Gabrielle Union, the lead in BET Networks' new, original scripted series Being Mary Jane, was born on Oct. 29, 1972, in Omaha, Nebraska, but grew up in Pleasanton, California.

While a student at UCLA, from which she eventually graduated with honors in sociology, Union was thinking about law school but interned at a local modeling agency during her junior year. For her it was an opportunity to earn some extra credits, but instead turned into a segue into the field in which she has now grown famous.

In 1996, she got her first modeling job for Teen magazine and television roles on the teen sitcoms Saved By the Bell and Moesha. Since then, Union has appeared on several films and TV programs, including Friends, ER, 7th Heaven, She's All That, Love & Basketball, Bring It On, and more.

In Being Mary Jane, Union plays a successful TV news anchor juggling work, family and the search for Mr. Right. The New York Daily News called the two-hour movie premiere broadcast before the series debuts in January 2014 "freshly poignant," and the Los Angeles Times predicts it will be a "breakout hit." We think so too.

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(Photo: John Ricard/BET)