Thursday, October 28, 2010

Jenna von Oÿ Biography

Jenna von Oÿ (born May 2, 1977) is an American actress and country music singer best known for her roles as Six LeMeure on the NBC series Blossom, and Stevie van Lowe on the UPN sitcom The Parkers.

Early life and career

Born Jennifer Jean von Oÿ in Stamford, Connecticut, to Gloria and Frank von Oÿ. She began her acting career as a child in regional stage productions and commercials. von Oÿ made her television acting debut in 1986 on an episode of ABC Weekend Special, followed by a guest roles on Tales from the Darkside and Kate & Allie. From 1990 to 1991, she co-starred in the short-lived CBS sitcom Lenny.

From 1991 to 1995, von Oÿ portrayed the role of Six LeMeure on the series Blossom. After the series ended, she attended film school at the University of Southern California for two years before dropping out to return to acting. In 1999, she won the role of Stevie van Lowe, Kim Parker's (Countess Vaughn) sidekick on The Parkers. During the run of The Parkers, von Oÿ also provided the voice of Trinket St. Blaire in animated series Pepper Ann. After The Parkers ended its run in 2004, von Oÿ appeared in the 2005 television film Marsha Potter Gets a Life. Later that year she guest starred on an episode of Cold Case, and parodied Lauren Graham's character of Lorelei Gilmore in the Family Guy episode "Perfect Castaway".

In addition to television, von Oÿ has also appeared in the feature film Born on the Fourth of July (1989), opposite Tom Cruise. She has also provided the voices of Stacey in A Goofy Movie (1995) and Gracie in direct-to-DVD feature Dr. Dolittle 3 (2006).

Music career

In June 2000, von Oÿ recorded a demo compact disc in an attempt to launch a recording career in country music. Her debut album, Breathing Room, was released on September 18, 2007.

Personal life

On October 10, 2010, von Oÿ married computer data consultant Brad Brachter in Newtown, Connecticut.

Jenna von Oÿ is best known as Six LeMeure, the chatty and spunky sidekick on the family-friendly 1990s TV series Blossom. Her on-screen career began in commercials (she was featured in a Bill Cosby Jell-O commercial when she was a kid), and she had a small role in Oliver Stone's Born on the Fourth of July (1989, starring Tom Cruise). Most of von Oÿ's work has been on television, including appearances in the sitcom The Parkers, voice work for the animated series Pepper Ann and guest appearances on TV shows like 7th Heaven and Chicago Hope. Jenna von Oÿ married computer consultant Brad Bratcher on 10 October 2010.

Extra credit: The title role in Blossom was played by actress Mayim Bialik... Many episodes of Blossom were directed by Bill Bixby... On her official site, von Oÿ says her birth name was Jennifer but that she began calling herself Jenna at age two, and has since legally changed her name to Jenna... On the same site she reports that she is exactly five feet tall.

Other youthful TV stars of the era: Soleil Moon Frye, Gary Coleman, Michael J. Fox and Nikki Cox.