Actress and model Jeri Ryan was born Jeri Lynn Zimmermann, on February 22, 1968, in Munich, Germany. Born to American parents, Ryan’s father was in the U.S. Army, and the family lived on military bases in Kansas, Maryland, Hawaii, Georgia, and Texas. By age eleven, Ryan’s family had settled in Paducah, Kentucky, where she graduated from high school in 1986. A National Merit Scholar, Ryan went on to attend Northwestern University, where she graduated in 1990 with a BA in theatre. At age twenty-one, Ryan competed in the Miss Illinois pageant, and took home the crown. She went on to represent Illinois at Miss America, where she finished as third runner-up in 1990.
During the summer before her freshman year, Ryan had a brush with Hollywood when she was cast in a small part in Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987), starring Steve Martin and John Candy. Ryan’s part, however, wound up on the cutting room floor in the final version. (Ryan later explained that she had ruined every scene she was in by laughing.) But it wasn't long before Ryan got a second chance at acting. After graduating from college, she made the move to Los Angeles to pursue a full-time career in acting, and subsequently made appearances on such popular shows as Who's the Boss? Melrose Place, Matlock, and The Sentinel.
On the big screen, Ryan has starred in the independent film Men Cry Bullets in 1997, as well as the Indie comedy The Last Man in 2000, in which she plays the last woman on Earth. Ryan also appeared in Down With Love in 2003, alongside Renée Zellweger and Ewan McGregor.
In 1997, Ryan was cast in a role that would generate a cult following: playing sexy Borg drone, Seven of Nine on Star Trek: Voyager. After Ryan joined the cast, the show began climbing higher in the ratings and garnering more positive reviews. From 1997 until Voyager ended in 2001, Seven of Nine appeared on seven covers of TV Guide in the U.S.
After de-boarding Voyager, Ryan headed straight for the inner-city school system with a role on Boston Public, which the show's producer, David E. Kelley, wrote specifically for her. Ryan played Ronnie Cooke, a character who leaves her job as a lawyer in search of a more fulfilling career as a high-school teacher. Since the show’s cancellation in 2004, Ryan has moved on to the CBS legal drama, Shark, which also stars James Woods.
In 1991, Ryan married investment banker and future political candidate Jack Ryan, whom she met one year prior, while dealing blackjack at a charity event. In 1994, the couple welcomed the birth of a son, Alex. Eight years later, they divorced, keeping their reasons for splitting private, along with the custody records. However, when Jack hit the senate campaign trail, both the Chicago Tribune newspaper and local ABC affiliate station, WLS-TV endeavored to make the records public. On June 22, 2004, a Los Angeles superior court judge made a controversial ruling to release the custody files, which revealed that Jeri had accused Jack of asking her to perform sexual acts with him in adult clubs in New York, New Orleans, and Paris. Although he denied the allegations, they eventually led Jack Ryan to withdraw his Republican candidacy for an open United States senate seat in Illinois, which ultimately went to Barack Obama.
In 2006 Jeri appeared on the cover of Maxim magazine.
In July 2006, Ryan announced her engagement to Chef Christophe Émé, with whom she owns the L.A. restaurant, Ortolan.
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