Patricia Heaton

Back when Patricia Heaton was grinding it out in New York, she studied acting under William Esper—yeah, the guy everyone in theater circles has a story about. Her big Broadway break? A gospel musical called "Don’t Get God Started." Not exactly a subtle title, but hey, it got her foot in the door. After that, she and a bunch of classmates got ambitious and launched their own acting company, Stage Three. Real DIY energy. They put on shows Off-Broadway, eventually packing up "The Johnstown Vindicator" and heading all the way to L.A. And it paid off—casting directors noticed her, and soon she landed the role of a producer-slash-daughter in "Room for Two" back in ’92. Things kind of snowballed from there. She jumped into "Someone Like Me" in '94 and then "Women of the House" in '95. Not to mention she popped up on "Thirtysomething"—which, honestly, was one of those shows everyone’s parents secretly loved. She also starred with legend Della Reese in "Miracle in the Woods" (’97), a TV movie that got big ratings. As for movies, she snagged roles in "Memoirs of an Invisible Man," "Beethoven" (yep, the dog one), "The New Age," and even "Space Jam." Yeah, the Michael Jordan one. But let’s be real—everybody remembers her as Debra Barone on "Everybody Loves Raymond." Two Emmys for that role, plus a bunch of nominations and a Viewers for Quality Television award. Not too shabby for a Cleveland kid. These days, she’s in L.A. with her husband David Hunt and their four sons, living the kind of family sitcom life she used to play on TV.