Nina Arvesen

Born on May 16, 1961 in White Plains, New York, USA to a Norwegian career diplomat and his former actress wife, Arvesen grew up all over the world as a result of her father's international postings. Before she made the decision to move back to the states in 1986 she had her own talk show in Norway for three years and had worked as an actress in Egypt, Brazil, Costa Rica and Norway. She had to start all over again as an actress when she came to the US but was eventually cast in the 1987 movie Dragnet (1987) with Dan Aykroyd and Tom Hanks. She got her big break when she was cast as the mysterious Cassandra Rawlins on soap opera The Young and the Restless (1973). When her stint ended after 3 years Arvesen went on to appear in the NBC soap opera Santa Barbara (1984). Then, she retired from acting and opened her own dance studio in Santa Monica, California, as she is classically trained ballet dancer.