Kathryn Erbe

Biography: This stage-trained player began working as a professional actor before graduating from college. In 1988, she appeared in The Grapes of Wrath, her first collaboration with Chicago's famed Steppenwolf Theatre Company. Not only did she become a full-fledged ensemble member in 1993, she ended up marrying the troupe's cofounder, Terry Kinney. Throughout the '90s, Erbe alternated between stage and screen, consistently earning fine reviews and even snagging a Tony nod for her work in the bloody 1991 stage drama The Speed of Darkness. On the small screen, she first made a terrifying impression as a murderous mom on death row on the HBO prison drama Oz. She then became more recognized on Law & Order: Criminal Intent as Vincent D'Onofrio's tough-as-nails partner, a role she played from 2001 until 2010.