Despite her rising credibility as an actress, Kelly Preston has almost always received the most attention in connection with other people.

First, there were high-profile boyfriends like George Clooney, Charlie Sheen and John Travolta (whom she eventally married). Most recently, it was her son, Jett, who died of a seizure while Preston and Travolta were vacationing in the Bahamas.

The latter tragedy became even more distressing when three people (including a member of the Bahamian Senate) were charged with an extortion plot against the family connected to Jett's death.

Preston and Travolta are both Scientologists, and their first wedding ceremony was condicted in Paris by a French Scientologist minister.

Preston was born in Honolulu on Oct. 13, 1962. Her father drowned when she was three, and she took the name of her adoptive father, Peter Palzis.

The family later moved to Australia, where Kelly was approached by a fashion photographer at 16 and given work in commercials and small parts in daytime television.

Preston finished high school in Hawaii and enrolled first at the University of Southern California, then UCLA. She also changed her surname from Palzis to Preston for casting purposes.

Her first break was being included in the NBC series "For Love and Honor," which led to a lead role in the forgettable "Metalstorm: The Destruction of Jared-Syn" (1983). Then it was back to teen flicks ("Secret Admirer," "Space Camp") before she broke into drama in "52 Pick-Up" (a crime drama with Roy Scheider) and comedy as Arnold Schwarzenegger's girlfriend in "Twins."

Along the way, Preston became a tabloid regular through her short marriage to actor Kevin Gage (1985-87) and her relationships with Clooney (who gave her a pet pig) and Sheen (who accidentally shot her in the arm). Her signature roles have probably been in sports movies -- opposite Tom Cruise (another Scientologist) in "Jerry Maguire" and Kevin Costner in "For the Love of the Game".

She met Travolta on the set of another obscure movie, "the Experts." The two were married twice (the second time in Daytona Beach), since the Scientologty ceremony wasn't considered legally binding.

According to her bio on the site Yahoo Movies, "After marrying Travolta in 1991, Preston significantly re-prioritized her life. Stepping out of the spotlight in her early 30s – an especially pivotal time for starlets hoping to break out as serious actresses – Preston consciously took a backseat to her husband’s career; instead, choosing to focus mostly on motherhood. Nevertheless, Preston never completely left the public eye, becoming an active Scientologist and acting as Travolta’s most visible public cheerleader."

Jett, born in 1992, had suffered from seizures almost from birth. In the extortion trial, Travolta testified that he was also autistic.

Preston and Travolta also have a daughter, born in 2000.