Good-looking, dark-haired Oklahoma native Ryan Merriman began modeling at age six and landed his first broadcast acting role just a few years after, cast as a regular on the NBC sitcom "The Mommies" (1993-1995, renamed "Mommies" in its final year). Segueing from this sitcom role to a recurring turn as the young version of genius Jarod Russell on the gripping NBC series "The Pretender" (1997-2000) showed the actor's versatility. He was featured in the somewhat sentimental TV dramas "Everything That Rises" (TNT, 1998) and "Night Ride Home" (CBS, 1999) before portraying young Meyer Lansky in
