Mayim Bialik became world famous through “The Big Bang Theory.” But 20 years before she joined the cult series, the actress had already played the lead role in a successful sitcom.
NBC
Today’s sitcom fans know Maiym Bialik primarily as Amy Farrah Fowler from “The Big Bang Theory”. For nine years and just as many seasons, the actress played her signature role as the neurobiologist who would later become Sheldon Cooper’s wife. Bialik quickly became so popular with audiences that she earned a handsome fee of $175,000 per episode (which came with changes that she still can’t get used to).
But Although “The Big Bang Theory” marked her final (television) breakthrough, the career of the now 48-year-old began much, much earlier. In 1988, she played her first supporting role in the Bette Midler comedy “Girlfriends,” which promptly earned her a Young Artist Award, which is given to promising young Hollywood talents.
This was followed by appearances in the horror film “The Halloween Monster” and the 80s TV hit “MacGyver” before she was cast in the pilot episodes of two sitcoms: While the Fox production “Molloy” was canceled after six test episodes due to lack of success, went “Blossom“ at NBC – and so Bialik played her first leading role in a series at the age of only 15.
NBC Mayim Bialik as “Blossom” in the sitcom of the same name.
The sitcom is all about Blossom Russo, played by Bialik, a teenage girl who lives in the suburbs with her father and two brothers. The mix of humor and serious topics was well received by viewers, and “Blossom” ran for five seasons and 114 episodes. In 1995, the series was finally canceled after declining ratings.
Bialik was initially not quite able to make the jump into adult acting, so she decided to do a doctorate in neuroscience alongside sporadic film and series appearances (including in 7th Heaven and Drop It, Larry!) – which ultimately helped her get her breakthrough role. The rest is history…
By the way, one of today’s biggest and best series villains was also seen in a 90s cult series. You can find out who it is in the following article:
He took his first steps on screen 29 years ago, today he is one of the best series villains: did you recognize him?
