David Kessler left Mississippi to go to Hollywood at the age of 18 with dreams of becoming an actor. He studied nursing to help pay the bills and ended up founding Progressive Nursing Services, a private nursing firm, in 1985. The AIDS epidemic was well understood by then, but many health care workers would not treat AIDS patients for fear of contagion. Kessler excelled at recruiting nurses who would care for these patients in their homes. His firm grew in two years from four nurses working from Kessler's home in West Hollywood to a firm with a staff of more than 202 and expected revenues of $4 million this year. Kessler, 30, says he never expected AIDS or Progressive Nursing to be around in 1990, but increased demand has meant possible expansion to San Diego and Houston. Kessler says he finds satisfaction in making patients' lives more bearable. Although he wants to be a television producer one day, he says his current job is more important.

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