]
While attending her final year of high school, Lopez learned about a film casting that was seeking several teenage girls for small roles. She auditioned and was cast in My Little Girl (1986), a low-budget film co-written and directed by Connie Kaiserman.[8] Lopez acted as Myra, a young woman at a center for troubled girls. After she finished filming her role in the film, Lopez realized that she wanted to become a "famous movie star".[4] To please her parents, though, she enrolled in Baruch College, only to drop out after one semester. She told her parents her dream of becoming a movie star, but they ensisted that it was a "really stupid" idea and that "no Latinos did that". The differences in opinions led Lopez to move out of their family home and into an apartment in Manhattan. During this period, Lopez performed in regional productions of the musicals: Jesus Christ, Superstar! and Oklahoma. From there, she was hired for the chorus in a Golden Musicals of Broadway, which toured Europe for five months. She was unhappy with the role, as she was the only member of the chorus to not have a solo. She later got a job on the show Synchronicity in Japan, where she acted as a dancer, singer and a choreographer.[4]
Lopez was selected as a backup dancer for the New Kids on the Block in 1991 and performed with them during their performance of "Games" at the 8th Annual American Music Awards.[9] Shortly after, Lopez gained her first regular high-profile job as a Fly Girl dancer on the television program In Living Color. She applied for the job after one of the cast members was unavailable to continue with the show. Out of 2,000 applicants, Lopez made it to the finals. She was the runner-up, but eventually received the role when the winner was unable to accept the job. She moved with Cruz to Los Angeles to film the series and remained a regular cast member until 1993 when she decided to pursue a full-time acting career. Prior to leaving the show, Lopez briefly worked as a backup dancer for American recording artist Janet Jackson.[10][11][12] Lopez was set to tour with Jackson on her Janet World Tour in late 1993, but backed out as she wanted to do her "own thing."[13]
Lopez received her first professional acting gig in the direct-to-video drama film Lost in the Wild (1993), co-starring alongside Lindsay Wagner and Robert Loggia.[14] Later in 1993 Lopez signed a deal with CBS to co-star in the television series Second Chances. The show was cancelled after airing only six episodes, due to its set being destroyed by the 1994 Northridge earthquake.[15] A spin-off of the series, entitled Hotel Malibu was launched later that same year. It also ran for only a brief period of time and, like Second Chances, received negative reviews.[16][17] Lopez received her first major big-screen role in Gregory Nava's 1995 drama My Family, portraying Young Maria.[18] The film, which stars Esai Morales, Jimmy Smits and Edward James Olmos, was critically acclaimed.[19] Although her role was uncredited, Lopez received an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female nomination for her performance.[18] In November, Lopez starred in Money Train alongside Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson, as New York City transit cops. The film faced negative reviews and is considered to be a box office bomb; with a budget of $68 million, the film grossed a total of $77 million worldwide.[20][21] In August 1996, Lopez had a supporting role in the comedy Jack.[22] With a budget of $45 million, the film grossed a total of $59 domestically.[23] The film received generally negative reviews.[24]
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