Christina Applegate

**Christina Applegate** is an American actress and dancer best known for playing the role of vivacious daughter Kelly Bundy on the iconic 80s TV series "Married... with Children." As an adult, she has established a successful film and television career, winning an Emmy Award and earning Tony and Golden Globe nominations.

Born November 25, 1971, Applegate was born in Hollywood, California, the daughter of record producer Robert William "Bob" Applegate, and actress and singer Nancy Lee Priddy, who separated shortly after her birth. She has two half-siblings named Alisa and Kyle from her father's remarriage. After her parents' divorce, her mother had a relationship with musician Stephen Stills.

Applegate made her television debut with her mother in the soap opera "Days of Our Lives" in 1971, later appearing in a commercial for Playtex baby bottles at three and five months. Her film debut was in the 1979 film, "Jaws of Satan" at the age of seven, followed by "Beatlemania" in 1981. She debuted in a television movie as young Grace Kelly in the 1983 biopic, "Grace Kelly" and soon started establishing herself as a television actress. She appeared in Showtime's 1985 political comedy, "Washingtoon" and made appearances in "Father Murphy," "Charles in Charge" and "Silver Spoons" before landing a starring role in the short-lived series"Heart of the City." She went on to make appearances in "All is Forgiven," "Still the Beaver," "Amazing Stories" and "Family Ties."

In 1987, Applegate recieved the role of the ditzy, sexually promiscuous daughter, Kelly Bundy on "Married... with Children," replacing Tina Caspary from the series pilot. The role gave her international stardom as an actress and a sex symbol around the high school generation. It also parlaid her acting career into movies like "Dance Till Dawn," "Streets," "Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead," "Vibrations" and "Mars Attacks." Despite her reputation as a comedic actress, she appeared in the film "Claudine's Fire" after "Married With Children" ended in 1997, later going on to make more comedies such as "Jane Austen's Mafia" and "Anchor Man."

Applegate was one of the founding members of The Pussycat Dolls dance troupe, which debuted at Johnny Depp's Viper Room on the Sunset Strip in 1995. She emceed for the group when they moved to The Roxy in 2002. She auditioned for the role of Rose in James Cameron's blockbuster hit fim Titanic, but she lost the role to Kate Winslet. In 1998, she had a starring role in the 1998 TV series "Jesse" which received rave reviews and got her a People's Choice Award for Favorite Female Performer in a New TV series and the TV Guide Award for Star of a New Series, as well as a nomination at the Golden Globe Awards for Lead Actress in a Comedy. Though the series gained critical praise, it was cancelled in 2000.
In 2001, Applegate married her boyfriend actor Johnathan Schaech, but they broke up two years later. She went on to star in the movies "Just Visiting," "The Sweetest Thing," "View from the Top," "Wonderland," "Grand Theft Parsons," "Surviving Christmas" and "Employee of the Month" with Matt Dillon. Behind the screen, she was the executive producer of "Comforters, Miserable" in 2001. Between movies, she also made appearances on television, including episodes of "Friends," "Father of the Bride" and "Reno 911." She has also appeared on stage in such productions as "The Axeman's Jazz," "Nobody Leaves Empty Handed," "The Runthrough" and John Cassavetes' "The Third Day." In 2004, she debuted on the Broadway stage in a revival of the 1966 musical "Sweet Charity" in which she broke her foot and had to wear special shoes to finish the play's run. The injury ended her ability to dance professionally, but she eventually took home the 2005 Theatre World Award and was nominated for a 2005 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical. She has also been philanthropic, raising millions of dollars for breast cancer education and research and founding the Right Action for Women, a charitable foundation dedicated to breast-cancer screening for women. Applegate has also supported Entertainment Industry Foundation, Adopt-A-Classroom, The Motion Picture and Television Fund Foundation, World Animal Protection, and the Trevor Project.

In 2006, Applegate starred in another TV series, "Samantha Who?" in 2007, but like "Jesse," it ended after two years despite good ratings. On August 3, 2008, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and had to have a double mestectomy on August 19, 2008. Still considered one of Hollywood's top rated actresses, she topped the list of People's Most Beautiful People in 2009 and went of to make the movies "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore," and two films in the "Alvin and the Chipmunks" franchise. She married her long time love, musician Martyn LeNoble, on February 23, 2013, the two of them having one daughter, Sadie Grace.

Her fourth TV series was "Up All Night" with Will Arnett, but she left the series after the first year. She also appeared in the American version of "Who Do You Think You Are?" to research her father's family tree and starred in a reboot of Chevy Chase's 1987 iconic comedy "Vacation" with Ed Helms in 2015.