The Pop Culture Blog: Fun Facts for Cocktail Conversation
We see shows like Child Stars – Where are they now? but have you ever looked at today’s Hollywood Elite and wondered: Where were they then — before they were Silverscreen Superstars or Academy Award Nominees or household names? Let’s take a look at the more positive uphill climb to fame rather than the slippery slope from it.
A Funky Bunch of Professions: Mark Wahlberg
Before The Fighter, before The Departed, even before “Mark Wahlberg,” there was Marky Mark. You may remember the 1991 dance hit “Good Vibrations,” but what you probably didn’t realize at the time was that the hunky rapper would evolve into an Academy Award-nominated A-lister. But whether he’s rapping, acting, or walking the red carpet, Mark Wahlberg remains consistent in one way: he’s always been easy on the eyes. Check out Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch for a real treat.
Charlie Phone Home: Drew Barrymore
Years and years before she was friends with the Angels, Drew Barrymore was friends with an alien. At just 7 years old, Barrymore had already starred in Spielberg’s iconic classic, “E.T.: Extra Terrestrial.”
Really, Really Ridiculously Good Looking: Josh Duhamel and Ashton Kutcher
It probably comes as no surprise that Josh Duhamel and Ashton Kutcher (a.k.a. Chris Kutcher) were male models. But did you know that the two Midwesterners competed against each other for 1997’s Male Model of the Year?
Teenage Anatomy: Katherine Heigl
Before Knocked Up – even before Grey’s Anatomy – a 16-year-old Katherine Heigl (and her thong bathing suit) made her starring onscreen debut in My Father the Hero.
The Half-Ugly Truth: Gerard Butler
You’ve seen him as ultra-toned King Leonidas in 300 and as a chauvinistic male pig in The Ugly Truth, but did you realize that Gerard Butler played one of entertainment’s most tragic and vulnerable characters (and that he did his own singing)? Gerard Butler was the face and voice behind The Phantom of the Opera’s
mask. Stick that piece of trivia “theeeere insiiiide your mind.”
MK, Ash, and Megan: Megan Fox
She’s always played “the hot girl,” but did you realize that she was “the hot girl” in a Mary-Kate and Ashley film? See 16-year-old Megan Fox in A Holiday in the Sun .
Livin’ the Life – before Livin’ la Vida: Ricky Martin
Remember Livin’ la Vida Loca – when this supposedly new Latin sensation started topping charts? As it turns out, Ricky Martin had already topped charts as part of the Puerto Rican boy band, Menudo. Can you recognize which one he is?
All My… Occupations: Jesse McCartney
Before J-Mac, there was Dream Street. Before Summerland there was All My Children. And before he has even turned 24 years old, Jesse McCartney has already covered the needs of daytime TV viewers, screaming teeny-boppers, and wishing-the-boy-band-craze-never-ended college girls (like me).
Clueless, Lost, and Confused: Alicia Silverstone, Liv Tyler, Jason London, and Josh Holloway
… all made early appearances in Aerosmith music videos, Liv without her father’s – lead singer Steven Tyler – help. Apparently the video’s creators picked sixteen-year-old Liv from a Pantene commercial, completely unaware that she was Stephen Tyler’s daughter. She starred in “Crazy” with Alicia Silverstone, who appeared first in “Cryin’” with Josh Holloway (Sawyer from Lost) and soon after in “Amazing” with Jason London (Dazed and Confused).