Melanie Griffith

Melanie Griffith was born on August 9, 1957, in New York City to model Tippi Hedren and advertising executive and sometime actor Peter Griffith. Her parents' marriage ended in 1961 and Tippi came to Los Angeles to get a new start. Melanie's career began as a model at just nine months old and she later appeared as an extra in Smith! (1969) and The Harrad Experiment (1973), where she fell in love with her mother's co-star, Don Johnson. She was only fourteen years old, while he was a twice-divorced 22-year-old. One day, she went to meet with director Arthur Penn for what she thought was a modeling assignment. It was actually an audition for his film Night Moves (1975), and Penn gave her the role of a runaway nymphet. She didn't really want to be an actress, but Johnson encouraged her to do it. She agreed but was terrified of performing in front of the camera. Penn took a paternal interest in her, and she felt confident and gave a riveting performance, doing racy nude scenes. The film got her attention, and it immediately typecast her and led to more nymphet roles, with her beautiful nude body a permanent fixture in most of these films.