LAURA INNES

Laura Innes stepped into the recurring role of tough and determined chief resident Dr. Kerry Weaver during the second season of "ER" and became a series regular this season. Before joining television's top-rated series, Innes was perhaps best known for her comic turn as Bunny, the promiscuous but sweet ex-wife of Lowell (Thomas Hayden Church) on NBC's "Wings."

One of six children, Innes was born in Pontiac, Mich., and raised in Birmingham, Mich. She remembers her father, a college English instructor, taking the family to the famous Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Ontario when she was small. It was there that she got her first taste of professional theater and decided to follow her father's advice to "do what you love."

After graduating from high school, Innes attended Northwestern University where she earned a degree in theater. Work in Chicago theater followed, including a role at the renowned Goodman Theater, playing Stella to John Malkovich's Mitch in "A Streetcar Named Desire." She continued working in Chicago for four years and originated the lead role of Glenna in David Mamet's "Edmund" before traveling with the "Edmund" company to New York City.

Innes' other theater credits include "Two Shakespearean Actors" opposite Eric Stoltz at Lincoln Center, "Our Town" opposite Campbell Scott at the Seattle Repertory Theater, and "Three Sisters" at the La Jolla Playhouse opposite Nancy Travis, Phoebe Cates and Jon Lovitz.

She has guest-starred on television series such as "My So-Called Life," "Party of Five" and "Brooklyn Bridge," and she appeared in the Emmy Award-winning cable movie "And the Band Played On." Innes recently completed six episodes of the comedy series "Louis," starring comedian Louis Anderson.

Innes lives in Los Angeles with her husband and 5-year-old son. Her birthday is August 16.