Eva Longoria Parker

Eva Jacqueline Longoria Parker (born March 15, 1975) is a Golden Globe Award-nominated American film and television actress.

Longoria was born in Corpus Christi, Nueces County, Texas, the daughter of Mexican-American Catholic parents, Enrique Longoria, Jr. and Ella Eva Mireles. Eva's ancestry traces to Southern Mexican immigrants who immigrated to the USA.

She is the youngest of four daughters, her sisters being Elizabeth Judina, Emily Jeannette, and Esmeralda Josephina. The family lived and worked on farmland that had been handed down to them from past generations, but they often had very little money; Enrique and Ella struggled for many years to give their children a decent upbringing. Longoria showed viewers an introspect into the hardship she faced in her formative years growing up poor on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2006; she took cameras on location to the family farm, and showed how spartan they were still living. Longoria admitted that only when she made it in show business did things begin to look better for them financially. In an interview with Dateline's Stone Phillips, Longoria also revealed the snubbing she received from her siblings. She said "I grew up as the ugly duckling. They used to call me 'la prieta fea,' which means 'the ugly dark one.'"

Longoria originally wanted to be a fashion model and sent in photos to a modelling agency but was declined because of her height. Longoria attended Marvin P. Baker Middle School and later Roy Miller High School; she subsequently received her Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology at nearby Texas A&M University-Kingsville. During this time, she won the title of Miss Corpus Christi, USA in 1998. After completing college, Longoria entered a talent contest that led her to Los Angeles; shortly after, she was spotted and signed by a theatrical agent.

Longoria landed her first television role in 2000, guest-starring in an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210. She starred as adulteress Gabrielle Solis in the worldwide break-out ABC hit Desperate Housewives. As the show became an overnight sensation, Longoria's career was well and truly launched. But she has never considered her career to have jumped off so suddenly: "I think it’s funny when people say I’m an overnight sensation, because I’ve been working at it for 10 years." Shortly after her debut on Desperate Housewives, Longoria starred in a poorly received direct-to-video film titled Carlita's Secret, for which she was also co-producer. In 2005, she was rewarded for her performance as Gabrielle Solis in Desperate Housewives when she was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy along with her co-stars.

Longoria continues to be included in lists of Hollywood's Most Beautiful and was listed #1 in Maxim's Hottest Female Stars of 2005 and 2006, becoming the first woman to top the list in two consecutive years. She was ranked #9 in the magazine's Hot 100 of 2007 list. In honor of Maxim's 100th issue in 2006, Longoria was featured on a 75-by-110-foot vinyl mesh replica of its January 2005 cover located in the Las Vegas desert. It has been rumored that she will play Janet Van Dyne aka The Wasp in the upcoming Avengers film due to the fact that she has been spotted reading core Avengers titles such as The New Avengers annual and Marvel Adventures: Avengers.

In January 2007, Longoria was chosen to be the first face of Bebe Sport. She appeared in the Spring/Summer 2007 campaign, photographed by Greg Kadel. The actress also holds model contracts with L’Oreal and Hanes, New York & Co. She has started a contract with Magnum Ice-Cream and with L'Oréal. She is also part of Microsoft's "I'm A PC" ad campaign.

Longoria was married to General Hospital star Tyler Christopher from 2002 to 2004.

On November 30, 2006, she became engaged to Spurs point guard Tony Parker. The couple were officially married on July 7, 2007, because French law requires couples who marry to make their vows official at a city hall. They had their lavish church wedding on July 7, 2007, in Paris. Their marriage had its first ordeal when the French model Alexandra Paressant claimed to have had an affair with Parker.

In 2008, Longoria opened a restaurant in Los Angeles called Beso, which translates to "kiss" in Spanish. Longoria owns a house in Los Angeles' Hollywood Dell neighborhood that she purchased in 2006 for $3.6 million. Longoria owns a house in the Velano Country Club in Chino Hills, California.