Salma Hayek Biography
Multi-talented beauty Salma Valgarma Hayek Jiminez passes by the professional name Salma Hayek and she has been an actress, producer and director for over two decades. Hayek hails from Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, Mexico, USA where she was born on September 2 1966 to Sami Hayek Dominguez and Diana Jiminez Medina. As a child her family was always on the spotlight with her mother being a well-known opera singer and her executive father taking on a prominent role in her home town politics, besides this she was also from one of the few upper-class families in the region.
Hayek’s childhood was fairly comfortable as she enjoyed the best that could be afforded by her parents and she was educated at prestigious Catholic schools like the Academy of the Sacred Heart in Grand Coteau, Louisiana and the Universidad Iberoamericana where she majored in International Relations although she did not graduate due to health complications.
As a young girl Hayek showed interest in theatre and was always watching local Spanish films which she greatly admired, Diana Jimenez and Sami Hayek noticed their daughter’s interest in film and in an attempt to aid her acting career they sent her to Houston, Texas, USA to live with her relatives as she taught herself English. This was a move to enable young Hayek to gain fluency in the mandatory language for most films as well as to enable her transition into the more popular and well-paying American film industry.
Hayek’s debut role was however not in an American film as she was cast for a role in a 1989 Latin Soap titled Teresa, in her early teens at the time, Hayek became a famous star in Mexico as soap lovers were mesmerised by her beauty and fans immediately declared her a sex symbol and one of the top female stars of Latin origin. The success of the Telenova led to more roles in Latin films like Mi Vida Loca Gata in 1993 and El Callejsn de los Milagros in 1994.
Her biggest break yet came in 1995 when she appeared alongside Antonio Banderas in the film Desperado as Carolina, a library attendant who was being blackmailed by a town crook in order to keep silent on the crimes against the locals. Although the film was set on a Latin theme it received worldwide acclamation and won the lead duo a nomination for Best Kiss Award at the MTV Movie Awards in 1995, for her solo role Hayek won the Best Supporting Actress Award at the Saturn Awards in the same year. Hayek reprised the role of Carolina in 2003 in the film Once Upon A Time In Mexico also alongside actor Antonio Banderas.
The actress’ other film roles in the 90’s decade include Follow Me Home, Breaking up, Hunchback, Faculty, El Coronel No Tiene Quien Le Escriba and Wild Wild West.
Film appearances by Hayek in the 2000’s include Spy kids 3-D: Game Over, Lonely Hearts, Grown Ups and most recently Puss In Boots where she lends her voice for the 2011 cartoon character Kitty Soft paws.
Hayek’s role as a producer has seen her working on the famous comedy Ugly Betty which premiered in 2007, she also took on a guest role in the series as well as appearing as a guest actress on another equally successful comedy title 30 Rock in 2009.
Her charity work involves providing water to the needy around the world and campaigning for a greener environment in order to fight global warming.
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