By middle school, the pressure to "choose" a race was further compounded when Markle had to fill out a box on a census. Her father simply told her, "Draw your own box."
Markle’s dad, Thomas, worked as a lighting director and director of photography for the hit show "Married... With Children," and Markle spent a lot of time on the set with him.
It was the nature of her father’s job that introduced Markle to the magic of show business and gave her the chance to meet some of the era's most popular bombshells.
At 11, Markle was interviewed on Nickelodeon's "Nick News," where she gave her take on commercials that showed stereotypical scenes of women doing housework.
"I don't think it's right for kids," she said. Markle also wrote a letter to Procter & Gamble and got them to swap out the word "women" for "people" in a dishwashing commercial.
In 2002, Markle made her first appearance on "General Hospital" as a nurse. The next year, she graduated as a theater and international studies major from Northwestern University.
Post-graduation, Markle began auditioning for roles while working as a calligrapher. She even wrote the wedding invitations for Robin Thicke and Paula Patton's wedding.
From 2006 to 2007, Markle worked as a "briefcase beauty" on the game show "Deal or No Deal." However, according to her, the job was far from glamorous.