Ashley Judd (born April 19, 1968 in Granada Hills, California) is an American actress. Her father is Michael Ciminella and her mother and sister are country music singers, Naomi Judd and Wynonna Judd, respectively. Her birth name is Ashley Tyler Ciminella. Her early years were without the comforts of what can be considered the bare necessities, such as running water, electricity, or a telephone. She attended 12 schools in 13 years before college. She left the University of Kentucky a semester short of a bachelor's degree in French in 1990. Her television appearances include the role of Lieutenant Robin Lefler, a Starfleet officer, in two 1991 episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and the part of Swoosie Kurtz's daughter on the first season of the NBC drama Sisters. Her film debut was a small part in Kuffs (1992) and her first major role was in Ruby in Paradise (1993), a hit independent drama. She had a role in Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers, but all the scenes she played in were cut from the final version of the film. She found further critical acclaim in Smoke (1995) and publicity in Heat (1995). By the end of the 1990s she managed to achieve significant fame and success as an actress. As a respected actor, she began to be offered leading roles in films that were bound to be successful at the box office, but still required acting skills, like Double Jeopardy (1999) and Someone Like You (2001). Whenever her schedule allows, she regularly attends UK basketball games, frequently sitting next to Donna Smith (wife of UK Coach Tubby Smith), or in the student section. She allowed her alma mater to release a hockey calendar of her photos to help raise money for the team. She is frequently sought out for celebrity camera shots during televised games (much like Jack Nicholson with the Los Angeles Lakers or Spike Lee with the New York Knicks). She married Scottish Indy Racing League driver Dario Franchitti at Skibo Castle near Dornoch, Scotland in 2001.
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