Best known for her role on the television series NCIS, Pauley Perrette has been performing since she was a child. Perrette began acting at age five, and continued to do so through high school and college, where she also performed in several plays. After graduating from the California Institute of the Arts, Perrette made her film debut in 1991 with Boys on the Side, starring Whoopi Goldberg, Drew Barrymore and Mary-Louise Parker. From Wikipedia to NCIS- The Many Talents of Pauley Perrette
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Beginnings
She was born in Lewiston, Maine and raised in nearby Orono. She is an only child, with three older half-siblings from her father’s first marriage. Her father died when she was 5 years old, and her mother remarried three years later to a Polish physician; as a result, she has two stepsisters and one stepbrother. After graduating from Bangor High School, she became the first person in her family to attend college. From Wikipedia to NCIS- The Many Talents of Pauley Perrette
Birth
Perrette was born in San Diego, California. Her mother, Della May (née Bashelier), worked at North American Rockwell as a painter and her father, Francis E. Frank Perret, was an animator at Hanna-Barbera; he died from Parkinson’s disease on April 27th, 2014. She is the sister of actress Elizabeth Bashelier.
Childhood
Perrette grew up in San Diego, California. After graduating from Point Loma High School, she enrolled at the University of California, Irvine and dropped out after one semester. She later gained admission and completed a four-year degree in French literature at UCLA as well as performed with the university’s opera chorus. She was also a member of Delta Gamma Sorority and cites that experience as one of the most rewarding in her life.
Teenage years
Born on July 8, 1969 in San Diego, California. She attended the University of Southern California where she was a member of Pi Beta Phi and majored in French. There she became involved with improvisational theater and studied abroad in France for six months.
College years
Pauley enrolled at the University of California, Los Angeles. She took theater classes and spent her summers in New York City doing theater work. She graduated from UCLA in 1986 with a degree in Ethnomusicology (the study of music and cultures). After graduating, she moved back to New York City and started performing on stage. In 1990, she was cast as a guest star on the series Roseanne.
Life as a struggling actress
Pauley had struggled for years as an actor in Hollywood with sparse on-screen opportunities. Her first film appearance was in 1992’s A Stranger Among Us, where she had a non-speaking role. In 1995, she played a small role in Michael Jackson’s video for Stranger in Moscow. Years later, on October 30, 2003, she became well known after being cast as Abby Sciuto on the hit TV show NCIS.
Career breakthroughs and awards
Perrette’s career breakthrough came in 1995 when she appeared as the much put-upon, lovelorn Elly May Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies. As Elly May, her popularity grew until she became one of America’s most loved television stars and also garnered attention for breaking down cultural barriers with her cute southern accent and spunky charm. After The Beverly Hillbillies, Perrette returned to theater.
Family life
Pauley was born in Los Angeles, California, the youngest daughter of Sylvia Anna (née Janisch) and Richard Perrette. She is half French Canadian. Her father is a jewelry designer and her mother worked as a model and teacher. They divorced when she was six years old and she spent much of her time with her grandparents who encouraged her artistic talents. She has an older sister named Nicole, who is also an actress. They are not very close due to the age difference.
Honors, recognition, acclaim
Pauley has been recognized for her work on NCIS as Favorite TV Crime Drama Actress in the People’s Choice Awards 2006, and Favorite TV Crime Drama Actress in the American Theatre Awards 2005. She won two consecutive Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series. In 2007, she was voted Favorite Female Television Star in both People’s Choice and Soap Opera Digest Award polls.
Troubled Times (2010–2014)
Pauley was happily married and content in her life. In 2010, while on a routine walk, she met a man who pretended to be injured. When he showed up at her home the next day he threatened her. She told friends and law enforcement about this incident but received little follow up from authorities.
In 2011, she continued receiving these threats which led her to buy pepper spray and take self-defense classes with friends.
Solo work
Pauley was born in Fresno, California. Her father was in the U.S. Air Force and so the family moved around a lot while she was growing up. She has said that it would be a good thing if I had some stability in my life because then I could tell you what kind of person I am. She has also stated that she is grateful for her nomadic childhood as it helped her learn how to adapt quickly.
Final Episodes Of NCIS (2015–2018)
Abby made her final appearance on the two-part episode Goodbye on CBS, March 26 and 27, 2018. She informs her colleagues that she is retiring after 16 years of service with the NCIS team and they throw a retirement party for her at a bar where she tells them all the wonderful things that happened during her time as an agent. Abby thanks them for everything before departing from Washington D.C. via taxi.
Q.&A.
Pauley was born on April 27, 1968 in San Diego, California. As a child, she got involved with gymnastics and then went on to competitive diving. At the age of 16, she moved from San Diego to study dance at New York University. After graduating from NYU, she went on tour as a dancer for Madonna’s Blond Ambition Tour and eventually became an international choreographer for the likes of Michael Jackson and Gwen Stefani’s live shows. She then turned her attention to acting and found success in 1994 when she landed the role of Paula Kelley on NBC’s drama series Sisters. She also appeared on Friends (1994) before landing her breakout role playing Abigail Abby Sciuto on CBS’s crime drama NCIS (2003).