Her big break came when her hair matched that of the departing star of Camp Nowhere (1994), but it was a dedication to acting that got Jessica Alba, and her hair, on the set in the first place. An air force brat who had moved with her family from her California birthplace to bases all over the United States, a five-year-old Alba is said to have fallen in love with performing, holding onto that dream until enrolling in acting classes at age twelve.
Exotic good looks (Mexican, English, French, Danish, Italian and Indian ancestry have given her an arresting, but fresh-faced appearance) combined with noticeable talent, netted Alba an agent within her first year "in the business." She was soon cast in Camp Nowhere, which got her somewhere, for high profile commercials and television work followed.
Flipper (TV, 1995) gave the young actor a welcome chance to use her swimming and accredited scuba-diving skills, and the added fun, she says, of working with dolphins. A recurring role in The Secret World of Alec Mack, and guest appearances in Chicago Hope, Too Soon For Jeff, Love Boat, Brooklyn South, Beverly Hills 90210, and on various talk shows all had the teenager pegged for the small screen.
Alba had taken on a few small movie roles during the time – Venus Rising (1995), Rebels/P.U.N.K.S. (1998) – but it was with the huge hit Never Been Kissed (1999) that she achieved "overnight" big screen fame. Idle Hands (1999), Dark Angel (2000) and Paranoid (2000), followed.
Off screen, the now nineteen-year old is currently enrolled in school, and shoehorns studying between film assignments. She has acquired a solid fan base, which appears more wholesome than that of many of her Hollywood contemporaries. You'll find no promises of lurid stories or photos on these fan shrines – perhaps her turn with Flipper has guaranteed her immunity. Alba's talent, and strict homework-first policy (as stated in celebrity interviews) make her not only a first-rate actor, but a first-rate role-model – an uncommon, but refreshing combination.
