My Big Break

Elsa Dorfman and Allen Ginsberg. The inscription on the bottom of the photo reads, "October 15, 1988. The morning after our reception at Vision." Elsa Dorfman hide caption

Delvin Breaux, during a game against the New York Giants in November 2015. Sean Gardner/Getty Images hide caption

Alex Honnold, free soloing up a cliff face Courtesy of RXR Sports hide caption

Project Runway host Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn at the Project Runway Spring 2013 fashion show in New York City. Today, Gunn is comfortable before an audience — but it wasn't always that way. Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week hide caption

Lea Salonga realized what it takes to be a leading lady at age 9, during a chaotic production of Annie. Raymund Isaac/Raymund Isaac hide caption

Robert Patrick (left) and Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 2: Judgement Day. Carolco/The Kobal Collection hide caption

Singer/songwriter Jewel has a new memoir titled Never Broken: Songs Are Only Half the Story, and a new album called Picking Up the Pieces. Matthew Rolston/Courtesy of Jewel hide caption

Sam Elliott played The Stranger in the Coen brothers film The Big Lebowski. "That was great fun," he says. "The Coen brothers are such brilliant guys." The Kobal Collection hide caption

Patty Wagstaff is a fixture at air shows. She became the first woman to win the U.S. National Aerobatic Championship in 1991, and her winning plane (not pictured) is on display at the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum in Washington D.C. Doug Gardner/Patty Wagstaff Airshows, Inc. hide caption

Alison Brie stars in the romantic comedy Sleeping with Other People, out in September. Victoria Will/Invision/AP hide caption

Danson starred in Cheers as bar owner Sam Malone. "Cheers was like being shot out of a cannon as far as celebrity, or attention from the public," he says. Herb Ball/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images hide caption

Reggie Watts calls his form of entertainment "disinformationist." He disorients his audience, sometimes talking non-sense and switching seamlessly between accents — all improvised on the spot. Kyle Christy hide caption

National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry, shown in Kuwait in 1991, says his big break came at a refugee camp near Peshawar, Pakistan, after he heard the sound of children laughing. Courtesy of Steve McCurry hide caption

Jim Gaffigan spent years in stand-up before, finally, someone took a chance on him: that someone just happened to be David Letterman. "The weird thing is, because Letterman thought I was good, everyone changed their mind," he says. "It changed the narrative surrounding me, completely." Courtesy of TV Land hide caption

Comedian Tig Notaro poses for a portrait during the Sundance Film Festival. Victoria Will/Invision/AP hide caption

Haley Joel Osment stars alongside Bruce Willis in the 1999 film The Sixth Sense. Getty Images hide caption

Ben Mezrich at the premiere of 21, the film adaptation of Bringing Down the House. Ethan Miller/Getty Images hide caption

Jonathan Goldsmith plays "The Most Interesting Man in the World" in beer company Dos Equis' ad campaign. Bobby Quillard/Anderson Group Public Relations hide caption

The skull of a Giganotosaurus. Courtesy Don Lessem hide caption

Diana Nyad and Bonnie Stoll prepare for Nyad's swim to Florida in 2012. She failed that attempt, but returned a year later to complete the 110-mile-long journey. Ramon Espinosa/AP hide caption

Kenneth Choi plays the role of Chester Ming in The Wolf Of Wall Street. He gained 20 pounds for the role. Red Granite Pictures/The Kobal Collection hide caption