Sela's IT

Sela Ward

AGE
43

WHY HER?
Her character on ABC's Once and Again has women everywhere wondering whether the secret to looking gorgeous is being fortysomething soon-to-be-divorced mother of two. Her Seductive Sprint commercials have breathless guys everywhere dialing 911.

WORST CAREER MOMENT
"Putting a tiny piece of onion under my fingernail and holding it to my eye to help me cry during an audition. But it stung so badly I couldn't open my eyes during the audition. Needless to say I didn't get that part."

KNEW SHE'D MADE IT WHEN
"My name appeared as an answer in the New York Times crossword puzzle."

UNLIKELY SOURCE OF INSPIRATION
Tom Hanks. "On Nothing in Common, which was my first big movie role, Tom taught me everything about comedic timing. It's been helpful to me this day."

INFLUENTIAL CHARACTER
Diana Rigg's Emma Peel in The Avengers. "She was smart, sexy, and had great style."

SECRET TO MAKING PHONE SERVICE SEXY
"Hip writing and great music."

IF SHE WEREN'T ACTING, SHE'D....
"Run a Fortune 500 company."

WHO'S IT?
"My husband (Howard Sherman) is IT! My ex-boyfriends are not!"

NEXT
"Spending some much-needed time with my kids."__Entertainment Weekly (June 30, 2000)