Star Jones is a certified practitioner of the law — but The View alum did break the rules once upon a time.
“I committed only one criminal act in my life,” Jones, 63, reveals exclusively in her 25 Things You Don’t Know About Me feature in the latest edition of Us Weekly, on newsstands now. “I took a copy of my birth certificate, used Wite-Out and changed the year that I was born so that I could work. I was only 15 and you were supposed to be 16.”
And she hasn’t stopped working since, from The View to Celebrity Apprentice to writing and hosting and starring on Divorce Court.
Her latest endeavor is the Letter to My Mother campaign with Medtronic to spotlight women’s heart health.
“The focus really is on having conversations with the women in our lives so that we put our own heart health on the front burner,” she told Us of the collaboration.
Keep scrolling for more personal stories from Jones, including the surprising show she and her husband can’t get enough of:
1. My secret talent is photographic memory. It helped me throughout law school. If I’ve seen it, I can recall it.
2. One of my closest friends and mentors is the legendary [producer] Suzanne de Passe. She always says, “We have shooken and tooken.” We have “shooken” every hand and “tooken” every picture.
3. My first car was a Toyota Corolla. The front passenger seat was broken, so it leaned into the back seat.
4. Since I was 8 years old, I knew I was going to be a lawyer. But at this age, if I could be anything else, I’d be an event planner.
5. My go-to takeout is 10-ingredient fried rice. I get it with white rice and no MSG.
6. Growing up, I looked up to my mother and her eight sisters the most. That’s why the Letter to My Mother campaign resonates so much with me.
7. The proudest moment of my career was [when] I got to walk into a Brooklyn courtroom and say, “Star Jones on behalf of the people of the state of New York.”
8. My first job was the fry girl at McDonald’s.
9. I committed only one criminal act in my life: I took a copy of my birth certificate, used Wite-Out and changed the year that I was born so that I could work. I was only 15 and you were supposed to be 16.
10. My favorite place to vacation is Monaco. I was born to live in Monte Carlo and be a princess.
11. The last show I binged was Paradise. Sterling [K. Brown] is the bomb diggity.
12. My favorite comfort meal is Southern-style grits with cheese, scrambled eggs and Bob Evans sausage.
13. Playing tennis in the Hamptons and sitting by my pool is my favorite way to spend the weekend.
14. I’ve done so much in my life. I went on a safari. I’ve seen the Great Wall.
15. Taking a cruise down the Nile, like Cleopatra did, is [still] on my bucket list.
16. The three things I can’t leave the house without are my cell phone, Star Jones Beauty lip gloss and my heart monitor, which is on my cell phone.
17. If I could only watch one movie for the rest of my life it would be Jurassic Park, which I’ve watched at least a thousand times. I don’t think a week goes by that it’s not playing on my television.
18. History was my best subject in school.
19. I watch Dateline with my husband, a former criminal defense attorney and administrative law judge, pretty much every single night. We think that we can solve every crime.
20. If I’ve had a tough day, I get in the shower and just let the steam take away the tension. A hot shower and a murder case help me decompress.
21. The most valuable lesson I’ve learned is to stand in the space God created for you.
22. My health journey began 20 years ago when I decided to get a handle on my weight, had weight loss surgery and changed my lifestyle completely with diet and exercise. After having open heart surgery, I decided to use the rest of my life to advocate for other women.
23. Me and my husband’s song is “Me and Mrs. Jones.” No matter what, we find each other and dance in the middle of the room to it like my parents.
24. One of my favorite places to shop is the outlets in Tuscany.
25. Six Flags Great Adventure was my favorite place to hang as a kid. My girlfriends and I coordinated outfits before we went.
