I wasn’t the only 80s and 90s Meg Ryan fan. The blonde-haired, blue-eyed belle was rom-com royalty and “America’s sweetheart.”

Her star burned brightly for two decades as a Hollywood favorite.

It was unlikely that Meg Ryan would be famous worldwide.

Born 1961, Ryan grew up in Fairfield, Connecticut. Polish-born math teacher Harry Hyra was her father. Ryan’s mother, Susan Jordan, was a teacher and actor, so stage presence ran in the family.

Changing her name
After her parents divorced in 1976 when Meg was 15, her connection with them grew acrimonious.

Meg lost relations with her mother after several events. When she joined the Screen Actors Guild, she changed her surname to “Ryan,” her grandmother’s maiden name.

Ryan studied journalism at Connecticut and New York Universities as a young woman. Her college years may not have changed her life as many expected.

Meg Ryan started doing commercials and soap operas for extra cash. Many producers heard about the remarkable young actress after she was cast in As the World Turns.

Ryan quit college to work in entertainment. She made a splash in Top Gun with a vibrant image of Carole Bradshaw, Nick “Goose” Bradshaw’s wife.

Meg Ryan got greater parts after the 1986 romantic action flick was the highest-grossing.

She fell in love on Top Gun. Co-star and on-screen husband Anthony Edwards became her boyfriend. The couple dated and lived together.

Ryan and his future spouse Dennis Quaid participated in Innerspace in 1987.