Jenna Fischer was born Regina Marie Fischer in Fort Wayne, Indiana, on March 7, 1974. She first performed at the age of six, when she participated in an acting workshop taught by her mother. She studied arts at Truman State University and made her debut as actress in the 1998 film Born Champion. She is an Emmy-nominated actress best known for playing the character of receptionist Pam Beesley in The Office. She wrote and directed the mock- documentary Lollilove, which stared her and her ex-husband film maker James Gunn.