Dawson Rosario life and biography

Rosario Dawson (born May 9, 1979) is an American actress, singer, and writer. She has appeared in films such as Men in Black II, Sin City, Clerks II, Rent, Death Proof, The Rundown, Eagle Eye, and Seven Pounds.

New York-born and bred actress Rosario Dawson made her screen debut in Larry Clark's controversial Kids (1995). Literally picked off the street to play Ruby, one of the film's titular teens, Dawson -- who is of Puerto Rican, Cuban, Black, Irish, and Native American heritage -- had never acted before being cast in the film.

Following Kids, she next appeared in Spike Lee's He Got Game (1998) and that same year starred in Side Streets, a series of vignettes about life in New York's five boroughs. Faithful to her New York roots through and through, Dawson has continued to star in films set in her hometown, including Light It Up (1999), a drama that cast the actress as an honors student caught up in a hostage situation, and Down to You (2000), a romantic comedy in which she played a freewheeling stoner.

After jamming with Josie and the Pussycats (2001) and landing on the Sidewalks of New York as a teacher dealing with a failed marriage. In 2002 Dawson had the distinction of appearing in two different science-fiction comedies that met dissimilar fates at the box office. She stepped into the female leading Men in Black 2 after Linda Fiorentino decided to opt out of the successful sequel, but Dawson also appeared alongside Eddie Murphy in the infamous bomb The Adventures of Pluto Nash. She continued to move between big budget films like The Rundown with more independently minded efforts like Shattered Glass. In 2004 Dawson took on the part of the feisty woman who marries Alexander.

She showcased her versatility in 2005 by appearing in two very different films. She took on the part of HIV positive drug addict Mimi Marquez in the big-screen adaptation of Rent, and played a hardened prostitute in Robert Rodriguez' Sin City.

She also became involved in a legal dispute concerning her maintaining a rent-free dwelling in New York City. She continued working for interesting directors in 2006 playing in Killshot for John Madden, and being the most famous person cast in a major role, as the love interest for the directionless Dante Hicks, in Kevin Smith's Clerks 2.

Personal life

Dawson dated former Sex and the City star Jason Lewis for two years. They lived together in Los Angeles until they separated in November 2006. She has also been rumored to have dated Dawson's Creek star Joshua Jackson. In December 2008, Dawson confirmed on the Tonight Show that she had been dating an international DJ that she met at a French cafe.

Dawson is involved with the Lower East Side Girls Club and supports other charities such as environmental group Global Cool, the ONE Campaign, Oxfam, Amnesty International, Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, Stay Close.org (a poster and public service ad campaign for PFLAG where she is featured with her uncle Frank Jump), International Rescue Committee, and Voto Latino, and she participated in the Vagina Monologues. She attended both the Democratic National Convention as well as the Republican National Convention in 2008. In October 2008, Dawson became a spokesman for TripAdvisor.com’s philanthropy program, More Than Footprints, involving Conservation International, Doctors Without Borders, National Geographic Society, The Nature Conservancy, and Save The Children. Also in October 2008, she lent her voice to the RESPECT! Campaign, a movement aimed at preventing domestic violence. She recorded a voice message for the Giverespect.org Web site stressing the importance of respect in helping stop domestic violence.

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