Nov 1, 2007, 12:30 GMT
America Ferrera has revealed her anguish at being abandoned by her father.
09/16/2007 - America Ferrera - The 59th Annual Primetime EMMY Awards - Arrivals - Shrine Auditorium - Los Angeles, CA, USA © Glenn Harris / PR Photos
The 'Ugly Betty' star - who hasn't seen her dad since he left the family when she was young - admits it took her a long time to come to terms with what he did.
She said: "It wasn't easy, but as a kid you find ways to make sense of it.
"I remember just bits and pieces of that time in my life, but I do remember being so incredibly matter-of-fact.
"It wasn't until I was older that I thought, 'Damn, I never really grieved over that'. And there have been male figures in my life who provided that kind of fatherhood role for longer than he was ever in my life."
The Emmy-winning actress, the daughter of Honduran immigrants, says her family struggled to make ends meet during her upbringing in Los Angeles.
She told Britain's Marie Claire magazine: "My family never lied about the fact that we didn't have a lot. You just kind of have to play the cards you're dealt."
America, 23, believes her own experiences help her relate to the struggles of Betty Suarez, her Latino character in 'Ugly Betty'.
She said: "It feels good to be a part of a show that confronts a lot of issues, like the portrayal of a Latin family with a father struggling for citizenship.
"'Ugly Betty' addresses these serious issues with humour, and that's the easiest way to make people listen as opposed to preaching and shoving it down their throats."
(C) BANG Media International
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