VIDEO: On This Day, January 31- Happy Birthday, Kerry Washington!

On this day, we're sending a big happy birthday to acclaimed star of stage and screen, Kerry Washington!

Washington returned to Broadway this season in the new drama American Son after making her debut in David Mamet's Race in 2009.

Washington is best known for her portrayal of crisis-manager Olivia Pope on the hit Shonda Rhimes show "Scandal," which aired its series finale in April 2018, has earned her numerous accolades including Golden Globe, Emmy and Screen Actors Guild nominations for Best Actress as well as an NAACP Image Award for Best Actress.

In 2016, Washington launched her Production Company, Simpson Street, whose first project, HBO's "Confirmation", earned Emmy, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations for its portrayal of Clarence Thomas' Supreme Court nomination hearings and the sexual accusations against him by Anita Hill (portrayed by Washington).

Film credits include "Save the Last Dance," "Lift" (for which she received an Independent Spirit Award nomination), "Mr. & Mrs. Smith," "I Think I Love My Wife," "She Hate Me," "Miracle at St. Anna," "Lakeview Terrace," "The Details," "A Thousand Words," "Mother and Child," "Django Unchained," "Peeples" and "Cars 3."

Washington is active in many social and political causes. She served on the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities during the Obama Administration. In 2012, she commanded the national stage on the final night of the Democratic National Convention in a moving address that urged Democrats to vote. In 2013, Washington was honored with the NAACP President's Award, which recognized her special achievements in furthering the cause of civil rights and public service. In 2014, TIME magazine included Washington on its annual list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. Washington received the GLAAD Media Vanguard Award in 2015 and the ACLU Bill of Rights Award in 2016. She is a brand ambassador and creative consultant for Neutrogena.