Ask American Profile

Deana Carter, Eric Roberts, Dr. Timothy Johnson.

Deana Carter is my favorite country singer. She is so beautiful and I’d like to know more about her.
—Bud H., Tennessee

The 37-year-old Goodlettsville, Tenn., native was born into music. Her father, Fred Carter Jr., was one of the top session players in Nashville—his guitar work can be heard on albums by Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel, and Willie Nelson, among others. Deana’s dad encouraged her aspirations for a career in music, taking her around to Nashville’s record labels and song publishers when she was 17 years old, only to find one rejection after another. So Deana went to college at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville to study rehabilitation therapy. After graduation, she worked in the field for a while, but found it emotionally draining to see so many of the patients she worked with suffering and dying. Music had always stayed with her, so she decided to give a music career another try. Back in Nashville, she took all sorts of day jobs while making her way into the music industry. She got a big break when a demo tape got to Capitol Records, and then into the hands of Willie Nelson. Capitol signed her to the label, and Nelson invited her to sing at Farm Aid. She released her first U.S. album in 1996, and the first single, Strawberry Wine, catapulted her to fame. She recently split up with her husband and now divides her time between Los Angeles and Nashville. Her new album, I’m Just A Girl, was recently released on her new record label, Arista.

I’m crazy about Eric Roberts. What can you tell me about him?
—Sharon C., Virginia

If you didn’t already know, Eric Roberts is Julia Roberts’ older brother. Long known for playing bad guys, Roberts, 47, now is showcasing his lighter side. He’s co-starring in the ABC comedy, Less Than Perfect, so you can see him on television every week. He also has guest-starred on sitcoms such as Frasier and The King of Queens, which he says was his favorite television guest appearance. Roberts was born in Biloxi, Miss., and was raised near Atlanta, where he started acting as a child in a local theater company. To hone his craft, Roberts completed a summer session in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. After the session, he continued his studies and started working professionally in New York. Roberts was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in Runaway Train. Other movie credits include The Pope of Greenwich Village and King of the Gypsies. Roberts recently co-starred in the Martin Lawrence/Steve Zahn comedy National Security. He lives is Los Angeles with his wife, Eliza, and their children. He likes to go horseback riding in his spare time.

I heard one time that Dr. Timothy Johnson from ABC’s Good Morning America is also a minister. Is this true, and if so, of what denomination?
—Ken S., Arizona

Dr. Johnson, who originally planned a career as a minister, graduated from Chicago’s North Park Seminary in 1963. Though he decided to pursue a medical career two years later, he remained active in his church. Today he serves as assisting minister at the Community Covenant Church in West Peabody, Mass. Following his graduation from Albany Medical College, Johnson worked as an emergency physician in Lynn, Mass. He began hosting a local television show focused on medical issues, and a television career was born. “Some say that I’m providing cheap entertainment for hypochondriacs,” he told an interviewer, “but I like to think it’s more than that.” He went on to further his medical studies, earning a master’s degree in public health from Harvard University in 1975. In 1984, he joined ABC News as medical editor. He and his wife, Nancy Ann, have two children and live in a Boston suburb.

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