Laura Harring

Laura Harring is a MexicanAmerican actress. In 1985, Harring became the first Latina woman crowned Miss USA. She later began her acting career in television and film. She is best known for her role as Rita in the 2001 postmodern neonoir film Mulholland Drive. She is also known for her roles in other films, including The Forbidden Dance , John Q , Willard , The Punisher , The King , and Love in the Time of Cholera .

Harring was born in Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico. Her mother, Mara Elena MartnezCairo, is a spiritual teacher, real estate investor, and secretary. Her father, Raymond Harring, was a developer and organic farmer of AustrianGerman descent. The two divorced in 1971. Harring lived the first ten years of her life in Mexico, before her family relocated to San Antonio, Texas. Harring suffered a head wound from a .45 bullet when she was caught by stray fire from a driveby shooting at age 12. At age 16, she convinced her family to let her study in Switzerland at Aiglon College. She eventually returned to the United States, settling down in El Paso, Texas and entered the world of beauty pageants. She won the title of Miss El Paso USA, and soon after, Miss Texas USA, ultimately going on to win the title of Miss USA 1985. Harring spent the next year traveling through Asia, exploring Europe and working as a social worker in India. In 1987, she married Count CarlEduard von BismarckSchnhausen, greatg

Source: Wikipedia