Cynthia Gibb was born in Bennington, Vermont, USA on December 14, 1963 to a ballet dancer and teacher. Her early dance training lent grace to her fresh-faced beauty, qualities which won her a modeling contract with New York's Eileen Ford Agency at age 14.

Within a year Cynthia was on the cover of "Vogue" and "Young Miss". Spotted in a magazine by Woody Allen, Gibb was cast in a minor role as an autograph seeker in the filmmaker's "Stardust Memories" (1980) and promptly switched to an acting career.

Cynthia Gibb graduated high school with honors, but with a sister at Yale and no financial aid available to her, she decided on an acting career. After appearing off-Broadway in "Nathaniel", girl landed the recurring part of scatterbrained Suzi Wyatt Carter of daytime television's "Search for Tomorrow" (1951). Gibb joined the cast of "Fame" (1982) and spent three seasons as drama major Holly Laird on the popular series.

Between the show's first and second seasons, actress starred as a hockey coach's daughter, with whom Rob Lowe fell in love, in "Youngblood" (1986). Between the second and third seasons, Gibb starred in the much praised "Salvador" (1986), as a lay worker (based on the real life Jean Donovan) who, along with four nuns, was murdered by an El Salvador death squad. Just before filming "Malone" (1987), actress finished "Modern Girls" (1986), in which Cynthia played, not surprisingly, a young actress.