Happy Birthday Jennifer Garner!

Hello everyone, hope your all well and have managed to have a good week! Mine went pretty well apart from Friday when, as I was helping cook dinner a pot of boiling hot water unexpectedly blew up right in my face, causing it to burn me at the time and injure my eye, luckily my parents were right there and quickly got me a cool pack to soothe the burn and stop it from blistering, to say it hurt was an understatement, thankfully it didn’t leave a scar or cause any serious damage. I also had a phone appointment with my physio-therapist who has kindly given me a month to re-arrange another appointment as I can’t actually do any physio until I’ve had an Ultrasound on my shoulder/neck because of some suspicious lumps that have appeared over the last few months, which I’ll be having in just under a couple of weeks’ time, so hopefully I will get some answers to what is going on and it can be treated (fingers crossed).

On to this weeks post, which as you can tell from the title is to celebrate the beautiful and multi-talented Jennifer Garner…. What’s not to love about Jennifer Garner? She is a treasure! Jennifer is not just a talented actress, she is also a household name who has captured the hearts of millions with her impeccable performances and genuine charm. From her breakout role in the hit TV show “Alias” to her memorable characters in films like “13 Going on 30” and “Dallas Buyers Club,” Garner has proven time and time again that she is a force to be reckoned with in the entertainment industry. The actress and mom of three is always proving herself to be hilarious, relatable, and so down-to-earth. So read on to find out some surprising facts about her.

Jennifer Garner

Biography:

Jennifer Anne Garner was born on April 17, 1972, in Houston, Texas, but moved to Charleston, West Virginia at age three. Her father, William John Garner, worked as a chemical engineer for Union Carbide; her mother, Patricia Ann English, was a homemaker and later an English teacher at a local college. She has two siblings, an older sister Melissa and a younger sister Susannah. Garner has described herself as a typical middle child who sought to differentiate herself from her accomplished older sister. While Garner did not grow up in a politically active household, her father was “very conservative” and her mother “quietly blue”. She attended a local United Methodist Church every Sunday and went to Vacation Bible School. As teenagers, she and her sisters were not allowed to wear makeup, paint their nails, pierce their ears, or dye their hair; she has joked that her family’s “take on the world” was “practically Amish”. She attended George Washington High School in Charleston. In 1990, Garner enrolled at Denison University in Granville, Ohio, where she changed her major from chemistry to theatre and was a member of Pi Beta Phi sorority. She spent the fall semester of 1993 studying at the National Theatre Institute at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Centre in Waterford, Connecticut. During college summers, she worked summer stock theatre. In 1994, she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in theatre performance.

As a college student, Garner performed in summer stock theatre. In addition to performing, Garner helped sell tickets, build sets, and clean the venues. She worked at the Timber Lake Playhouse in Mount Carroll, Illinois, in 1992, the Barn Theatre in Augusta, Michigan, in 1993, and the Georgia Shakespeare Festival in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1994. Garner moved to New York City in 1995. During her first year in the city, Garner earned $150 per week as an understudy for a Roundabout Theatre Company production of A Month in the Country and made her first on-screen appearance as Melissa Gilbert’s daughter in the romance miniseries Zoya.  In 1996, she played an Amish woman in the television movie Harvest of Fire and a shopkeeper in the Western miniseries Dead Man’s Walk. After moving to Los Angeles in 1997, Garner gained her first leading role in the television film Rose Hill and made her first feature film appearance in the period drama Washington Square. Garner’s most significant role of 1998 was in J. J. Abrams’ college drama series Felicity. In 2001, Garner was cast as the star of the ABC action thriller series Alias. The show’s creator, J. J. Abrams, wrote the part of Sydney Bristow with Garner in mind. During the show’s run, Garner received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama (from four nominations) and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series (from two nominations), in addition to four nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. While Alias was airing, Garner continued to work in film intermittently.

While Alias was airing, Garner continued to work in film intermittently. She had an “other-worldly” experience when Steven Spielberg called to offer her a role as a high-class call girl in the crime comedy-drama film Catch Me If You Can (2002). Garner’s first co-starring film role was in the action superhero film Daredevil (2003), in which she played Elektra to Ben Affleck’s Daredevil. Garner’s first leading film role, in the romantic comedy 13 Going on 30 (2004), was widely praised. She played a teenager who finds herself trapped in the body of a thirty-year-old.  After a one-year break following the conclusion of Alias, her wedding to Affleck, and the birth of her first child, Garner returned to work in 2007. Her supporting role in Juno as a woman desperate to adopt a child was described by Kyle Buchanan of New York Magazine as a turning point in her career. Garner co-starred in two romantic comedies in 2009. She first appeared in Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, portraying the childhood friend of a famous photographer and womanizer. Her second performance of 2009 was in comedian Ricky Gervais’s directorial debut The Invention of Lying. In 2010 she would star alongside Ashton Kutcher and Jessica Biel in the Garry Marshall’s ensemble romantic comedy Valentine’s Day.

From 2012 she would go on to star in multitude of films including; The Odd Life of Timothy Green, Butter (which she also produced), The Dallas Buyers Club (2013) – reuniting her with Ghosts of Girlfriends Past co-star Matthew McConaughey, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (2014), Miracles from Heaven (2016), Love, Simon (2018). More recently she produced and starred in the Netflix family comedy film Yes Day, and reunited with her 13 Going On 30 co-star Mark Ruffalo in the Netflix hit The Adam Project. In July 2023, it was revealed that Garner would reprise her role as Elektra in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Deadpool & Wolverine which is scheduled to be released on July 26, 2024.

In 2009, Garner became an artist ambassador for Save the Children USA, promoting national literacy, nutrition, and early education efforts. Since 2014, Garner has served on the board of trustees for the organization, advocating for early childhood education. As an ambassador, she frequently visits with families involved in the organization’s Early Steps to School Success program, which coaches families to help children learn in the early years. In 2008, she hosted two fund-raisers for Barack Obama during the 2008 Democratic Primary. In 2014, Garner donated $25,000 to the campaign of Democratic politician Wendy Davis. During the 2016 presidential campaign, Garner hosted a fundraiser in support of Hillary Clinton in Bozeman, Montana. Garner also attended voter registration and phone bank events in support of Clinton in Reno, Nevada. Garner and John Foraker co-founded the organic, fresh baby food company Once Upon a Farm in 2018; Garner is also the company’s chief brand officer. In 2019, Once Upon a Farm became the first refrigerated baby food available to WIC-eligible families. In partnership with Save the Children, Garner and her team remain dedicated to bringing ‘A Million Meals’ to children across America in food insecure communities.

Garner met co-star Scott Foley on the set of Felicity in 1998. They married in a ceremony at their home on October 19, 2000. The pair separated in March 2003. Garner filed for divorce in May 2003, citing irreconcilable differences, and divorce papers were signed in March 2004. She dated her Alias co-star Michael Vartan from August 2003 to mid-2004. Garner began dating Ben Affleck in August 2004, having established a friendship on the sets of Pearl Harbor (2001) and Daredevil (2003). They married on June 29, 2005, in a private Turks and Caicos ceremony. Victor Garber, who officiated the ceremony, and his (later) husband, Rainer Andreesen, were the only guests. Garner and Affleck have three children together: two daughters, Violet Anne Affleck (born in 2005) and Seraphina Rose Elizabeth Affleck (born in 2009), and one son, Samuel Garner Affleck (born in 2012). The couple announced their intention to divorce in June 2015, and jointly filed legal documents in April 2017, seeking joint physical and legal custody of their children. The divorce was finalized in October 2018. More than just a pretty actress, Jennifer Garner is a sought-after Hollywood movie star that has built a fan base of her own around the world. She is a great role model for young women. She is an inspiring example of how hard work and dedication can lead to success. She is also a great example of how to be a good person and treat others with respect. Now read on further to find out some interesting fast facts that you many never of known about the down-to-earth actress and activist.

• She once cleaned toilets as a summer job.
• Played saxophone in high school. She called her instrument, “Sally the Sexy Saxophone.”.
• In addition to her native language, English, Garner is also fluent in French and can speak some Spanish.
• Father is a chemical engineer, mother is an English teacher.
• While Garner did not grow up in a politically active household, her father was “very conservative” and her mother “quietly blue”.

• In a 2002 episode of the action thriller series Alias, titled “Rendezvous”, Garner sang a version of the song “Since I Fell For You”, to which she wrote her own lyrics.
• Early in the filming of Daredevil (2003), while doing a stunt, she became tangled in the wires that were helping her do a flip; she nearly crashed into a wall from which she had to flip.. Ben Affleck, rushed up in his Daredevil costume and grabbed her and pulled her away before she could hit it. She later commented, “It was like he was Superman.”.
• While filming a Sai/sword fight in Elektra (2005), accidentally got her knuckles sliced by Will Yun Lee. She got her knuckles patched up, and when she and Lee resumed, he subsequently sliced her again in the exact same spot.
• Garner has received numerous awards and nominations for her work, including a Screen Actors Guild Award and a People’s Choice Award.
• In late 2007 and early 2008, Garner played Roxanne to Kevin Kline’s Cyrano de Bergerac at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on Broadway. In preparation for the role, Garner worked with vocal and movement coaches and took French lessons.

• Is a trained ballerina who initially left dance for theater acting.
• Has been married twice. The first was to fellow Felicity star Scott Foley, which lasted four years, and the second to Affleck, with whom she has three children.
• Alias (2001) castmate Victor Garber took an Internet guide to officiating at weddings to marry Jennifer and Ben Affleck. Besides Garner and Affleck, Garber was the only other person at the wedding.
• Has 3 children: daughters, Violet Affleck (b. December 1, 2005) & Seraphina Rose Elizabeth Affleck (b. January 6, 2009) and son, Samuel Garner Affleck (b. February 27, 2012) with ex-husband, Ben Affleck.
• Garner has campaigned for laws to protect her children from paparazzi. In August 2013, Garner testified before the California Assembly Judiciary Committee in support of a bill that would protect celebrities’ children from harassment by photographers. The bill passed in September 2013 and is now California law.

• In 1999, Garner made a cameo appearance in the music video for the song “Waiting for Tonight” by Jennifer Lopez.
• Before pursuing a career in acting, Garner initially studied political science with the intention of becoming a lawyer.
• She was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6920 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on August 20, 2018.
• Her Alias director J.J. Abrams once gave her a pink bicycle for her birthday, and because she was usually first on set, she would greet the crew by ringing the bells on the handlebars.
• For Jennifer’s 50th birthday in April 2022, she got the surprise of a lifetime. Her childhood crush, Donny Osmond, showed up to serenade her while she was out to dinner with her friends.

• Jennifer Garner is active on social media platforms such as Instagram, where she provides glimpses into her personal life, shares inspiration, and highlights her philanthropic efforts.
• She is actively involved in various charitable causes. She is an ambassador for Save the Children and has worked on projects to improve early childhood education and nutrition.
• In partnership with Save the Children, Garner and her team remain dedicated to bringing ‘A Million Meals’ to children across America in food insecure communities.
• Co-founder of baby-food line “Once Upon a Farm, which produces “farm-to-high-chair” quality meals for children.
• Garner has participated in several charity runs, including the Boston Marathon, to raise funds for various causes.

• Garner is an avid animal lover and has adopted several pets over the years, including dogs and chickens.
• Garner has expressed her love for literature and is known to be an avid reader. She has even narrated audiobooks, including the “Goosebumps” series.
• Garner is a part of the ownership group of Angel City FC of the National Women’s Soccer League.
• Jennifer has several A-list friends, but one of her first friends in Hollywood was Bradley Cooper
• Friends with Reese Witherspoon, Jessica Biel, Keri Russell, Victor Garber, Mark Ruffalo and Judy Greer.

• Being a nature enthusiast, Jennifer Garner finds solace and rejuvenation in spending time outdoors, especially in serene natural settings.
• Jennifer is dedicated to maintaining a healthy lifestyle and is often seen engaging in activities such as yoga, hiking, and Pilates.
• Garner enjoys horseback riding and finds it to be a relaxing and therapeutic activity.
• Despite her busy schedule, Garner enjoys cooking and experimenting with different recipes in her free time.
• Jennifer Garner is often regarded as a role model for women, both on and off-screen, due to her authenticity, humility, and dedication to her family and career.

Jennifer Garner is undoubtedly one of the most talented and beloved actresses in Hollywood. With a successful career spanning over three decades, Garner has captivated audiences with her exceptional performances, versatility, and genuine charm. From her breakout role in the hit TV series “Alias” to her impressive filmography, she has proven her mettle as a versatile actress who can effortlessly transition between drama, comedy, and action. Beyond her acting prowess, Garner is also known for her philanthropic work and dedication to various charitable causes. With her down-to-earth personality and relatable demeanor, she has become one of the most adored celebrities in the industry.

Before I sign off, I just wanted to also say a Happy Birthday to my Grandad who would’ve been 71 today if he was still here with us, I miss him everyday, but I know he’ll be celebrating in his own personal heaven with my Nan and with a beer in his hand!
Thank you for coming to my blog and reading today’s post, I hope you all have a lovely week, and I shall see you next Wednesday.