Christina Applegate biography

She made her first television appearance when she was only months old, was mentioned in PM Dawn’s popular song "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss," and is an outspoken supporter for the animal welfare group PETA. Although she spent years playing a less-than-brilliant teen, the real Christina is an intelligent woman who has found lasting success in several realms of the entertainment industry.

Christina Applegate was born on November 25, 1971, in Hollywood, California. The daughter of a record-producer father, and television-actress mother, Christina was thrust into the spotlight at an early age when she appeared in a Playtex commercial at the age of five months. After quitting school at seventeen to pursue acting full time, she had small parts in several television shows including Family Ties. She also starred in the 1991 comedy Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead. In 1987, she accepted the role of Kelly Bundy, the ditzy, promiscuous daughter on Married..With Children. This long-running series ran an impressive eleven seasons and was a hit with television viewers, in spite of its often-offensive, sexist, and provocative themes. Applegate will probably always be best-known as Kelly Bundy. After the series’ end Christina accepted the title role in the sitcom Jesse which was unfortunately short-lived, airing for only three seasons. Since playing Jesse, Christina has had some small television and movie roles, as well as more substantial parts in the 2004 films Surviving Christmas and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, with Will Ferrell, Steve Carell, and Paul Rudd.

Her portrayal of the older sister of Rachael Green, played by Jennifer Aniston, on the massively successful Friends, earned her a primetime Emmy. In 2005, Christina took a temporary break from television to star in the Broadway musical Sweet Charity. Her stage performance was well-received by critics, resulting in a Theatre World Award, as well as nominations for prestigious Tony and Drama Desk Awards, both for Best Lead Actress in a Musical. Currently, Christina does not have any films slated for future release.

High profile friends of the star include Baywatch star Nicole Eggert and actress Gwyneth Paltrow, wife of Coldplay front man Chris Martin. In October of 2001, Applegate married long-time boyfriend Johnathon Schaech, an American actor who has appeared in many movies including Hush and That Thing You Do. Their marriage was relatively short-lived, ending in divorce in late 2005.

Following their split, it was rumored that Christina was involved with the much-younger Alaskan musician and skateboarder Lee Gravis. The relationship became an 'on and off' affair until the pair finally split in 2008 only weeks prior to Gravis being found dead in his apartment.

Later in 2008 Christina announced that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer but early detection had secured her a favourable outcome and she would be making a full recovery. The news came just ahead of her scheduled appearacne with Jennifer Aniston, Scarlett Johansson and Charlize Theron in a televised cancer telethon in September 2008.