Emily Procter (born October 8, 1968) is an American actress and activist. She played Ainsley Hayes in the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

political drama A political drama can describe a Theatre, play, film or TV program that has a politics, political component, whether reflecting the author's political opinion, or describing a politician or series of political events. Dramatists who have written p ...

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White House, where t ...

'' (2000–2002; 2006) and Det. Calleigh Duquesne in the CBS

police procedural The police procedural, police show, or police crime drama is a subgenre of procedural drama and detective fiction that emphasises the investigative procedure of police officers, police detectives, or law enforcement agency, law enforcement agencies ...

drama '' CSI: Miami'' (2002–2012).

Early life

Procter was born on October 8, 1968. She was adopted as an infant by William Procter, a

general practitioner A general practitioner (GP) is a doctor who is a Consultant (medicine), consultant in general practice. GPs have distinct expertise and experience in providing whole person medical care, whilst managing the complexity, uncertainty and risk ass ...

, and Barbara Jones, a volunteer worker, and raised in

Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...

. She was three years old when her parents divorced. Her older brother, Whit, is also adopted. Procter attended Ravenscroft School in Raleigh. While at

East Carolina University East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university in Greenville, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of universities in North Carolina by enrollment, fourth largest university in North Carolina and the only one in the state with s ...

, she joined Alpha Delta Pi sorority and was a television weather anchor at WNCT-TV in

Greenville, North Carolina Greenville ( ; ) is the county seat of and the most populous city in Pitt County, North Carolina, United States. It is the principal city of the Greenville, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, and the List of municipalities in North Carolina, 12t ...

. She received degrees in journalism and dance.

Career

After Procter moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, her father paid for her to attend acting school for two years. Before graduating, she landed small film roles, including Cameron Crowe's sports romantic comedy-drama '' Jerry Maguire'' (

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

), and as a co-star with

David Schwimmer David Lawrence Schwimmer (born November 2, 1966) is an American actor, director, and producer. He gained worldwide recognition for portraying Ross Geller in the sitcom '' Friends'', for which he received a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Pri ...

and

Chris Cooper Christopher Walton Cooper (born July 9, 1951) is an American actor. Having made his debut as a stage actor, he made his Breakthrough role, breakthrough on television as Sheriff July Johnson in the acclaimed Western television miniseries ''Loneso ...

in the TV movie '' Breast Men'' (

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

). In 1996, Procter guest-starred as Lana Lang in the ABC superhero drama '' Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman''. She briefly appeared in the TV movie '' The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion!'' (1997) as Mavis and the drama '' Body Shots'' (

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

) as Whitney Bryant. In 1995, Procter played Annabel, a brief love interest of

Joey Tribbiani Joseph Francis Tribbiani Jr. (born 1968) is a fictional character, serving as one of the primary characters of the NBC sitcom ''Friends'' and the protagonist of its spin-off ''Joey''. He is portrayed by Matt LeBlanc in both series. Joey is an ...

(

Matt LeBlanc Matthew Steven LeBlanc (; born July 25, 1967) is an American actor. He garnered global recognition with his portrayal of Joey Tribbiani in the NBC sitcom ''Friends'' and in its spin-off series, '' Joey''. For his work on ''Friends'', LeBlanc ...

), in the second episode of season two of the

sitcom ''

Friends ''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane (producer), David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting List of Friends episodes, ten seasons. With an ensemble cast ...

'', titled "The One with the Breast Milk." From 2000 to 2002 and again in 2006, Procter played the recurring role of Associate White House Counsel Ainsley Hayes in the NBC political drama ''

.'' Procter played the starring role of Calleigh Duquesne in the ''CSI'' spin-off '' CSI: Miami''. The show ran on CBS for 10 seasons, from September 23, 2002, to April 8, 2012. Procter participated in 2007's

Live Earth Live Earth was an event developed to increase Environmentalism, environmental awareness through entertainment. Background Founded by producer Kevin Wall, in partnership with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore. Live Earth 2007 The 1st series ...

event by reading aloud, along with a number of other actresses, an essay that Michelle Gardner-Quinn wrote while she was a student at the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, commonly referred to as the University of Vermont (UVM), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont, United States. Foun ...

. In February 2013, Procter appeared in the final two episodes of season four of the

USA Network USA Network (or simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. It was launched in 1977 as Madison Square Garden Sports Network, one of the first national sports ...

crime drama '' White Collar''. She played Amanda Callaway, an agent from Atlanta who is promoted to head of the FBI's white collar crimes division in New York City.

Activism

In 2019, Procter founded a

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

called Ground Breakers that supports change, community and equitable infrastructure. The Ground Breakers offers social and emotional language awareness to combat negative personal narratives and promote peaceful

conflict resolution Conflict resolution is conceptualized as the methods and processes involved in facilitating the peaceful ending of Conflict (process), conflict and Revenge, retribution. Committed group members attempt to resolve group conflicts by actively co ...

. The Ground teams up Defy Ventures, a nonprofit that addresses social problems such as mass incarceration and

recidivism Recidivism (; from 'recurring', derived from 'again' and 'to fall') is the act of a person repeating an undesirable behavior after they have experienced negative consequences of that behavior, or have been trained to Extinction (psycholo ...

, to offer programs at Kern Valley State Prison and Nightingale school in

Stockton, California Stockton is a city in and the county seat of San Joaquin County, California, San Joaquin County in the Central Valley (California), Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. It is the most populous city in the county, the List of municipal ...

Personal life

Procter has been in a relationship with musician Paul Bryan since 2008. On December 8, 2010, she gave birth to their daughter. Because her pregnancy was not written into the ninth season of '' CSI: Miami'', her appearances were limited. Procter has taken part in various

triathlon A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of Swimming (sport), swimming, Cycle sport, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the ...

s and

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

s. She is an avid

poker Poker is a family of Card game#Comparing games, comparing card games in which Card player, players betting (poker), wager over which poker hand, hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, with varying rules i ...

player and has participated in at least one celebrity poker tournament. Procter also sings in a 1980s cover band originally called White Lightning but since renamed Motion. Procter has volunteered with the Young Storytellers Program and at homeless shelters. Procter has an interest in

interior decoration Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. With a keen eye for detail and a creative flair, an interior d ...

and

antiques An antique () is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely to describe any object that i ...

that she put to practical use when decorating the 1921 Spanish-style home that she owns in

. During the 2007–08 Writers Guild strike, she designed a home for a friend in

Saint John, U.S. Virgin Islands Saint John (; ) is one of the Virgin Islands in the Caribbean Sea and a constituent Districts and sub-districts of the United States Virgin Islands, district of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), an unincorporated territory of ...

and, according to ''People'' magazine's Country Special of March 2009, decorated

Kenny Chesney Kenneth Arnold Chesney (born March 26, 1968) is an American country singer. With 30 million albums sold worldwide, he released his debut, '' In My Wildest Dreams'', in 1994, and has since released 19 follow-ups. His albums spawned 27 singles tha ...

's home in Malibu. She was also a guest judge on the Home & Garden Television show ''Summer Showdown''. Procter was keynote speaker at the Spring 2019 commencement at her alma mater, East Carolina University. Procter's home was destroyed in the 2025 Pacific Palisades wildfires.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Procter, Emily 1968 births 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from North Carolina American film actresses American television actresses East Carolina University alumni Ravenscroft School alumni Living people Actors from Raleigh, North Carolina American adoptees