Sofia Vergara, "Modern Family" Girl

Multi-Talented Sofia Vergara

Sofia Vergara.

Sofía Margarita Vergara (born July 10, 1972) is a Colombian actress, television hostess, and model who also has her own clothing line.

Sofia is best known as the star of the hit television show "Modern Family," and is particularly well known in South America.

Born in Barranquilla, Colombia, Sofia Vergara's mother is Margarita Vergara Dávila de Vergara, is a housewife. Her father, Julio Enrique Vergara Robayo, works in the cattle business.

Sofia's parents split up while Sofia was still a baby, but her family was able to send her to a private bilingual Spanish/English school, known as Marymount School Barranquilla.

Sofia married young, at 18, to a high school friend, Joe Gonzalez, but they quickly got divorced. They had a son, Manolo, in September 1992.

She was discovered, so they say, by a Colombian photographer who saw her at the beach.

Sofia quickly began appearing in high-profile ad campaigns for Pepsi and other popular brands.

At 20, Sofia moved to Bogotá, Colombia, where she was a runway model and did some local television acting and hosting. She began getting gigs with Univisión.

Univisión broadcast some of her work in the United States, which led to a guest star role on "Entourage." People began to notice the pert young South American.

As her profile reached new heights, Sofia became a pin-up and poster-girl.

Once her Univisión contract expired, ABC quickly signed her to a contract and started putting her in television series. These included "Hot Properties" and "The Knights of Prosperity."

Sofia's biggest break came when she was cast as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett in "Modern Family" in 2009. The show became a breakout hit and has run for many seasons, so far eight. Sofia also garnered Emmy nominations and Golden Globe nominations for four consecutive years for the role.

Sofia also has had some high-profile film roles during the "Modern Family" run. She was Desdemona in Robert Rodriguez's "Machete Kills" (2013) and voiced Odile in "The Smurfs" (2011). She appears to be moving more into film roles as time goes by, and better ones as well.

Almost as busy as a model as an actress, Sofia became the face of CoverGirl. Not only does she work in front of the cameras, but also behind them, designing her Sofia by Sofia Vergara line of clothing for K-Mart.

A very hard-working lady, Sofia Vergara has an estimated net worth of about $100 million. Reportedly, she is the highest-paid television star in Hollywood.

Sofia's rocketship to success has not been without issues. For one, she had her thyroid removed in 2000 after being diagnosed with cancer. This requires Sofia to take medication for the rest of her life.

Sofia's younger brother, Julio, was deported from the United States back to Colombia in May, 2011. Julio had developed a bad drug problem, and Sofia said he seemed "like another person."

Sofia with Nick Loeb.

Sofia got engaged to her boyfriend, Nicholas M. Loeb, in July 2012. They ultimately called off the engagement, but the affair has had lasting consequences.

Sofia and Loeb had two embryos produced by in vitro fertilization while she was with Loeb. The embryos remain in cryopreservation at the ART Reproductive Center in Beverly Hills, California. These embryos have led to a lawsuit.

Loeb and Vergara signed a contract while they were together which provided that neither could destroy the embryos without the acquiescence of the other. Loeb brought a lawsuit on behalf of the embryos - they are the plaintiffs - demanding that the embryos be implanted in a surrogate carrier (Loeb actually is not a party to the suit). The suit was brought in Louisiana, which has laws perceived to be favorable for such a suit.

Loeb dropped the lawsuit in December 2016, but did not give up. He established trusts for the two embryos, appointed a trustee for the trusts, and had the trustee sue Vergara in a "right to life" suit.

Vergara responded with her own lawsuit in California, alleging breach of contract by Loeb and demanding a declaratory judgment that she has control over the embryos. Loeb countered with California's SLAPP statute, alleging that Vergara was trying to suppress Loeb's First Amendment rights. At this time, the case remains in litigation.

Sofia Vergara posed nude for Women's Health magazine's September, 2017 issue. She complained that the shoot was difficult:

I’m a 32-triple-D! My boobs are real, and I had a baby. If I grab them, I can’t even cover the nipple!

Reportedly, Sofia also posed nude in 1997 when she was still a struggling actress.

My father told me if I did anything artistic, I would look like a hooker. I told him, "With these huge boobs that I inherited from your mother, I already look like a hooker!"

Los Angeles is crazy. The women all look the same now. That thing with the cheeks. Like Madonna. Who do they think they're fooling? It doesn't make them look young. You end up looking like a freak.

You have to surround yourself with people who help and support you. It is impossible to do everything - and do it right- if you are doing it by yourself.

I'm a natural blonde. But when I started acting, I would go to auditions and they didn't know where to put me because I was voluptuous and had the accent--but I had blonde hair. It was ignorance: they thought every Latin person looks like Salma Hayek.

On May 7, 2015, Sofia received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7013 Hollywood Boulevard.

2017