Joanna Garcia Swisher was 10 years old when she took her first lead role in community theater. She hit the big-time landing Samantha on “Are You Afraid of the Dark?” on Nickelodeon. She commuted to Montreal, Canada where the show was taped from Florida to join the cast.
She was 14 years old and played the part for all three seasons. Sadly the show was canceled in 1996. Luckily, she moved on to “Freaks and Geeks” as Vicky and joined the cast of the CW sitcom “Reba.”
Keke Palmer Then
Keke Palmer was 15 when she starred on the Nick show "True Jackson, VP." The show proved to get her foot in the door with her music career. She wrote and performed the show’s theme song, “How I Do.”
She first started her acting career at nine when she auditioned for "The Lion King." However hr breakout role was as Queen Latifah’s niece in "Barbershop 2: Back in Business."
Keke Now
The actress shifted to music in 2003 with a performance on "American Idol’s" spin-off, "American Juniors." In 2005, she kicked off her recording ambitions with an Atlantic Records contract releasing the single “All My Girlz.” Her name is also in the showbiz history books as she was the first black woman to play Cinderella on Broadway.
Shifting back to acting, Keke starred in the mega-hit film "Hustlers" and the tv show "The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder." She was also a fan favourite Met Gala red carpet host!
Joanna Now
As she tansitoned from child stardom, Joanna got the role of Bree on "Gossip Girl." She also guest-starred on "How I Met Your Mother" and lended her voice to "The Penguins of Madagascar."
What she loves best is entertaining and remodeling the backyard of her home, which includes a movie theater and a wood-fired pizza oven. Joanna told People, “It’s endless inspiration for me.” She keeps a blog called “The Happy Place” to share her latest incarnations.
Malese Jow Then
Malese Jow was just six years old when she started her acting career on "Barney." She was a popular child actress, landing roles on "iCarly," "Wizards of Wavery Place," and "Hannah Montana."
As she got older she starred on the On the popular supernatural teen drama "The Vampire Diaries."