Annette Lawless

Emmy and Murrow-award winning reporter, anchor and actress Annette Lawless hails from the Sunflower State. Born in Wellington, Kansas, Annette got her start with storytelling when she still had baby teeth. Often, she'd dazzle her friends with elaborate stories at the elementary school lunch table. Until one day, she gabbed too much and was shamefully penalized without recess for the whole day -- a true devastation for any 7-year-old. She's still a little bitter to this day. She didn't stop talking, however. Her skill evolved into an elaborate public speaking career in high school, nabbing more than 75 awards in speech, debate and acting. She was named one of the top public speakers in the country and soon made her move to the glitzy metropolitan of Manhattan... Kansas. Annette graduated from Kansas State University with degrees in broadcasting, print journalism and public relations. She's since worked for ESPN and at TV stations in Topeka, Wichita and Cleveland. She received dozens of awards in producing, reporting and photography from the Kansas Association of Broadcasters, the National Press Photographer's Association, the Ohio News Photographer's Association and the Emmy's. In August 2013, the started anchoring and reporting at the ABC-affiliate, KAKE-TV, in Wichita, Kan. She also hosts DISH-TV and the REEL-TV Network's On Set with Annette, where she takes people behind-the-scenes with independent film. Annette continues to work as an actress but is also opting for more documentary-style work and other projects, like her wildly popular TV podcast Hottie and the Jerk with web sensation Vaughn Fry. A geek to the core, Annette can be quite the daredevil. She's rappelled off 500-foot cliffs and climbed the Sydney Harbor Bridge. She loves photography, building websites, playing Nintendo and Tweeting. She also has a passion for acting and has been in more than 20 films, including The Avengers, Fun Size and Draft Day. Some of her favorite shows are American Horror Story, House, M.D., Gilmore Girls, The Vampire Diaries, The Wonder Years and Sex and the City. One of Annette's truest passions is cooking. Her husband recommends her cheese bierocks and German apple cake. But no matter what, Annette's heart will always lie in storytelling -- acting and reporting -- where she gets to meet interesting people and talk all day long... with as much recess as she'd like.