'''Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon'''
[http://www3.charlestoncounty.org/connect/LU_GROUP_2?ref=Marriage Marriage certificate (#1999002007), name spelling = Jeanne] (born March 22, 1976) is an Academy Award-winning American actress best known for her roles in ''
Election'', ''
Legally Blonde'', and ''Walk the Line.
Biography
Early life
Witherspoon was born in New Orleans, Louisiana
[http://www2.tulane.edu/article_news_details.cfm?ArticleID=6294 Interview with father, birthplace = New Orleans] to John Witherspoon, a surgeon from Georgia who grew up in Nashville, and Betty Reese, a nurse and college professor from Harriman, Tennessee. She is a direct descendant of Scottish-born John Witherspoon, a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence and sixth president of Princeton University, who was also a Presbyterian minister. Because her father worked for the US military in Wiesbaden, Germany, she lived there for four years as a small child. After returning to the United States, Witherspoon spent much of her childhood and adolescence in Nashville, Tennessee, where, she says in ''Interview'' magazine, "I grew up in an environment where women accomplished a lot. And if they weren't able to it was because they were limited by society. I grew up with a grandma--my father's mother--who was incredibly intelligent but was limited by the bounds of society and propriety ... She was a voracious reader, and she encouraged me to read a lot as a child ..." a woman whose "depression" and "disconnect between her capabilities and her lack of fulfillment and achievement" continues to motivate Witherspoon in life. She has an older brother, John, who works as a real estate broker. After graduating from the prestigious private all-girl's Washburn Rural School in Nashville, she attended Stanford University as a literature major. After completing a year of her studies, she left Stanford to pursue her acting career.
Career
Witherspoon began her career in local commercials. Her first role was in a 1991 made-for-TV movie called ''Wildflower'', directed by Diane Keaton and starring Beau Bridges, William McNamara, and Patricia Arquette. That same year, at age 14, Witherspoon attended an open casting call for ''
The Man in the Moon'', intending to audition as a bit player. She was instead cast in the lead role, immediately capturing the attention of critics. She has since built up an impressive filmography, playing both comedic and dramatic roles, including performances as Vanessa in ''
Freeway'' and Tracy Flick in ''
Election''. She was the voice of the animated character Greta Wolfcastle in ''The Simpsons'' episode The Bart Wants What It Wants. She also played Jill Green, Rachel's sister, in season six of "Friends."
She achieved fame and a
