Melinda Page Hamilton

With a career that covered both television and theater, Melinda Page Hamilton was best known for her roles in several award-winning series, including AMC's "Mad Men" (2007-15), HBO's "Big Love" (2006-11), and the prime-time hit "Desperate Housewives" (ABC 2004-12). Born in New York City on August 22, 1974, Hamilton began her acting career in theater before she established herself in the television industry. In 1997, she landed her first television role in an episode of the hugely successful procedural crime drama "Law & Order" (NBC 1990-2010). After appearing in guest roles on such popular series like "CSI: Miami" (CBS 2002-12) and "Nip/Tuck" (FX 2003-10), it was Hamilton's stellar performance in Bobcat Goldthwait's controversial comedy "Sleeping Dogs Lie" (2006) that finally proved her breakthrough role. In that same year, TV audiences caught Hamilton's feisty side when she clashed with Gabrielle Solis (Eva Longoria) in "Desperate Housewives" as the less-than-pious Sister Mary Bernard. In 2008, Hamilton joined the cast of "Mad Men" in the key recurring role of Anna Draper, the woman who holds the secret behind the true identity of Don Draper (Jon Hamm). In the following year, she joined the cast of "Big Love" as Malinda, the cancer-afflicted wife of the duplicitous J.J. Percy Walker (Zeljko Ivanek). Hamilton then switched gears and showed an aggressive side of herself when she played Odessa Burakov, the dictatorial Russian house manager in "Desperate Housewives" creator Marc Cherry's comedy-drama "Devious Maids" (Lifetime 2013-16).