Page 67 - OCEAN BLUE - SPRING 2018

Markle graduated from Northwestern University with a THE INTERVIEW
degree in theater and international studies in 2003. She
had always aspired to be an actress, but took international www.OceanBlueWorld.com | 67
studies to round out her education. Markle remarked,
in a 2013 article by Maura Brannigan, in Marie Claire
magazine,

"I knew I wanted to do acting, but I hated the idea
of being this cliché - a girl from L.A. who decides to
be an actress. I wanted more than that, and I had
always loved politics.”

She had a taste of diplomatic work in Argentina, where
she had an internship at the US Embassy, but then found
she was able to support herself, sometimes minimally,
between calligraphy, modeling and guest appearances on
television shows, so she focused on acting.
Markle's mother Doria, a yoga instructor and social
worker, is African-American, while her father, Thomas
Markle is retired and of Dutch-Irish decent. In Conrad
Jarrett’s 34-page exposé, she shares that it was not easy at
the beginning, “I wasn't black enough for the black roles
and I wasn't white enough for the white ones, leaving me
somewhere in the middle as the ethnic chameleon who
couldn't book a job."
Her big break came in 2011 when she landed the role of
paralegal turned lawyer, Rachel Zane, in the television
series Suits, the American television show. Markle’s good
looks, sense of style and intelligence were a great fit for the
role, which ran for seven seasons.
The series was filmed in Toronto, and as a result Markle
is often seen sporting and supporting Canadian fashion,
including the brands: Line the Label, Aritzia, and Erdem
Moralıoğlu to name a few. She also developed two
clothing line capsules for the Canadian-owned chain
retail store, Reitman’s. She has quite a Canadian fan base,
which increased after the announcement of her Royal
engagement, as some Canadians, have strong cultural ties
to Prince Harry, his mother Diana, Princess of Wales and
the British Royal family.