Best TV actors from each state
By Jeremy Dick
Jaime Pressly (North Carolina)
North Carolinian actress Jaime Pressly began her professional career after moving to California as a teenager. At 15, she quit school to become a model. She pursued an acting career and started nabbing roles in feature films and on TV. Pressly didn’t have problems staying busy, but kept working towards getting that breakout role.
This would come in 2005 when Pressly was cast on the sitcom My Name is Earl. The series starred Jason Lee as a hooligan who decides to change his thieving ways for the sake of karma. Pressly starred on the show as Joy Turner, Earl’s ex-wife and one of the primary characters of the series.
Although Earl was certainly the central character, Joy is probably the funniest. Living in a trailer park and swearing like a sailor, Joy is the polar opposite of how women had used to be presented on sitcoms. She’s definitely one of the most unique characters on TV and the series just wouldn’t have been as good without her on it.
Critics agree with that assessment. For her work on the show, Pressly nabbed a Primetime Emmy Award. My Name is Earl would prematurely end after four seasons, but Pressly can now be seen on the series Mom.