Television actress Kaley Cuoco

Kaley Cuoco is another young actress making waves on American television.

Having played Bridget in the early-2000s sitcom "8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter" (which had its title shortened to "8 Simple Rules" because the original title was ironically too complicated), and having played Billie Jenkins on the supernatural drama series "Charmed," she was already well known when she was cast in "The Big Bang Theory," a sitcom that has been on CBS since 2007.

On "The Big Bang Theory," Kaley Cuoco plays Penny, a beautiful and socially savvy waitress who aspires to be an actress.  Penny befriends and interacts with her two nerdy neighbors who work at the California Institute of Technology.  It's a classic beauty-and-the-geeks setup.

Kaely Cuoco hosts the 2012 People's Choice Awards tonight.  No word yet on whether this will be a permanent gig for her.  The host for the past several years has been . . . some obnoxious Jersey chick whose name escapes me at the moment.