Ten Things You Should Know About Rashida Jones

Rashida Jones has beauty and brains. She is also funny and talented. She strikes you as they type of woman men love to date and women would love to be BFFs with. This is a rare feat to achieve in Hollywood, but Rashida does it well. With several successful television and film appearances under her belt, Rashida's star is going to rise as 2011 goes on. Here are ten things that you should know about Rashida Jones.

1. She's Royalty - Okay, not really but by American standards, she would be considered Hollywood royalty. She is the daughter of music mogul Quincy Jones and The Mod Squad actress, Peggy Lipton. She is the younger of the couple's two daughters. Her older sister Kidada is a model and business woman. Rashida has five other siblings from Jones's other relationships.

2. It's all in the name - Rashida's name is Arabic for "rightly guided." Similarly, it means "righteous" in Swahili.

3. "Smart girls have more fun" - When Aaron Sorkin uttered these words during his Best Screenplay acceptance speech for The Social Network during this year's Golden Globe Awards, he could have been speaking about Rashida, who is featured in the film. The actress is a 1997 graduate of the illustrious Harvard University.

4. Like father, like daughter - While attending Harvard, Rashida sang with the a cappella group, The Harvard Opportunes. Also, while Rashida is probably best known for her roles as Karen on The Office and Ann on Parks and Recreation, Rashida also played Louisa on the drama Boston Public where she got the opportunity to showcase her vocal talents from time to time. She also sings background vocals for the popular group Maroon 5.

5. Say What? - Before she gained notoriety as an actress, Rashida gained attention after she penned an open letter to rapper Tupac Shakur after he openly criticized her parent's interracial relationship. The two later became friends and the rapper dated her older sister.

6. The Scales of Justice - Rashida once considered becoming a lawyer. But in the February 2011 issues of LA Magazine Rashida admits that the O.J. Simpson verdict changed everything for her. She said: "I realized that sometimes privilege can trump justice."

7. Buggin' Out - In 2009 Rashida told interviewer Alexa Chung that she wanted to be hypnotized to overcome her fear of cockroaches. See the video here.

8. Lover Girl - Rashida has been linked to many high profile guys over the years. She was engaged to Mark
Ronson and Tobey MacGuire. She has also dated SNL star Seth Myer and her Office costar John Krasinski. Rashida has been recently linked to Jon Favreau (the Obama speech writer, not the actor).

9. She's a Frenemy of the State - Rashida created a comic book series entitles "Frenemy of the State." The premise revolves around a rich young heiress who works as an undercover agent for the CIA. The film rights to the comic book were recently acquired by Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment.

10. 2011 is going to be The Big Year - Rashida has several projects slated for 2011. She was chosen as one of the stars featured on The Hollywood Issues of Vogue magazine. Additionally, her upcoming films are The Big Year, My Idiot Brother, Monogamy, and Friends with Benefits.

Sources:

Wikipedia, Rashida Jones: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashida_Jones

http://rashidajones.blogspot.com/

http://www.rashidajonesweb.com/