Award-winning actress Calista Flockhart was born on November 11, 1964 in Freeport, Illinois. Already bent on performing at a young age, she enrolled at the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University, where her acting ability was recognized when, contrary to policy, she was asked to perform on the main stage by renowned acting coach William Esper. She graduated with a BFA degree in 1988, and proceeded to launch her acting career.
Her first television appearance was in 1989, when she played a babysitter in the daytime soap Guiding Light. However, most of her early acting credits were on stage, making her debut in a production of Beside Herself. In 1994, she played a major role in the Broadway production of The Glass Menagerie; her performance would earn her a Clarence Derwent Award that same year. During the time, she was also making headway on television and films, snagging her first substantial film speaking role in the 1994 film Quiz Show.
In 1997, Flockhart was asked to audition for a part in the new television series Ally McBeal. Initially hesitant, she nevertheless flew to Los Angeles to audition, and won the lead role. Her role as the lawyer who believes in love and constantly searches for her soul mate endeared her to viewers, and arguably immortalized her in pop culture. The series became a breakthrough for her; she won a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award, and also earned three Emmy nominations, for the role.
Flockhart was offered a role in Desperate Housewives, but she turned it down; instead she decided to join the cast of the drama series Brothers & Sisters, where she plays communication adviser Kitty Walker. Despite a successful career on television and film, she continues to act for stage, appearing in the off-Broadway production of The Vagina Monologues, among others.