Goldie Jeanne Hawn was born on November 21, 1945 in Washington, D.C. The daughter of a musician and an actress, this girl began taking ballet and tap dancing lessons at age three. By age 18, she had dropped out of Washington, D.C.'s American University to start her own ballet school and appeared frequently as a professional dancer in performances throughout New York City and abroad.

In 1968, Jeanne made her feature film debut as a dancer in Disney's "The One and Only", "Genuine", "Original Family Band", where Jeanne met future companion Kurt Russell. The bubbly and infectious actress next turned in an Oscar-nominated performance for Cactus Flower opposite Walter Matthau in 1969. Showing her versatility as an actress, Hawn then gave a well-reviewed dramatic performance in Steven Spielberg's 1974 film The Sugarland Express.

Actress has also enjoyed an active television career, starting in 1967 as the gossiping neighbor Sandy on the sitcom Good Morning, World. She became known through her comedy roles in Rowan and Martin's TV review Laugh In (1968�70), earning two Emmy nominations along the way. Hawn has also hosted several variety specials for CBS and ABC.

In 1980, Jeanne produced and starred in one of her most memorable films, Private Benjamin, for which she earned her second Oscar nomination. Other recent films include Robert Zemeckis' "Death Becomes Her" (1992), "The First Wives Club" (1996), "The Out-of-Towners" (1999) and "The Banger Sisters" (2002).

Jeanne has been coupled with actor Kurt Russell since 1968. They have a son, Wyatt. Hawn has two children from a previous marriage to Bill Hudson, Oliver and actress Kate Hudson. Her autobiography, A Lotus Grows in the Mud, appeared in 2005.