She was born Julie Ann Brown in the San Fernando Valley, practically in the shadow of the NBC lot where her parents worked—her dad in ad scheduling, her mom as a secretary. Show business seeped into her bloodstream early. Her great-grandfather had been character actor Frank O’Connor, one of those men who populated old film … Read More “Julie Brown – the valley-girl anarchist in heels” »
Heather Burns has one of those faces you remember even if you can’t place the name right away—like a familiar voice overheard on a train, or the friend of a friend who always made you feel strangely understood. She’s the secret ingredient of a dozen modern romantic comedies, the person who shows up, tilts her … Read More “Heather Burns — the quiet spark who kept the rom-com machine honest” »
Natalie Burn didn’t come into this world gently. She came out of Kyiv with a name like Natalia Guslista, born into a cold piece of geography where discipline isn’t a choice, it’s the only way you get anywhere. While other kids were still trying to stay upright on their feet, she was being marched into … Read More “Natalie Burn — the ballerina who traded toe shoes for blood squibs” »
Delta Burke entered the world on July 30, 1956, down in Orlando, Florida, a place where the heat clings to your skin like a desperate lover. She was born to a single mother and adopted by a man who did his best to bring order to a life already buzzing with ambition. Even as a … Read More “Delta Burke — the beauty queen who never bought the fairy tale” »
Helen Margarite Burgess came into the world on April 26, 1916, in Portland, Oregon, a quiet beginning for a girl who would later be pointed out on studio lots as Cecil B. DeMille’s great exception — the unknown he plucked from a stage play and pushed straight into the bright, unforgiving glare of Hollywood. She … Read More “Helen Burgess — The Girl the Camera Loved Too Late” »
Candace Helaine Cameron Bure came into the world on April 6, 1976, in Panorama City, California, a sun-drenched neighborhood that seemed to grow child actors the way other towns grew citrus. Her mother, Barbara, managed her children’s early steps into show business, while her father, Robert, balanced the household as a teacher. Candace was the … Read More “Candace Cameron Bure — America’s Perpetual Big Sister” »
Shelly Burch came into the world under the hot Tucson sun, the kind that bleaches everything except grit and talent. She had both before she knew what to do with either. A teenager belting show tunes in community theaters, she wasn’t angling for fame — she was simply following whatever spark kept lighting up inside … Read More “Shelly Burch — the voice that walked into a room before she did” »
Laura Ashley Bell Bundy-Hinkle came roaring into the world on April 10, 1981, in Euclid, Ohio — too much spirit for a small town, too restless for anything quiet. Her mother put her in pageants the way some parents put kids in swim class, maybe hoping to burn off the voltage. Except Laura wasn’t just … Read More “Laura Bell Bundy — the girl who hit the world like a glitter bomb with a steel spine inside it” »
Joyce Bulifant came into the world on December 16, 1937, in Newport News, Virginia — a place where the air tastes like shipyards and steel, and where a child learns early how fragile and fleeting calm can be. Maybe that’s why she carried cheerfulness like armor. Her smile wasn’t sugarcoated; it had edges, a kind … Read More “Joyce Bulifant — the smile that tried to stay sunny” »
Marilyn Buferd came into the world on January 30, 1925, in Detroit, a city that would later rust itself into mythology, but back then it was all factory smoke and American promise. She was tall — five foot eight — the kind of height that makes a room shuffle when a woman walks into it. … Read More “Marilyn Buferd — the beauty queen who outran the crown” »
