Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd said she'd never read "Talking Points Memo" editor John Marshall's blog entry when she wrote a nearly identical 45-word passage in her Sunday column. (Find out what she wrote.) We searched for more about Dowd and her rise to fame.

Here's the 411 on the Washington-based columnist:

Education: A Washington, D.C., native, Dowd received a B.A. in English from Catholic University.

First job: Her first gig was working as an editorial assistant at the now-defunct Washington Star.

New York Times: Dowd has been at The New York Times since 1983, starting off as a metropolitan reporter. She became a Times Op-Ed columnist in 1995 after Anna Quindlen left to write novels.

Pulitzer Prize win: Dowd won a Pulitzer Prize for distinguished commentary; judges credited her columns on the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal as the clincher. More on her columns.

Nicknames: As for nicknames: Dowd has referred to George W. Bush as "Bubble Boy" and Dick Cheney as "Dr. No." Bush nicknamed her "The Cobra."

Her books: Dowd has written two books, "Bushworld: Enter at Your Own Risk" and "Are Men Necessary?: When Sexes Collide."

Liberal bent: In January, Forbes crowned her one of "The 25 Most Influential Liberals in the U.S. Media."

Bonus: Her recent column about Elizabeth Edwards and her new book has been described as simply "bizarre." (See what she said.)