Halle
Berry

"I was raised by my white mother and every day of my life I have always been aware of the fact that I am bi-racial. However, growing up I was aware that even though my mother was white, I did not look or 'feel' very white myself."

Halle Berry's middle name is from Halle's Department Store, which was a landmark in Cleveland. Halle graduated from Bedford High School and studied at Cuyahoga Community College. She was a beauty queen who won the Miss Teen All-American in 1985 and Miss Ohio USA in 1986. She was the first African-American Miss World entrant in 1986.

Halle Berry's acting career began with a role in the night-time soap "Knots Landing," and her breakthrough feature film was in "Jungle Fever." Other roles followed, included "Boomerang," "Strictly Business," "Queen: The Story of an American Family," among others.

But it was her role in "Monster's Ball," that won her an Academy Award for Best Actress, as well as controversy for her nude scene. She said, "That scene was special and pivotal and needed to be there, and it would be a really special script that would require something like that again."

During her acceptance speech, Halle Berry said, "This moment is so much bigger than me. This is for every nameless, faceless woman of color who now has a chance tonight because this door has been opened."

Halle Berry followed her Oscar win with performances in "Die Another Day," "Gothika," and "Catwoman," which was a commercial failure and earned her a "worst actress" Razzie Award. When she accepted the award, she said, "My mother told me that if you could not be a good loser, than there's no way you could be a good winner."

Halle Berry was also a long-running spokesperson for Revlon.

Halle Berry is one of the highest-paid actresses in Hollywood, earning $10 million per film. Among her numerous awards is a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in front of the Kodak Theatre.

Halle Berry has been married twice. She has a daughter, Nahla Ariela, with her then-partner Gabriel Aubry. She is currently engaged to actor Oliver Martinez.

When it came to describing the ethnicity of her daughter, Halle said, "I feel like she's black. I'm black and I'm her mother, and I believe in the one-drop theory."

Halle Berry lives in Los Angeles, CA.