Amanda Peterson

Amanda Peterson (July 8, 1971 – July 5, 2015) was an American actress. Peterson is known for her role as Cindy Mancini in the 1987 comedy film Can't Buy Me Love.
==Early life==
A native of Greeley, Colorado, Peterson was the youngest of three children. While living in Colorado, she made her stage debut in a production of The Sound of Music. At the age of 9, she won a role in the musical film Annie, where she appeared as a dancing extra. Peterson went on to land guest spots on Father Murphy and Silver Spoons. In the 1983–1984 television season, she co-starred as Squirt Sawyer on NBC's Boone. Boone was canceled after one season. 
==Acting career==
In 1985, she won her first starring role in the feature film Explorers. The following year, she co-starred in the Emmy Award-winning miniseries A Year in the Life. It was third-highest rated miniseries of the 1986–87 US television season with a 16.9/27 rating/share.(Three or more parts.) TV Guide magazine, June 27–July 3, 1987, issue #1787. All figures are based on the Nielsen ratings. The rating represents the percentage of the 87.4 million TV households tuned to a station (sets watching this show). The share represents the percentage of TV sets tuned to a television station at the time of the broadcast (sets in use) and was later adapted into a television series of the same name. The series aired from 1987 to 1988 on NBC.
In 1987, Peterson co-starred with Patrick Dempsey in the teen comedy Can't Buy Me Love. The film earned mixed reviews but became the sleeper hit of the summer. As a result, Peterson and Dempsey obtained teen idol status after the release and subsequently appeared on covers of teen magazines such as Tiger Beat, Teen Beat and many others for a considerable amount of time. Peterson went on to appear in other films including Listen to Me (1989), and made guest appearance on Doogie Howser, M.D. in 1990. Peterson's last onscreen role was in the 1994 film, WindRunner, starring Jason Wiles.
==Personal life==
After 1994, Peterson left the entertainment industry. She briefly modeled for a Colorado photographer in 2012.http://www.krproductionscolorado.com/amanda-peterson.php
Peterson was twice married. First to Joseph Robert Skutvik, then following their divorce, to David Hartley. Together with Hartley, she had two children.
She was discovered dead in her Greeley, Colorado, home on July 5, 2015, three days away from her 44th birthday. The cause of death has not been released.
==Filmography==
Year 	Title 	Role 	Notes
1982 	Annie 	Dancer 	Credited as Mandy Peterson
1982 	Father Murphy 	Elizabeth 	Episode: "Matthew and Elizabeth"
1982 	Silver Spoons 	Sally Frumbel 	Episode: "Takin' a Chance on Love"
1983 	Boone 	Squirt Sawyer 	Series regular
1984 	Best Kept Secrets 	Gretchen 	Television movie
1985 	Explorers 	Lori Swenson 	
1985 	And the Children Shall Lead 	Jenny 	Television movieAlternative title: Wonderworks: And the Children Shall Lead
1986 	 	Sunny Sisk 	Miniseries
1986 	Carly Mills 	Trisha Mills 	Television movie
1987–1988	 	Sunny Sisk 	22 episodes
1987 	Can't Buy Me Love 	Cindy Mancini 	Alternative title: Boy Rents Girl
1988 	 	Diana 	
1989 	Listen to Me 	Donna Lumis 	
1989 	Love and Betrayal 	Stephanie 	Television movieAlternative title: Throw Away Wives
1990 	Doogie Howser, M.D. 	Bernadette Callen	Episode: "Vinnie's Blind Date"
1990 	Fatal Charm 	Valerie 	Television movie
1991 	Hell Hath No Fury 	Michelle Ferguson	Television movie
1991 	Posing: Inspired by Three Real Stories	Abigail Baywood 	Television movieAlternative title: I Posed for Playboy
1994 	WindRunner 	Julie Moore 	Alternative title: WindRunner: A Spirited Journey
==Awards and nominations==
Awards
Year	Award 	Category 	Title of work 	Result
1984	Young Artist Award	Best Young Actress in a New Television Series 	Boone 	Nominated
1985	Young Artist Award	Best Young Supporting Actress in a Daytime or Nighttime Drama 	Boone 	Nominated
1986	Young Artist Award	Best Starring Performance by a Young Actress – Motion Picture	Explorers 	Nominated
1988	Young Artist Award	Best Young Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy 	Can't Buy Me Love	Nominated
1988	Young Artist Award	Best Young Actress Starring in a Television Drama Series 	 	Won
==References==
==External links==
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Category:1971 births
Category:2015 deaths
Category:20th-century American actresses
Category:Actresses from Colorado
Category:American child actresses
Category:American film actresses
Category:American stage actresses
Category:American television actresses
Category:People from Greeley, Colorado