Melina was the one to announce the arrival of the Olympic flame in N.Y. for the Athens Olympics 2004. She didn't manage to visit Greece though, as she was stuck in N.Y shooting CSI.
Despite the fact that Stella Bonasera always wears pants on the show, Melina is a fan of dresses in real life and tries to bring a bit of what she loves into the show.
Melina has two daughters, she is the youngest of three girls and all her cousins are girls too.
Melina was cast in Providence without an audition and all tho other cast members were chosen based on the chemistry with her.
Melina's family is so large that she and her husband invited 550 guests to attend their wedding in 1992.
When she was starting her career, Melina's agents had suggested she should change her hellenic name and straighten her hair, but she refused.
In 1998 she was offered a role in Law & Order, after Jill Hennessey had left the show, but she turned it down.
Her parents wanted her to become a lawyer or doctor, since they considered these careers as "serious", however Melina's love was acting.
Melina has appeared in many commercials : TV commercial for Kmart (1991), Semicid (1991), Rave (1991), Hyundai (1991), Sony (1991), Diet Rite (1991) Maybelline Smooth Result makeup (2001) and Print ad: Lee Jeans, 2002.
Melina was spotted by an agent from William Morris and won the role of Eleni Andros Cooper for four years on the daytime soap opera The Guiding Light, earning her two Emmy nominations. The character of Eleni Cooper was special to Melina, as Eleni was Greek, and her time on that soap opera garnered her a strong fan following. To this day, fans still remember her character.