Sofía Margarita Vergara[1] (born July 10, 1972) is a Colombian model and actress. Since she was raised bilingual in English and Spanish, this his been an expedient in her making the transition from being a performer in Latin America in Spanish to becoming one in the United States in the English language. Dubbed “Sofia Viagra”,[2][3] Vergara was already rather well-known in North America from her modeling work, and her first notable acting job in English was in the movie Chasing Papi.
Biography
Personal life
Vergara was born in Barranquilla, Atlantico, Colombia.[2] Her mother is a homemaker and her father produced cattle for the meat industry. “Toti”[1] was the nickname given to Vergara by her five brothers and sisters and many cousins, including television news anchor and reporter Carlos Vergara, who works for WTVJ in Miami, Florida. She grew up in her hometown of Barranquilla and was raised in a well-off family, attending a private bilingual Spanish/English school. Vergara was married at the age of 18 to her childhood sweetheart,[2] and she gave birth to her son Manolo in 1992[6] at the age of 20.[4] After the break-up of her marriage, Vergara studied pre-dentistry at a university in Colombia for three years.[4] Then, many opportunities arose to work in modeling and in show business, and Vergara decided to pursue these in Latin America. Soon she decided to move to Miami, Florida, to take advantage of opportunites and to move away from unrest in Colombia (her older brother[7] had been murdered in 1998[1] during an attempt to kidnap him that went awry).[4] She brought her son, mother, and sister with her.
