Paula Abdul from American Idol
Dancer/singer Paula Abdul was born in San Fernando, California in 1962. Such dancing greats as Gene Kelly, Gregory Hines, and Fred Astaire inspired her to become a dancer and at the age of eight, she began taking dance lessons. Her teachers were impressed with her natural ability. She performed in community theater groups and spent time touring the U.S. with theatrical productions. At age 10, she won a scholarship to study dance at the Bell Lewitzky Company.
Paula participated in another activity at Van Nuys High School – cheerleading. It was cheerleading that would bring Paula her first taste of success. In her first year at California State University at Northridge, she tried out for the cheerleading team of the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers, the Laker Girls. She was selected and within three months, she became the head chorographer. Her chorography style used at the Laker’s games, which combined high energy moves with funky street dancing, soon brought her to the attention of the Jackson family. She choreographed a music video for their 1984 Victory album and went on to choreographer several videos for Janet Jackson in the 80s, including “What Have You Done For Me Lately” and “Nasty.” Paula’s moves can also be seen in music videos by Kool & the Gang, INXS, ZZ Top, Duran Duran, and Prince.
But Paula didn’t stop with music videos. She also choreographed stage shows for Suzanne Somers and Toni Basil as well as dance sequences in the films Coming to America and American Beauty. Do you remember Cuba Gooding Jr.’s touchdown celebration dance in Jerry McGuire? Paula choreographed that too! She won an Emmy award in 1989 for choreographing an episode of “The Tracey Ullman Show” and again in 1990 for choreographing the 17th Annual American Music Awards.
In 1987, Paula set her sights on the music industry. Having saved her money, she cut a singing demo and in 1988, she released her debut album, Forever Your Girl. It hit #1 on the Billboard charts and spent 10 weeks there. It was certified multi-platinum, spawning the singles “Straight Up,” “Forever Your Girl,” “Cold Hearted,” “(It’s Just) The Way That You Love Me,” and “Opposites Attract.” Her second album, 1991’s Spellbound, sold 8.5 million copies.
In 2002, Paula got the job that would make her a staple of pop culture – as a judge on “American Idol.” While Randy Jackson is known for “keeping it real, Dawg” and Simon is known for his nasty remarks, it is Paula that is left to encourage the contestants and bring up their good features. In 2005, the news show “Primetime Live” reported that Idol contestant Corey Clark claimed to have had an affair with Paula. However, after an investigation by Fox, an affair was never proven and many thought Clark merely brought it up because he was trying to promote his CD.
Paula has also been plagued with questions about her erratic behavior both on “American Idol” and in various interviews. She told People Magazine that she suffered from chronic pain due to a cheerleading accident and she is taking the medication Enbrel as treatment. She attributes slurred speech on a recent interview as being a case of fatigue combined with technical difficulties (she said she was being asked questions from two interviewers at the same time). She claims to have never been drunk or used illegal drugs.
In 2006, Paula signed a new contract to remain on “American Idol” for three more years. It looks like she will be forever our girl.
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