Patricia Rae

Born in Manhattan and raised in the working-class borough of Queens, Patricia Rae was born to Colombian parents and grew up speaking Spanish as her first language. She learned English by watching countless hours of "Sesame Street" (PBS, 1969-), and was eventually encouraged by one of her grade-school teachers to appear in the school's production of "Oliver Twist." Already a precocious youth, Rae welcomed the new challenge, beginning what would prove to be a lifelong love of performing. Throughout her teens and 20s, Rae moved back and forth between Florida and her hometown of New York City, landing bit parts in plays, commercials and TV shows, before deciding to permanently move her family to Los Angeles. Her big break came in 2004 when she landed the part of Carla in "Maria Full of Grace." The film, about a Colombian teenage girl who takes an unfortunate turn as a drug mule, premiered at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival, and went on to earn numerous accolades, including an Imagen Award nomination for Rae. She followed up that performance by landing guest spots on shows such as "The Chicago Code" (Fox, 2011), "The Mentalist" (CBS, 2008-15) and "Blue Bloods" (CBS, 2010-), as well as a supporting role in 2013's "The Big Wedding." When she's not acting, Rae serves as a certified yoga instructor in Studio City, California, and has also penned a memoir about her struggles and triumphs as a Latino-American actress called How to Make It in the Middle.