Michelle grew up in Santa Ana with her two sisters and brother. She graduated from Fountain Valley High School in 1976, and attended one year of college studying to become a court reporter. It was while working at a grocery store that Michelle decided she wanted something else out of life. She wanted to act. So with a new goal in mind, and on the advice of her hairdresser, she decided to give modeling a try. Always looking for ways to further her acting career, Michelle had heard that often talent scouts went to beauty pageants looking for the next big thing. So she began to enter them and soon enough her strategy paid off. article continued below.....

Michelle went on to have several roles in both television and feature films, but it was her part as the bad girl in "Grease 2" that first caught the attention of the movie-going public. Her role in her next film "Scarface" showed a different side of Michelle's abilities and quickly proved she was more than just a pretty face.

1989 proved to be Michelle's year when she blew audiences and critics away with her role as a complex, sexy songstress in "The Fabulous Baker Boys", opposite Beau and Jeff Bridges. This was followed by several hits, leading up to her forming her own production company, Via Rosa.

Michelle has two children, Claudia Rose and John Henry, and is married to television producer David E. Kelley.

• Graduated from high school in 3 years.
• Used to work in a clothing store.
• (1999) Chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the world.
• (October 1997) Ranked #39 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list.
• Born at 8:11am-PDT
• She thought about looking for a man to father a child with "no strings attached", but decided to adopt instead. She adopted a daughter, 'Claudia Rose'.
• She is in the horn section of B.B. King's "In The Midnight Hour" music video.
• She was in Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise" music video.
• Won the Miss Orange County beauty pageant.
• (1997) Was voted Best Dressed Female Movie Star
• Chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the world (1990)
• Studied acting at The Beverly Hills Playhouse.
• Michelle's name was misspelled as 'Michele' in the credits of her film, Callie & Son (1981) (TV).
• Dated Fisher Stevens
• (1995) Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#3).
• Replaced Annette Bening as Catwoman in Batman Returns (1992).
• Does her own singing in Prince of Egypt, The (1998).
• Was offered the role of Clarice Starling in Silence of the Lambs, The (1991).
• Replaced Madonna for the lead in Fabulous Baker Boys, The (1989).
• (2000) The character Catwoman/Selina Kyle, who she played in Batman Returns (1992), was voted #3 in Empire's "69 Sexiest Movie Character of All Time".
• Turned down the Sharon Stone role in Basic Instinct (1992).
• Her favorite movie of 1995 was Muriel's Wedding (1994).
• Tried out for the part of Tiffany Welles on "Charlie's Angels" (1976) but the part went to Shelley Hack.
• Michelle's name was incorrectly spelled as "Michele" in the credits of the short lived TV series "Delta House" (1979/I).