January Jones was born January 5, 1978 in Brookings, South Dakota. She has been a Dairy Queen employee and Abercrombie and Fitch model, and went to Roosevelt High School in Sioux Falls. She has also been known for being romantically involved with actor Ashton Kutcher, and with singer Josh Groban.
January Jones first appeared on the TV movie Sorority in 1999, following it up with an appearance on Get Real’s pilot episode. She was next cast as Janice Taylor in the drama All the Rage, enabling her to work with Joan Allen, Jeff Daniels, Robert Forster and Anna Paquin. Jones also starred with Leelee Sobieski in the thriller The Glass House, released in 2001. That year, she landed a role in the crime film Bandits, starring Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton and Cate Blanchett. Jones soon worked on films like In My Life and Taboo, before getting a role in the comedy Anger Management starring Adam Sandler and Jack Nicholson. In 2003, she rose to mainstream fame playing Cadence Flaherty on the third installment of the American Pie comedy film series, titled American Wedding. Afterwards, she accepted a part in the romantic ensemble comedy Love Actually, soon followed by a role in Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights. In 2004, she landed the lead female role in the movie Love’s Enduring Promise, playing the oldest child of a pioneer family who falls in love with a mysterious man who saved the life of her father. Her next appearance was in two episodes of Huff, which came before she worked with Tommy Lee Jones in The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. The film got critical acclaim at the Cannes Film Festival, allowing January Jones to achieve more roles. She starred in the drama Swedish Auto opposite Lukas Haas, and was seen on the sport drama We Are Marshall with Matthew McConaughey and Matthew Fox. Jones soon joined the cast of the AMC original drama series Mad Men, playing the suburban housewife and mother Betty Draper. She also made an appearance in an episode of Law & Order in 2008, before she signed on to star in the film The Boat that Rocked. In 2002, January Jones was ranked #82 on the Maxim list of Hot 100 Women for that year.
(Photo courtesy of AMC)