Melissa Joan Hart
Biography
Born
on April 18, 1976, in Sayville, Long Island, New York, Melissa Joan
Catherine Hart began her stint as an actress early on, when she
did a bubble bath commercial for Splashy Bath. By the age of five,
Melissa had appeared in over 25 commercials.
Melissa
grew up with her TV Executive mom Paula Hart, her dad William Hart,
her six younger sisters, Trisha, Elizabeth, Emily, Alexandra, Samantha,
and Mackenzie, and one younger brother, Brian. Melissa's parents,
however, opted to go their separate ways, and her mom, Paula, soon
remarried TV Executive, Leslie Gilliams. Adding to her already quite
large family, Melissa had the pleasure of welcoming two more younger
half-sisters, Alexandra and Samantha, into her household.
Melissa's
mother has been her agent from the beginning, when Melissa began
acting in TV shows. Her first serious acting gig was actually an
appearance on the wildly popular night time show Saturday Night
Live. Between 1985 and 1986, she made several more appearances on
the live comedy show. Before her SNL turn came to an end, Melissa
had already been making appearances elsewhere, including on popular
shows such as The Equalizer, Christmas Snow, as well as a bit part
in the mini-series Kane And Abel.
By the
time the late '80s rolled around, Melissa delved into the world
of theater and even starred opposite Martin Sheen in The Crucible
that ran on Broadway, which for a teenage girl, is quite an accomplishment.
After giving her turn as a theater actress a rest, Melissa auditioned
and got the role of Clarissa, the star character of Clarissa Explains
It All.
After
her role as Clarissa came to an end, Melissa graduated from high
school and enrolled herself into New York University. Fearing that
acting may only be a temporary outlet for a given time, Melissa
decided that higher education would be necessary. But as fate would
have it, she got the role of Sabrina, The Teenage Witch in the TV
movie. Sure enough, Melissa soon had no time to do anything but
act. Eventually she managed to attend NYU through correspondence
courses since January 1994. Although she decided to pursue a BA
in Arts & Literature, her newly busy filming schedule forced
her to put her studies on hold for a year.
After
the success of the Sabrina movie, Melissa was asked to star in the
television series of the same name. Although the show got its start
on ABC and was a hit, at the end of the fourth season, the TV network
decided that it wanted to change its time slots on Fridays and thus
dismissed the show. Luckily, the WB came along and scooped up Sabrina
and her magical delights for its fifth season, and the show is a
huge success among teenage girls and adults alike.
In 1999,
Melissa created much controversy by opting to pose seductively on
the cover of Maxim magazine. Although the owner of Archie Comics
(who also owns the rights to her Sabrina character) demanded an
apology for smearing the character's persona through her actions,
Melissa never fulfilled the request.
Along
with her mom, Melissa co-owns her own production company, Hartbreak
Films, which produces her TV show and a host of other television
movies. Since the company recently acquired the rights to child
star Shirley Temple's life story, you can be sure that Melissa,
who collects the retired actress' memorabilia, was quite eager to
produce the movie about her life.
As for
movies, after a bit part in Can't Hardly Wait, which stars Jennifer
Love Hewitt, Melissa starred in the romantic movie Drive Me Crazy,
for which Britney Spears had a hit single of the same name. This
year, Melissa can be seen in the upcoming movie Backflash, starring
opposite Jennifer Esposito.
Presently
residing in LA, Melissa plays an active role in many charities that
benefit children and hopes to have a positive effect on their lives.
Melissa is married to Mark Wilkerson, who is the lead singer of
the band Course of Nature. Melissa gave birth to their first child,
Mason Walter Wilkerson, on January 11, 2006.
Melissa Joan Hart Filmography
Jack Satin (2005) ....
Lauren Wells
Britney Spears: Greatest Hits - My Prerogative (2004) (V) .... Nicole
Maris (segment "[You Drive Me] Crazy")
Jesus, Mary and Joey (2003) .... Jackie
Hold On (2002)
Rent Control (2002) .... Holly Washburn
Not Another Teen Movie (2001) (uncredited) .... Girl at Party
... aka Sex Academy (Europe: English title: new title)
The Voyage to Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) (TV) .... Host
2001 Winter Special Olympics (2001) (TV)
Recess: School's Out (2001) (voice) .... Rebecca 'Becky' Detweiller
Backflash (2001) (V) .... C.J.
Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker (2000/I) (V) (voice) .... Delia
& Deidre Dennis/Dee Dee
... aka Batman of the Future: Return of the Joker (Europe: English
title: cut version)
... aka Return of the Joker (USA: informal English title)
The Specials (2000) .... Sunlight Grrrll
Santa Mouse and the Ratdeer (2000) (TV) (voice) .... Molly
Sabrina, Down Under (1999) (TV) .... Sabrina Spellman
Drive Me Crazy (1999) .... Nicole Maris
"Sabrina the Animated Series" (1999) TV Series (voice)
.... Aunt Hilda Spellman/Aunt Zelda Spellman
... aka Sabrina (USA: short title)
Time Out with Britney Spears (1999) (V) (uncredited) .... Girl Standing
('Crazy' video)
Sabrina Goes to Rome (1998) (TV) .... Sabrina/Sophie
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch: Spellbound (1998) (VG) (voice) ....
Sabrina Spellman
America's Teenagers Growing Up On Television (1998) (TV) .... Host
Can't Hardly Wait (1998) (uncredited) .... Vicki, Yearbook Girl
Silencing Mary (1998) (TV) .... Mary Stuartson
... aka Campus Justice
Two Came Back (1997) (TV) .... Susan Clarkson
The Right Connections (1997) (TV) .... Melanie Cambridge
"Sabrina, the Teenage Witch" (1996) TV Series .... Sabrina
Spellman
... aka Sabrina (USA: promotional abbreviation)
... aka Sabrina Goes to College (USA: promotional title)
Twisted Desire (1996) (TV) .... Jennifer Stanton
Sabrina the Teenage Witch (1996) (TV) .... Sabrina Sawyer
Clarissa (1995) (TV) .... Clarissa Darling
... aka Clarissa, Now (USA)
Family Reunion: A Relative Nightmare (1995) (TV) .... Samantha
"Clarissa Explains It All" (1991) TV Series .... Clarissa
Darling
... aka Clarissa (USA: short title)
Christmas Snow (1986) (TV) (as Melissa Hart) .... Amy
"Kane & Abel" (1985) (mini) TV Series (as Melissa
Hart) .... Florentyna Rosnovski (Age 7)
The Adventures of Con Sawyer and Hucklemary Finn (1985) (TV) ....
Con Sawyer's Little Sister |
