Jorja Fox
Jorja Fox (born July 7, 1968) is an American actress.[1] She first came to prominence with a recurring role in the NBC medical drama ER as Dr. Maggie Doyle from 1996 to 1999. This was followed by another critical success in the recurring role of Secret Service Agent Gina Toscano in the NBC political drama The West Wing in 2000. She portrayed Sara Sidle in the CBS police procedural crime-drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, both as a regular (2000–2007, 2010–2015)[2] and recurring (2008–2010) cast member. She reprised the role in the sequel CSI: Vegas, which premiered on October 6, 2021.
This article is about the American-Canadian actress and producer. For the English soccer player, see Jorja Fox (footballer).
Jorja Fox
Early life[edit]
Fox was born in New York City to Montreal-born parents Edward and Marilyn Fox and is of French-Canadian, Belgian and Irish descent.[3] She was raised on a narrow barrier island in Melbourne Beach, Florida. She has an older brother, Jeff. She describes herself as being overweight while growing up, with a prominent gap between her teeth.[4] By her 20s, she observed that neither her wisdom teeth nor braces had appreciably helped, and Fox said "forget it."[5]
After attending Melbourne High School[6] for two years, she began a modeling career after winning a local contest. She subsequently enrolled as a drama student at the Lee Strasberg Institute in New York City, under the tutelage of actor William Hickey.
Activism and politics[edit]
Fox is a supporter of the Human Rights Campaign[21] and has been a dedicated vegetarian since the age of 19, working with PETA to help promote vegetarianism[22] and also working with ADI to bring light to the suffering of animals in circuses.[23] She has a purse named after her by the Montréal company Matt & Nat, which designs vegan purses.[24] Fox attended and read at the Los Angeles book launch of Karen Dawn's Thanking The Monkey, and was seen on Access Hollywood discussing how being vegetarian helps the environment.[25] In 2008, Fox volunteered her time to film a Public Service Announcement for the New York–based non-profit Orangutan Outreach,[26] which supports Borneo Orangutan Survival and other projects aimed at ensuring the orangutan's continued survival. The 30-second clip was shown on Animal Planet during the award-winning series Orangutan Island.[27]