Locklear was born in Westwood, California, the daughter of Diane (née Tinsley), a production executive for Disney, and William Robert Locklear, an administrator at UCLA. She went to Newbury Park High school. She is the youngest of four children and a cousin of Donald Trump's second wife, Marla Maples. She is of Scottish and Lumbee Indian ancestry.

While attending the University of California, Los Angeles, Locklear began modeling and working in commercials for the school store. In 1979, Locklear landed her first roles appearing in Tales of the Unexpected, and an episode of CHiPs a year later. She landed a few more bit parts in shows, including Eight Is Enough, before Aaron Spelling cast her in the role of Sammy Jo Dean during the second season Read more...

Locklear has dated Tom Cruise, Ryan Ruddy, Mark Harmon, and Scott Baio and was married to Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee from May 1986 to August 1993. After their divorce, she later married Richie Sambora on December 17, 1994 in Paris. On October 4, 1997 she gave birth to their daughter, Ava Elizabeth. Locklear's representative announced on February 2, 2006 that divorce papers had been filed Read more...