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What Are These Child Celebrities from Your Childhood TV Shows Doing Now?

 

Peter Costa – The Cosby Show

Peter Costa on The Cosby Show then

Peter Costa now

You might remember Peter Costa as Rudy’s quiet best friend, Peter. Now that Costa is all  grown up, he has broken his vow of silence in a big way: as a musician. Costa left Hollywood after The Cosby Show ended and plays in three bands, Kreptaka Bar Band, Torrential Downpour and PT Grim. He’s a drummer who lives in New Jersey.

 

Lark Voorhies – Saved By the Bell

Lark as Lisa in Saved by the Bell then…

Lark Voorhies now

Saved By the Bell’s Voorhies played Lisa Turtle, getting lots of laughs. Voorhies shifted gears to daytime soaps once the Saturday morning series ended. The actress was on The Bold and the Beautiful and Days of Our Lives. She also appeared in music videos, such as Boyz II Men’s “On Bended Knee.” However, Voorhies’ career took a strange turn in 2012 when a weird video showing her acting strange and wearing bizarre makeup made many question whether she was under the influence. Her mother explained that Lark was bipolar and has the condition under control.

 

Jeremy Miller – Growing Pains

Jeremy Miller in Growing Pains then

Jeremy Miller now

Miller was Mike Seaver’s little brother on Growing Pains. Unfortunately, he also had a scary stalker who was eventually caught by the FBI. That was enough to get the actor to leave the spotlight for a long time. He attended USC and has since started his climb back to working actor. Since 2000, he has appeared in the movies Milk and Fashion and Never Have I Ever. He also struck up an unlikely friendship with fellow child star Dustin Diamond (Saved By the Bell).

 

Scarlett Pomers – Voyager

Scarlett Pomers on Star Trek: Voyager then

Scarlett Pomers now

Scarlett Pomers played young Naomi Wildman on Star Trek: Voyager. Her experiences on the show allowed her to hit the bigtime with her next role, on the sitcom Reba. Pomers eventually decided she needed help for an eating disorder. After she completed treatment for anorexia, Pomers switched from acting to music. She has since become a spokesperson for the National Eating Disorders Association, which aims to help people battling the serious issue.

 

Josh Server – All That

Josh Server on All That then

Josh Server now

Server is one of the unsung MVP’s of Nickelodeon. In addition to his years on All That, he also showed up on Figure it Out, Kenan & Kel, The Amanda Show and Alex Mack. Although Server hasn’t been as visible lately, his sketch comedy chops have kept him in the game. In 2016 he had a lead role in Amazon’s short-lived Good Girls Revolt. He is auditioning for roles and is eager to get a foothold as an adult actor.

 

Andrea Barber – Full House

Andrea Barber on Full House then

Andrea Barber now

Andrea Barber had many years of acting under her belt by the time she was cast as D.J. Tanner’s goofball friend Kimmy Gibbler on Full House. She had previously spent four years playing Carrie Brady on  Days of Our Lives.  She later quit acting, earning a degree in English from Whittier College. From there she went to work in the college’s International Studies office. Barber returned to acting in 2016 for Fuller House on Netflix — the show will premiere its third season in September 2017. She plays a mom on the rebooted sitcom, and she’s also one in real life, with a son and a daughter.

 

Staci Keanan – My Two Dads

Staci Keenan on Step by Step then

Staci Keenan now

My Two Dads might be remembered most for being the first big role for Paul Reiser. But Staci Keanan was already a working actress before the sitcom, and stayed busy after My Two Dads went black. She played Carol’s daughter, Dana, on Step By Step and then re-joined her co-stars Duffy and Christine for a cameo in the movie You Again. Keanan continued to act in guest starring roles, and enjoy success on weekly shows such as Diagnosis: Murder. She also had parts in 2010’s Death and Cremation, 2010’s Holyman Undercover, and movie called Sarah’s Choice. She is currently a practicing lawyer in Los Angeles under her legal name Anastasia Sagorsky.

 

Michael C. Maronna – The Adventures of Pete & Pete

Michael Maronna on The Adventures of Pete and Pete then

Michael Maronna now

Big Pete from the eponymous show has appeared in a number of small roles in movies like 40 Days and 40 Nights and Slackers. He also became popular starring in a series of commercials for Ameritrade. (If you were watching TV in 2000, you probably saw the commercials hundreds of times!) Maronna also got a degree in filmmaking, and has found work behind the scenes on Sex and the City and Tower Heist. He hosts a podcast with fellow Peter star Danny Tamborelli.

 

Jenna von Oy – Blossom

Jenna Von Oy on Blossom then

Jenna Von Oy now

Jenna von Oy was Mayim Bialik’s sidekick on Blossom for five years. Her character, Six, upped the style factor on the show. She attended college at the University of Southern California, but quit after two years to start an acting comeback. After several seasons on The Parkers, von Oy turned to music, releasing a country album in 2007. After von Oy became a mom in 2012, she became a popular mommy blogger and columnist. She parlayed her experiences into a book called Situation Momedy.

 

Ross Hull – Are You Afraid of the Dark?

Ross Hull on Are You Afraid of the Dark then

Ross Hull now

Ross Hull starred on the TV show Are You Afraid of the Dark? He also starred in Student Bodies and Ready or Not. However, as an adult, the Canadian returned home to start a brand new career as a weatherman. You can catch Hull on CBC-Ottawa, where he keeps viewers informed about whether their day will include rain or sun.

 

Sean O’Neal – Clarissa Explains It All

Sean O’Neal on Clarissa Explains it All then

Sean O’Neal now

O’Neal played best friend to Clarissa on the show Clarissa Knows It All, climbing through her window in every episode. His agents and Nickelodeon had big plans for him after the series, since he was supposed to join a Florida boy band. Instead, O’Neal chose to do what made him happy, which was leaving Hollywood. He recently had a bit part in a show called Development Hell and he continues to audition, on his own terms.

 

Christie Abbott – Wishbone

Christie Abbott on Wishbone then

Christie Abbot now (well 2005)

Christie Abbott worked with dogs for 50 episodes of Wishbone, which could be seen on PBS. After Wishbone, Abbott was not very active. She took smaller roles on TV shows like Walker, Texas Ranger, Dr. T and the Women, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Her last credited role was in 2011. She appears to be a fitness model, having popped up in magazines like Shape

 

Lori Beth Denberg – All That

Lori Beth Denberg on All That then

Lori Beth Denberg now

Lori Beth Denberg was a star of All That on Nickelodeon. She also got a nice role on The Steve Harvey Show, which extended her time on TV. She has since gone on to guest star on a Workaholics episode, even though she announced her retirement from acting in the mid-2000s. Denberg is now in her 40s and says she’s pretty much done acting.

 

Ron Lester – Popular

Ron Lester on Popular then

One of the last photos of Lester before his death

Award-winning director/producer Ryan Murphy’s first TV show was Popular. It made a big splash but only lasted two seasons. Murphy went on to make hit shows like Nip/Tuck, Glee, American Horror Story and Feud. Ron Lester, who played Michael (Sugar Daddy) Bernardino, kept a very busy acting schedule  as well following Popular‘s 2001 demise.  Lester, who once weighed 508 pounds, eventually underwent duodenal switch surgery. He looked and said he felt a lot better after the procedure. Sadly, Ron Lester passed away in June, 2016 of kidney failure. He was only 45 years old.

 

Danny Tamberelli – The Adventures of Pete & Pete

Danny Tamborelli on Adventures of Pete and Pete then

Danny Tamborelli now

The other Pete, Danny Tamberelli, was the little one who got lots of roles as a kid. He was in The Baby-Sitters Club, The Mighty Ducks, and also appeared on Nickelodeon’s All That, not to mention the  2002 comedy, Igby Goes Down. But his acting workload slowed to a near crawl after All That‘s  big reunion in 2005. Danny’s been busier, lately, with roles on the projects Gross Habits and Grand Theft Audio.

Justin Lee – Arrested Development

Justin Lee on Arrested Development then

Justin Lee now

In 2004, Justin Lee got the plum part of Lucille’s adopted son, Annyong Bluth, on Arrested Development. He continues to be seen in TV shows, appearing in several episodes of 10 Things I Hate About You as a recurring co-star. He most recently played Captain Tsung in the controversial Seth Rogan/James Franco movie, The Interview.

Benjamin Salisbury – The Nanny

Benjamin Salisbury on The Nanny then

Benjamin Salisbury now

Benjamin Salisbury played Brighton Sheffield, one of the kids raised by Fran Drescher’s character, Fran Fine, on The Nanny. Salisbury left Hollywood to attend college at American University. He graduated with a degree in Broadcast Journalism. Salisbury  continued to audition, getting a role on the CBS series Numb3ers and making some scratch in a commercial for Domino’s Pizza. Salisbury hasn’t acted since 2006, the same year he married his wife, Kelly Murkey. They have two kids.

 

Madeline Zima – The Nanny

Madeline Zima on The Nanny then

Madeline Zima now

Salisbury’s little sister on the show was Zima, the youngest Sheffield. She also broke out after The Nanny went off the air, earning roles on Heroes and Californication. She has also been on The Vampire Diaries. Zima is continuing to earn roles on TV and landed a big role in two episodes of the new Twin Peaks revival on Showtime.

 

Josh Byrne – Step By Step

Josh Byrne on Step by Step then…where is he now?

Josh Byrne’s whereabouts are an official mystery, which is fitting since he was written out of the series Step By Step without any explanation. The unofficial explanation was that the show decided to dump his Brandon Lambert character to make room for baby Lilly. Byrne seemed to drop out of Hollywood without much of a trace. The only photograph found of the actor in recent years looks to have been taken at a Medieval Festival. We do know that Byrne, wherever he is, is now 32 years old.

 

Nicholle Tom – The Nanny

Nicholle Tom on The Nanny then

Nicholle Tom now

The third Sheffield child had some decent success after The Nanny. She won roles in The Princess Diaries and Panic. However, her biggest roles came after she shifted into voiceover work. She played Supergirl in the animated Superman TV show. She continues to show up in comedies and dramas, appearing on CBS’s The Mentalist and IFC’s The Minor Accomplishments of Jackie Woodman, as well as on Survivor’s Remorse, Gotham and About a Boy. You might not recognize her, but Tom is also recurring on Showtime’s Masters of Sex!

 

David Lascher – Hey Dude

David Lascher on Hey Dude then

David Lascher now

David Lascher seemed to be everywhere in the 1990s. In addition to Hey Dude, he was also seen on Blossom, Clueless, and Sabrina, the Teenage Witch. But Fischer’s acting career stalled in the early 2000s, only managing a few minor roles on TV movies and appearing in 2014 on Joey Lawrence’s reality show. That same year he co-wrote and produced the film Sister, which made it’s debut at the Tribeca Film Festival. Lascher and his wife, Jill London, have three children. 

 

Steven Anthony Lawrence – Even Stevens

Steven Anthony Lawrence on Even Stevens then

Steven Anthony Lawrence now

Even Stevens was a humongous hit for Disney Channel, propelling Lawrence, who played Bernard (Beans) Aranguren,  to stardom among the kiddie set. He has since continued to get steady work. He popped up on an episode of Weeds, has been in Kicking & Screaming, and did a few commercials.  When, in 2015, the five-foot-1 actor was discovered working as one of Santa’s helpers at a Concord, California shopping mall, fans wondered what was up with that. Looks like he may have been doing research for his part in the movie Holly,  Jingles and Cyde 3D, set for release in 2017.

Blake and Dylan Tuomy-Wilhoit – Full House

Blake and Dylan on Full House then

Blake and Dylan now

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen weren’t the only twins on Full House. The Tuomy-Wilhoit twins — who were John Stamos’ baby sons Nicky and Alex Katsopolis — stopped acting when Full House ended. Fast-forward 20 years. The boys were both on board to return to TV when Netflix called about a revival of Full House. So they will be reprising their roles as twins in season 2 of Fuller House.

 

Olivia D’Abo – The Wonder Years

Olivia D’abo on Wonder Years then

Olivia d’abo now

D’Abo broke many hearts as the wild  Karen Arnold on The Wonder Years. She has continued to enjoy a steady acting  career for  more than 20 years. D’Abo appeared in several memorable episodes of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, as a serial killer who got inside Vincent D’onofrio’s head. D’Abo is also an established singer/songwriter, who was once engaged to Julian Lennon, as well as Thomas Jane. She continues to do voiceover work and co-hosted podcasts. Her most recent TV role was as Charlie in the movie Inspired to Kill.

Kellie Shanygne Williams – Family Matters

Kellie Shanygne Williams on Family Matters then

Kellie Shanygne Williams Williams now

As Laura Winslow, Kellie showed that Family Mattered. She got another role almost right away, but the show, What About Joan, just didn’t take off with audiences. After its cancellation, she quit acting and turned to arts education. In Washington DC, she started a youth arts program called the Kellie Williams Program. Plot twist! Williams’ organization was accused of helping DC councilman Harry Thomas Jr. embezzle money from the city. He went to prison and her career is now tainted.

 

Malcolm David Kelley – Lost

Malcolm David Kelley on LOST then

Malcolm David Kelley now

Young Walt was ushered off the Lost set because he just grew up way too fast. Thankfully Kelley was undeterred by this setback, and he won a role on  Gigantic, on TeenNick, in 2010. After Gigantic ended its run, Kelley became a musician, forming a group called MKTO.

 

Hana Hatae – Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Hana Hatae in Star Trek then

Hana Hatae now

Deep Space Nine launched a career for Hana Hatae, but it failed to land spectacularly. After playing young Molly O’Brien in the Star Trek movie, Hatae had trouble landing acting roles. Shockingly, Hatae’s next credit was on Kitchen Nightmares, where she appeared as a waitress and hostess at her family’s Japanese restaurant. However,  Hana will soon be back on the screen,  reprising her role as Molly in Star Trek: Renegades, which is a fan-supported series.

 

Erik Per Sullivan – Malcolm in the Middle

Erik Per Sullivan on Malcom in the Middle then

Erin Per Sullivan now

Malcolm in the Middle ran for many years, giving Per Sullivan a long career and a nice bank account. He also appeared in other projects at the same time, with movie roles in Joe Dirt, Unfaithful and a voiceover role for Finding Nemo. Sullivan also took a long break from acting in order to attend college at USC. His last credit was in the 2010 movie Twelve.

 

Austin St. John – Mighty Morphin Power Rangers

Austin St. John on Power Rangers then

Austin St. John now

Austin St. John had a good gig going as the first Red Ranger. Unfortunately, a contract dispute led to his departure midway through the second season. But St. John had lots of martial arts experience to fall back on. He returned to Power Rangers Zeo in 1996 and also appeared in Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie. St. John then left California and found a fulfilling career as a firefighter and EMT in Washington, DC.  He recently wrapped up a short film called The Order, appearing with many of his fellow Power Rangers alumni.

Michael Ray Bower – Salute Your Shorts

Michael Ray Bower on Salute Your Shorts then

Michael Ray Bower now

The funny kid Michael Ray Bower was “Donkeylips” on Salute Your Shorts. He then guest starred on almost all the kid shows available, and also set his sights on dramas like X-Files, Dark Angel, and Bones. He was a memorable prom date for Monica on Friends. Bower may also be familiar to you for his voice, which he lent to Eugene Reaper for the game Grand Theft Auto IV.

 

Brice Beckham – Mr. Belvedere

Brice Beckham on Mr. Belvadere then

Brice Beckham now

Mr. Belvedere’s youngest kid was Wesley, played by Brice Beckham. As a grownup, Beckham didn’t appear again until 2007, when he popped up on a VH1 series that was quickly canceled. However, Beckham found new popularity and attention when he had a viral hit with a Funny or Die sketch that featured former child actors opposing Kirk Cameron, now a religious fanatic who preaches against homosexuality. Beckham is an entertaining Twitter user and has appeared on a number of comedy podcasts.

 

Monica Keena – Dawson’s Creek

Monica Keena now

Monica Keena now

Keena seems to have been acting since she was a baby. She started in movies like While You Were Sleeping. She became a star on Dawson’s Creek, where she played Abby Morgan, the villain everyone loved to hate. She has also been seen on Entourage and Undeclared. Her relationship with fellow child star Edward Furlong has been well chronicled, as Furlong was arrested multiple times when they dated. Her last screen role was as Dr. Sweetie Jones in the 2015 movie, The Ghost and the Whale.

 

Leanna Creel – Saved By the Bell

Leanna Creel on Saved by the Bell then

Leanna Creel now

Creel was one of the lesser known stars of Saved By the Bell. She was brought in as a ringer while Tiffani Thiessen and Elizabeth Berkley were bogged down in contract negotiations during the very long final season of the NBC sitcom. Creel got to play a tomboy, a type of character that TV could use a lot more of. Creel is actually a triplet (both siblings also act). She appeared later on Ned and Stacey and The Cell. Creel is now a wedding photographer and came out as a lesbian. She is happily married.

 

Nate Richert – Sabrina, the Teenage Witch

Nate Richert on Sabrina the Teenage Witch

Nate Richert now

Sabrina the Teenage Witch is a show lots of fans want to see rebooted – who doesn’t love the talking cat, Salem? But no one knows if Nate Richert would return in the role of Sabrina’s boyfriend,  Harvey Kinkle, Sabrina’s boyfriend. After the show ended, he left acting and now performs his own music. He has released a few albums under his own name, which you can enjoy on iTunes.

 

Senta Moses – Beakman’s World

Senta Moses on Beckman’s World then

Senta Moses now

Beakman’s World featured Senta Moses as the lab assistant, Phoebe. You might not recognize her anymore, but she has found work on General Hospital, Greek and Sister, Sister. She’s also done many guest-starring roles, including an episode of Rizzoli and Isles, Castle and NCIS. Moses had a recurring role on Faking It and Bella and the Bulldogs in 2016 and 2017.

 

Jeremy Jackson – Baywatch

Jeremy Jackson on Baywatch then

Jeremy Jackson now

Baywatch was a guilty pleasure and so was Jackson, who  played Hobie on the beach body lifeguard series. Jackson struggled with drug addiction after Baywatch. He was arrested for possession of drugs, which he parlayed into an appearance on Dr. Drew’s Celebrity Rehab in 2011.  He was also a contestant on Celebrity Big Brother. Jackson has been involved in two real-life stabbing incidents, and was recently sentenced to serve 270 days in an L.A. county jail for the last one. 

 

 

Jason David Frank – Mighty Morphin Power Rangers

MISSING PHOTOS, MISSING PHOTOS, MISSING PHOTOS

Frank is an accomplished martial artist, so in addition to playing just about all of the Rangers, he was honored as an inductee to the World Karate Union Hall of Fame in 2003. When Frank finished his time on Power Rangers, he competed in Mixed Martial Arts competitions.

 

Josh Saviano – The Wonder Years

Josh Saviano The Wonder Years then

Josh Saviano now

Wonder Years alum Josh Saviano was the geeky, smart nerd on the TV show. He’s also the subject of one of the internet’s most popular urban legends: that Saviano is really Marilyn Manson. That isn’t true. While his alter ego, Paul Pfeiffer, eventually went to Harvard, Saviano went to Yale and then became a power lawyer at the firm of Morrison Cohen.

 

Michael Fishman – Roseanne

Michael Fishman on Roseanne then

Michael Fishman now

Michael Fishman was the loveable but dense DJ on Roseanne. After the show ended he went back to high school, graduating from the Orange County High School of the Arts. He then returned to acting, showing up on The Roseanne Show for two years. He writes and acts and takes on the occasional screen role. Now that Roseanne is getting an official reboot, there is little doubt he will return to the role that made him famous as an 8 year old.

 

Marla Sokoloff – Full House

Marla Sokoloff on Full House then

Marla Sokoloff now

Marla Sokoloff played Stephanie Tanner’s wild friend, Gia, on Full House. She found plenty of work after the show ended, starring in Dude, Where’s My Car? and Sugar & Spice. She even appeared as a regular on The Practice. Sokoloff once dated James Franco, who enjoyed telling the world they made a sex tape. Undeterred by the revelation, Sokoloff returned to Fuller House on Netflix in 2016. She married drummer/songwriter/composer Alec Puro in 2009 and they have two children.

 

Brian Bonsall – Family Ties

Brian Bonsall on Family Ties then

Brian Bonsall now

Brian Bonsall was cute little Andy from Family Ties, the Keaton family’s youngest son. Sadly, Bonsall had a hard life after the show. He became a punk rocker for a time and then got arrested for repeated DUIs, assaults and possession of marijuana. He also served two years of probation for one of his run-ins with the law. He continues to play in various rock bands, most recently touring with The Ataris. 

 

Mackenzie Rosman – 7th Heaven

Mackenzie Rosman on 7th Heaven then

Mackenzie Rosman now

Mackenzie Rosman played the cutie pie Ruthie Camden on the WB’s 7th Heaven, which ran for 11 years. After 7th Heaven, Rosman continued to work in family-centric TV shows such as ABC Family’s The Secret Life of the American Teenager. Of course Rosman, like other child stars, felt pigeonholed, so she did a Maxim photoshoot in an attempt to break away from  her little girl image. She most recently played Ava Reid in the made-for-TV movie Ghost Shark. She’s heavily involved in Cystic Fibrosis charity work and was once honored by Teen People’s magazine as one of ’20 Teens Who Will Change The World.’

 

Taran Noah Smith – Home Improvement

Taran Noah Smith on Home Improvement then

Taran Noah Smith now

Taran Noah Smith got pretty rich on Home Improvement, as Mark Taylor. But once the show wrapped, Smith realized that his parents had screwed up his $1.5 million trust fund. Smith sued for emancipation and then, at age 17, married Heidi Van Pelt, who was 16 years older than Smith. He sued her, too, for allegedly funneling funds from their vegan and organic food business into her own ventures. They divorced in 2007. He’s pretty much fallen off the radar since.

 

Zachery Ty Bryan – Home Improvement

Zachery Ty Bryan on Home Improvement then

Zachery Ty Byran now

Zachery Ty Bryan played oldest son Brad Taylor on Home Improvement. The teen heartthrob  grew up and landed roles on shows such as Boston Public and Veronica Mars. He also played a memorable Thor for Syfymovie, Thor: Hammer of the Gods.  Bryan now uses his TV money to fund his own production company, Vision Entertainment Group. In 2012 he produced The Grief Tourist. He and his wife have three children.

Kel Mitchell  – Kenan and Kel

Kel Mitchell in Good Burger then

Kel Mitchell now

Kel Mitchell and co-star Kenan Thompson were big stars after Kenan & Kel, and they soon found movie success with Good Burger. Once their TV show ended, however, the duo went on different paths. Thompson became a featured player on Saturday Night Live. Mitchell also auditioned for the show but did not get the role. Mitchell became a rapper, and starred in a video for Kanye West. He also does lots of voice work.

 

Trevor Einhorn – Frasier

Trevor Einhorn on Frasier then

Trevor Einhorn now

On the TV show Cheers, characters Frasier and Lilith had a son, Frederick.  Trevor Einhorn played the little tyke on the spin-off, Frasier, the follow-up to Cheers. Einhorn has been fairly busy since, acting on Sons & Daughters and Joan of Arcadia. He most recently had recurring roles on Mad Men and The Magicians and appeared in ABC’s Dirty Dancing remake.

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