The late 90s have seen a Latin craze sweeping the entertainment industry, and at its forefront are two very photogenic stars - Ricky Martin and Jennifer Lopez. However, to think that Lopez’s newfound fame is merely due to a new trend would be misleading. A talented actress, singer and dancer, Jennifer defied expectations and worked her way to the top. Her mother, a kindergarten teacher, and her father, a computer analyst, nurtured their daughter’s ambitions early on by enrolling her in dance lessons. It was as a dancer that her career first got underway, first in musical stage productions, and then on television. Lopez beat out thousands in a national dance in order to earn herself a place as one of Rosie Perez’s Flygirls on the hit sketch comedy show, In Living Color.
She was able to parlay her Flygirl success into other television work, and appeared on a string of new but short-lived sitcoms. Despite the setbacks, she was still able to move on to better things - this time on the big screen. A role in Gregory Nava’s critical success, Mi Familia helped put Lopez on the Hollywood map.
In 1996, she appeared in both Money Train and Jack. Neither was successful, but in both cases it was the male leads who took the critical beating, and Lopez came out relatively unscathed.
1997 was a good year for Lopez. After a rigorous and large scale talent search, Gregory Nave eventually settled on Lopez to portray Tejano singing sensation, Selena. The film was quite successful, and made Jennifer Lopez a star. The film also allowed Lopez to demonstrate her singing talents - but it would not be until years later that those talents would be brought fully to bear. During the shoot, Jennifer also met Ojani Noa, who she would marry for a short time.
That same year, Lopez continued her meteoric rise to stardom by appearing in two more films. Anaconda was critically reviled and became somewhat of a joke, but its successful opening weekend was seen as largely a sign of Lopez’s newfound box office clout. She also beat out some stiff competition to win a role in Oliver Stone’s U Turn. Add to all that a listing in People Magazine’s 50 Most Beautiful People, and 1997 turns into one hell of a year!
After confirming that 97 was no fluke with Out of Sight and Antz, Lopez took the Billboard charts by surprise with a runaway smash hit, If You Want My Love. The sexy music video which went along with it made Lopez a bonafide sex symbol - and Internet shrines continue to pop up by the moment.
Jennifer Lopez is now the most successful and well payed Latina actress working in Hollywood today, and, along with that Ricky fellow, is ushering in a whole new wave of Latin talent.
