21 Intriguing Floridians
Florida Monthly spotlights 21 Floridians, excelling in fields from Public Service and Film to Technology and Health, who intrigue us. They mirror the unique demographic and cultural makeup of the Sunshine State.

THEATER - ASHLEY BROWN

Star of the hit Broadway musicals Beauty and the Beast and Mary Poppins, Ashley Brown is a Florida-born star of the stage. Brown was born in Gulf Breeze, south of Pensacola. She attended the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, appearing as Cunegonde in Candide, Violet in Violet, and Rosa Bud in The Mystery of Edwin Drood. While in college, she performed in four productions at the historic Muny (The Municipal Opera Association of St. Louis) in Missouri.

She got her big break straight out of college—a leading role in Disney's On the Record, a jukebox musical revue. Brown played Kristen, an up-and-coming pop star who, with three other singers, records a Disney "greatest hits" album. The show toured the country for nine months.

Brown made her Broadway debut in 2005 when she was chosen as a replacement to play the lead character of Belle in Disney's Beauty and the Beast. During her time as Belle, Brown auditioned eight times for her next role as the title character in Mary Poppins, often rehearsing until 5 p.m. the same day she was scheduled to perform as Belle. Ashley has been nominated for the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical, Drama League Award for Distinguished Performance, Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical, and Broadway.com Audience Award for Favorite Onstage Pair with actor Gavin Lee. She made a recent appearance on All My Children, and is poised to make a bigger splash on the stage and screen.

PHOTOGRAPHY - JOHN MORAN

"If Florida had a photographer laureate, John Moran should hold that title," suggests Gary Mormino, co-director of the Florida Studies program at the University of Florida. Producing absolutely stunning photography of the state's natural wonders, Moran is a true artist of the Florida landscape.

Moving to Florida when he was 2, he grew up in Fort Myers, spending most of his time in the swamps and woods. This early connection with Old Florida heavily influenced his work. He studied photography at the University of Florida School of Journalism, then became a photographer for the Gainesville Sun, where he worked for 23 years. In addition to his daily press duties, he served as a nature photographer for the paper, building an early portfolio.

He won the National Press Photographers Association's award for Photographer of the Year for the Southeastern United States in 1982. In 1990, the Florida Humanities Council and the New York Times Company Foundation contracted Moran to do a photo exhibit, Florida's Grand Old River: A Photographic Essay on the Suwannee. Two years later, his picture of alligators at dusk at Paynes Prairie Reserve State Park was the top-winning American photograph at the United Nations Earth Summit Photo contest. In 2006, Moran served as Florida's contract nature photographer, creating a calendar showcasing state lands. His work has been featured in several books and magazines, including National Geographic, Life, Time, Newsweek, and The New York Times Magazine.

Today, Moran is retired from press photography, but he continues to tour the state, taking breathtaking images. His latest work, Journal of Light: The Visual Diary of a Florida Nature Photographer, is a collection spanning 20 years. He says, "My goal is to show people the Florida they've never seen."

FILM - VICTOR NUÑEZ

"Florida's Filmmaker," Victor Nuñez is known for his slow-moving, beautifully shot productions, set in the Florida Panhandle. His movies include A Flash of Green, Ruby in Paradise and the critically acclaimed Ulee's Gold.

Nuñez, who earned his master's degree in film direction at UCLA's Film School, looked at his childhood in Tallahassee for inspiration. Most of his films take place near Panama City Beach, where he now resides. Known as an independent filmmaker, Nuñez often worked outside of the Hollywood box, directing low-budget shorts and instructional videos. His first feature film, Gal Young ‘Un debuted in 1979. Six years lapsed before his next release.

In 1993, he directed Ruby in Paradise, starring a young Ashley Judd in her first leading role. Ruby earned rave reviews for Judd's acting and
Nuñez's directing.

His next film, Ulee's Gold, garnered him his greatest acclaim. Starring Peter Fonda, the film debuted at the 1997 Sundance Film Festival. Fonda was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor and a Screen Actors Guild Award for his portrayal of the title character.

Today, Nuñez is a professor of directing at the Florida State University College of Motion Picture, Television and Recording Arts, and he is a founding member of the Independent Feature Project. He has been inducted into the Florida Artist Hall of Fame alongside such luminaries as Ernest Hemingway, Tennessee Williams and the Highwaymen.

ATTRACTIONS - FRANK & BETTY USINA

The Usinas are Florida natives in the purest sense. With a lineage traced back to the Minorcans who settled in St. Augustine during the late 18th century, the family is locally dynastic, and the Usinas have made Florida tourism their lives.

The Usinas' role in Florida tourism dates back to 1900, when Miami residents Captain Frank Usina and his wife, Catherine, settled in St. Augustine's North Beach Area, just north of present-day Vilano Beach. Railroad and resort magnate Henry Flagler approached the couple and asked them to host oyster roasts for guests staying at his palatial Ponce de Leon and Alcazar hotels. The Usinas began ferrying tourists along Matanzas Bay, offering Minorcan-style dinners, music, dancing and sightseeing.

Today, Frank and Betty still ferry guests along the scenic St. Augustine coast in the Victory III. In addition to boat tours, they run the North Beach Camp Resort, which offers beachfront campgrounds.

Betty is a member of the Cultural Heritage Tourism Committee, the Florida Commission on Tourism and the Eco-Heritage Committee. Frank is an ex-officio member of the Commission on Tourism, representing the camping industry. The Usinas were named to the Florida Tourism Hall of Fame for their long-standing advocacy of nature-based tourism and their active promotion of St. Augustine as a premier tourism destination.

LITERATURE - MEG CABOT

Meg Cabot's latest novel, Big Boned, has met great reviews, regaling the author as "the master of her genre." But things were not always so easy.

After college, Cabot moved to New York City to become an illustrator. Unfortunately, she found no takers for her work and began doing odd-jobs while writing novels in her off-time. One job as assistant manager for a freshman dormitory was inspiration for her Heather Wells book series. Her talent was not to be denied, and soon Meg was writing successful romance novels under the name Patricia Cabot.

In 2000, Meg hit it big with The Princess Diaries, a novel about 14-year-old Mia, who discovers, unexpectedly, that she is the princess of a small European country. The book was an instant success and became a hit Disney film the following year. The series is published in nearly 40 countries.

After 50 novels, more than 15 million books sold worldwide and New York Times bestsellers, she has begun work on a new series for middle-schoolers, entitled Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls, and Airhead, a new young-adult series. Cabot updates her blog regularly at www.megcabot.com about new projects, current events and life in her Key West home with her two cats.

TELEVISION - JUDD CHAPIN

Judd Chapin has had a bird's eye view of the Sunshine State for the last 25 years. After two years at Wofford College in South Carolina, Chapin was drafted into the army. He went through the warrant officer program to become a helicopter pilot. "It beat walking," Chapin laughs. "I got a draft notice and decided it'd be a lot better to fly than to march."

He was deployed to Vietnam, where he served with an assault helicopter company, flying both the UH-1 Iroquois and the AH-1 Cobra on 262 combat missions over seven months. Returning to the United States, he was honorably discharged.

In 1983, he relocated to Florida and flew helicopters for a news team in Tampa. "It was a good opportunity to do something I enjoyed doing," Chapin said. "I figured I'd do it for a little while until I had to get a real job." Two years later, he was hired as the helicopter pilot for Tampa's WFLA News, and he has been working there ever since.

Chapin makes sure the program is operating at its proper level, advises WFLA on different aeronautical and meteorological issues, and works as an on-air reporter, delivering breaking news from his perch. He has flown all over Florida—from Pensacola to Key West—and seen more than his share of spectacular events. He and his crew were one of the first to view the Challenger explosion, and Chapin's was the first news helicopter on-scene witnessing the devastation in Hurricane Andrew's wake.

Chapin is a member of the Vietnam Helicopter Pilot Association of Florida. He helped establish the Vietnam Helicopter Aircrew Museum, now part of the Hillsborough County Veterans Park. He frequently serves as a guest-speaker at local high schools and events.

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