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I came in on the tail end of the old school of Hollywood.

I was a total theater geek in high school, no question. I was cast in 'Godspell' freshman year - with Vanessa Williams, by the way. She and I are still friends. We went to high school together.

I'm a California girl. I grew up in Inglewood right by LAX.

I never pictured myself in California. I just thought I would be a character actress in New York on the stage. I never really had that stardom goal; I just wanted to be able to work as an actress and not as a waitress.

When I moved to Los Angeles, I was cooking with two guys who became celebrity chefs, if you will. I became their sous chef for awhile. We'd go to all the big names in Hollywood.

There was no one around called 'Val' when I was young, so I wanted to be John or Bill. Now I like it.

I came to Hollywood and nobody knew me. I was on a coupla TV shows.

I went to high school in Stockton, CA.

People figure because I'm blonde and was a model, I just waltzed into Los Angeles and got major roles in major films.