ABOUT JOYCE
Joyce Giraud is an actress/producer/philanthropist. She was born and raised in Puerto Rico by a single mom whom she calls her hero and credits with inspiring her to always strive for the best and to never give up.
EARLY LIFE
When Joyce was 16 years old she graduated high school and started working at KFC to help her mother pay for her University studies. While working at KFC she was discovered in the drive-thru by a photographer who asked her to model for a big campaign. She fell in love with modeling and “feeling pretty” in front of the camera. She continued to model while finishing her two Bachelor of Arts degrees at the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico by the age of 19 (one in Social Work and one in Special Education), and quickly became an international top model with countless national and international magazine covers and commercials, giving her the opportunity to travel the world. Throughout her travels, she always explored and hunted for the most unique and best products everywhere she went. She has always thought that confidence is everyone’s best accessory because when you’re confident, you feel as if the world is your oyster.
FROM MISS PUERTO RICO TO THE SILVER SCREEN
She was crowned Miss Puerto Rico and represented her beloved island in numerous competitions, winning Miss Venus International, Queen of the Atlantics International, Miss World Puerto Rico and was 2nd Runner-Up in the Miss Universe Pageant. She won the titles of Most Beautiful Hair, Most Beautiful Face, Most Beautiful Smile, Best Runway and Miss Photogenic. She was also named “Best New Star Model of 2000” in the nationally televised show, Destination Stardom.
She was a correspondent for several versions of E! Entertainment Television’s “Wild On” series, and has been featured on Access Hollywood, Extra, Entertainment Tonight, CNN, Despierta America, Fox News, KTLA and many other media outlets. She has also hosted various internationally televised specials and concerts.
LIFE AS AN ACTRESS AND PRODUCER
As an actress, Joyce has been in films such as The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Latin Dragon, and Miss Castaway and in TV series including Tyler Perry’s House of Payne, Joey, Heist, Hot in Cleveland, The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, The Bold & the Beautiful, and Slayer. Most recently she both starred in and executive produced NBC’s dramatic series Siberia, and she also produced the feature film Shadow People. After her brief stint on the hit reality show Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, where she received Bravo’s “Loveliest Locks” award, she was inspired to create the hit Latin show Rica Famosa Latina and its companion talk show Rica La Noche, which she also hosted.
GIVING BACK TO THE COMMUNITY
Joyce works with many charities but is extremely passionate about her work with the children’s charity UNESCO Foundation for Children in Need (YOU Foundation for Children in Need). Joyce recognized the great platform that pageants provided her, which led her to create the international beauty pageant called Queen of the Universe so that other women like her can promote their charity work and pursue their life’s goals. Thanks to her work with Queen of the Universe, Joyce was able to open her first school with the YOU Foundation for Children in Need in Senegal, Africa. She firmly believes that education should be a natural-born right.
LIFE WITH HER GREATEST LOVE - HER FAMILY
Though her schedule is quite demanding, Joyce’s favorite pastime is spending time at home with her husband, Academy-Award nominated producer Michael Ohoven, and their two sons Leonardo and Valentino, whom she calls her “crown and glory and the light of her eyes.” She says of all the blessings she’s received in life, “being a mommy is the absolute best!”
