50 facts you didn’t know about Eva Mendes: she is actor, singer, model and designer

50 things from life of Eva Mendes.

1. Eva Mendes is an American actress, model, singer and designer.

2. Eva Mendes began acting in the late 1990s, and after a series of roles in B movies such as Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror (1998) and Urban Legends: Final Cut (2000), she made a career changing appearance in Training Day (2001).

3. Eva Mendes has appeared in several music videos and sung with CeeLo Green.

4. Eva Mendes has been a model and ambassador of Cocio chocolate milk, Magnum ice cream, Revlon, Calvin Klein, Cartier, Thierry Mugler perfume, Reebok, Campari apéritif, Pantene shampoo, Morgan and Peek & Cloppenburg clothes.

5. Eva Mendes designed a fashion collection for New York & Company in 2013.

6. Eva Mendes was born in Miami, Florida, to Cuban parents

7. Eva Mendes was raised by her mother in the Los Angeles suburb of Glendale after her parents' divorce.

8. Mendes was raised a Roman Catholic and at one time even considered becoming a Catholic Nun. "I wanted to be a nun when I was very little. Well, that was until my sister told me that they don't get paid. Then I went off that idea quickly."

9. Her mother worked at Mann's Chinese Theatre and later for an aerospace company.

10. Her father ran a meat distribution business.

11. Eva Mendes attended Hoover High School in Glendale and later attended California State University, Northridge, to study Marketing but left college to study Acting under Ivana Chubbuck.

12. Eva Mendes began her acting career after a talent manager saw her photo in a friend's portfolio. "I don't go to premieres. I attend film openings I'm in, and that's about it. Fame and celebrity doesn't matter to me. The longevity of my career does."

13. Her first film appearance was in the direct-to-video Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror. Mendes was disappointed in her performance and she hired an acting coach.

14. Mendes' breakthrough role came when she appeared in Training Day[8] and led to roles in All About the Benjamins, 2 Fast 2 Furious, Once Upon a Time in Mexico.

15. Once Upon a Time in Mexico earned her a nomination at the Teen Choice Awards.

16. Eva Mendes was the female lead in the 2005 comedy Hitch and was one of the first minority actors to play the lead in a hit romantic comedy.

17. Eva Mendes was nominated for a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress for her performance in The Women.

18. In 2012, Eva Mendes visited Sierra Leone and was featured in the PBS documentary Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide.

19. Eva Mendes appeared in Will Smith's video "Miami."

20. Eva Mendes also appeared other music videos such as the Pet Shop Boys' music video for "Se a vida é (That's the way life is)" in 1996 and Aerosmith's video "Hole in My Soul" in 1997.

21. Eva Mendes was employed by Revlon Cosmetics as an international spokeswoman and participant in Revlon's campaign to raise funds for breast cancer research.

22. Eva Mendes appeared nude in a print ad for Calvin Klein's Secret Obsession perfume; the ad was banned in the United States.

23. In December 2007, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) used a nude photo of Mendes for their anti-fur campaign.

24. Eva Mendes modelled in a Morgan campaign.

25. Eva Mendes Was a spokesmodel for the 2008 Campari calendar.

26. Eva Mendes was announced as the international face of Australia's 30 Days of Fashion & Beauty event in July 2008.

27. Mendes has been a spokesperson for Calvin Klein, Magnum, and the chocolate milk brand Cocio.

28. Eva Mendes promoted Thierry Mugler's Angel fragrance.

29. Pizza is her favorite comfort food.

30. Eva Mendes promoved Reebok shoes and Pantene shampoo.

31. She appeared in a Peek & Cloppenburg clothing catalog in 2011.

32. Eva Mendes has a line of bed linens and dinnerware that is sold at Macy's.

33. In 2010, Mendes sang on "Pimps Don't Cry", a song featured in The Other Guys, and performed a duet with CeeLo Green on "Pimps Don't Cry".

34. In 2011, she recorded a version of "The Windmills of Your Mind".

35. Eva Mendes appeared on the cover of Maxim for the second time in November 2007.

36. People named her one of 2012 Most Beautiful at Every Age.

37. The actress dated George Augusto from 2002 to 2010.

38. In September 2011, she began dating her The Place Beyond the Pines co-star Ryan Gosling. They met at the set in the movie in which Gosling plays Luke. They were first spotted as a couple in September 2011 in Disneyland. The couple kept the pregnancy secret and when it was revealed their baby news broke the Internet.

39. Eva Mendes gave birth to Gosling's daughter Esmeralda Amada. Their daughter was born on September 12, 2014.

40. She is a vegetarian for both ethical and health reasons.

41. Mendes spent several weeks at the Cirque Lodge addiction facility in 2008 to address "personal issues."

42. Eva Mendes has Cuban roots.

43. Mendes sold hot dogs at the Glendale Galleria Mall while acting in B movies.

44. She doesn't cook.

45. Her best pick me up is a cup of her favorite coffee. She has Cuban roots so coffee is a big deal for her.

46. Has a dog Hugo a Belgian Malinois which is trained as an attack dog.

47. Best in Show is one of her favorite movies along with Legend featuring Tom Cruise.

48. Motorino is her favorite pizza spot.

49. She sees her therapist for fun. "I see a therapist just for fun. I love it. Not for a specific thing, but just, like, maintenance. It's so cool." She also encourages her family to go to therapy. "I'm like, 'You guys just go, trust me, go to therapy.'" "They're still a little, they're old-school, they still think that something's got to be fundamentally wrong with you if you go. And I, obviously, I completely disagree. I think if you can go, if you have the means to go and you find the right person ... I love it. I love it. And I think [therapy] has such a bad rep, too. I'm actually a painfully, painfully private person, but I've mentioned that in my interviews and stuff before because I just kind of would like to try to kill the stigma of it, you know? I think it's such a positive thing, if you find the right person."

50. She has one brother Carlo Mendez, and a sister Janet Mendes.