A former child model who parlayed her early experiences before the camera into a successful career as an Emmy Award-winning soap opera star, Hinsdale, IL, native Heather Tom got her start in show business after her family relocated to Seattle and she made her stage debut in a Seattle Children's Theater production of The Nutcracker Suite. Walk-on roles in such shows as Who's the Boss? and Kids Incorporated followed in quick succession, and in 1989 Tom began studying at the famed Strasberg Institute following a move to California. It was at the age of 15 that Tom was cast as rebellious teen Victoria Newman in The Young and the Restless; her fiery character was an instant hit with fans and a catalyst for her first Daytime Emmy award.

In the following decade, Tom would earn eight additional Daytime Emmy nominations (and one additional win), giving her the distinction of becoming the most nominated actress up to that time under the age of 30. A brief foray into stage work in the late '90s found Tom putting her television aspirations on hold, though she would later return to The Young and the Restless, to the delight of the show's strident fan base. A brief stint in One Life to Live (which found her nominated for two Emmy Awards) followed when Tom departed from The Young and the Restless for good in 2003, with a recurring role in All My Children cementing her status as a daytime drama queen. Additional roles for Tom included appearances in such films as Stiffs and Undone, and such television shows as Monk and The Wedding Bells.