Kim Raver

A veteran television performer who has starred on some of the most popular and successful series in the 21st century, actress Kim Raver worked her way up from theater and guest starring spots on "Law and Order" (NBC, 1990-2010) and "Spin City" (ABC, 1996-2002) to land her first breakout role on John Wells' cop-firefighter drama, "Third Watch" (NBC, 1999-2005).

But it was her performance as the conflicted CTU agent Audrey Raines on the hit real-time action series, "24" (Fox, 2001-2010), which earned the actress her first true widespread exposure. Thanks to her three seasons on the show, Raver was able to land more prominent roles, namely starring alongside Brooke Shields and Lindsay Price on "Lipstick Jungle" (NBC, 2008-09). Once that struggling show was cancelled, she joined the cast of the popular medical drama, "Grey's Anatomy" (ABC, 2005- ), which once again allowed Raver to display her considerable talents to a wide television audience.

Born March 15, 1969 in New York City, Raver was one of two sisters born to her German mother, Tina Raver, and raised by her stepfather, Chris Meltesen. She gravitated towards performing at a very early age, earning her first credit for her three-year stint on "Sesame Street" (PBS, 1969- ). Soon after, Raver began honing her craft at an off-off-Broadway theater devoted to child performers.

A fine arts graduate from Boston University in 1991, Raver studied theater in New York with teacher Wynn Handman and earned early credits on national commercials for Visa and Jeep, the latter of which was directed by Ridley Scott. She also landed a supporting part in the TV movie "Menendez: A Killing in Beverly Hills" (1994) and had a recurring role as Deanne Lander on Darren Star's short-lived soap "Central Park West" (CBS, 1995-96). But Raver's big break came with her appearance in the Broadway production of "Holiday," opposite Laura Linney and Tony Goldwyn, from 1995-96, a role that earned her critical raves and wider attention.

As a result, Raver began appearing with more frequency on screen, landing guest spots on "Law and Order" (NBC, 1990-2010), "The Practice" (ABC, 1997-2004), and "Spin City" (ABC, 1996-2002). She graduated to regular cast member on the drama series "Trinity" (NBC, 1998-99) for producer John Wells, but the series, about a working-class Irish family, only lasted four episodes. During this period, Raver appeared in a summer production of Warren Leight's play "The Glimmer Brothers" with David Schwimmer and the late John Spencer. Impressed with her presence, Wells cast her again, this time as paramedic Kim Zambrano on his police-firefighter drama "Third Watch" (NBC, 1999-2005), which proved far more successful.

Raver stayed with the series until 2004, during which time she appeared in a crossover episode of another Wells' production, "ER" (NBC, 1994-2009). After leaving "Third Watch," Raver appeared in a pair of independent features: Eric Schaeffer's ensemble dramedy "Mind the Gap" (2004), and the unreleased horror flick "Prisoner."

The best was yet to come, however, when Raver joined the cast of the hit action series, "24" (Fox, 2001-2010) in 2005. As CTU member Audrey Raines, the daughter of Secretary of Defense James Heller (William Devane), Raver struggled with her feelings for Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland), which were immeasurably complicated when he indirectly allowed her husband to die. She also found herself pawn to villainous agents who interrogated her with sodium pentothal, implicated her in terrorist attacks, and nearly left her to die. Naturally, Jack's quick thinking rescued her from this fate.

After joining "24," Raver completed several films for television and theatrical release, including the psychological thriller "Keep Your Distance" (2005), and the supernatural "Haunting Sarah" (Lifetime, 2005). She also appeared in her first blockbuster, co-starring opposite Ben Stiller in "Night at the Museum" (2006). After "24" came to a close in 2010, Raver moved on to play Bonfire Magazine editor-in-chief Nico Reilly on the comedy-drama, "Lipstick Jungle" (NBC, 2008-09), which struggled to maintain an audience before being cancelled after season two. Raver moved on to join the cast of "Grey's Anatomy" (ABC, 2005- ), playing cardiothoracic surgeon Dr. Theodora "Teddy" Altman, who winds up butting heads with Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh) and striking up a romance with Dr. Mark Sloan (Eric Dane).