Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon already knew only too well, prior to her becoming one, what it's like to be a single mom.
She experienced it firsthand after her parents got divorced and her mom attended nursing school, following their breakup, to support the family.
And what a large family.
Two brothers and four sisters, all of whom are older than she is, had to be supported when they were making their way in Massachuetts.
Nilon didn't have to stay there long, however, as she head for the Big Apple when only seventeen.
Signed with Ford Models almost immediately, Nilon didn't have to struggle long while on her own.
The agency could not keep her busy enough and she was doing everything from print ads for Avon, Mary Kay Cosmetics and Clairol to magazine layout shoots for Essence and Ebony. Calvin Klein wanted her too and had her on the catwalk at Isaac Mizrahi fashion shows.
She did not get into acting until after she took a few classes and left for Los Angeles where she learned the difference between posing for still photography and performing in front of a motion picture camera.
She caught on quickly in Hollywood as well and got to appear on popular shows at that time like The Cosby Show, Miami Vice and Dream On.
One of her earliest films was with co-star Eddie Murphy in Coming to America.
By 1992, Nilon had a guest appearance on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and joined her co-star Will Smith again when they filmed the movie Wild Wild West.
Two years later she landed a role on the sitcom Models Inc. in which she played the role of Cynthia Nichols. Following this show, Nilon tried her hand at commercials and appeared in spots for Diet Coke as well as American Express where she played alongside of Jerry Seinfeld.
Other credits for Nilon include the television series Opposite Sex that aired in 2000 and Second String where she co-starred with Jon Voight.
After being married for six years to Daniel Saunders, Nilon became a single mom to her son Oliver.