Melinda Clarke

Biography: With exotic looks and a smoldering sensuality, Clarke made her name portraying a string of vamps, both on the big and small screens. The daughter of Days of Our Lives veteran John Clarke, the actress got her start on his series before turning her attention to film. But she appeared mostly in B-grade fare (Night of the Living Dead III, Return to Two Moon Junction, and two little-seen films directed by her husband, Ernie Mirich) before a guest spot on Xena and a role as a sexy assassin in Spawn established her as a grade-A vixen. Myriad TV guest appearances later, Clarke landed her career-making role as a gold-digging mother with a sordid past on The O.C. Even after that show's cancellation, memorable roles followed for Clarke, particularly in the series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, where she played dominatrix Lady Heather, and The Vampire Diaries.