#M(ichigan)M(ovie)H(istory), On this day, July 28, 1974, actress Elizabeth Berkley- Lauren was born

It was on this day,  July 28, 1974, actress Elizabeth Berkley Lauren was born in Farmington Hills, Michigan.   After attending the Cranbrook Kingswood School, a private school in Bloomfield Hills, she graduated in 1990 from North Farmington High School, Farmington Hills.

Interested in dance from an early age,  Berkley  began pursuing dance professionally.  As she became more accomplished, she traveled to New York to train with other dancers and choreographers. Taking part in several ballets including Swan Lake,  Berkley in 1983 appeared in some musicals

Berkley’s  screen debut was a role in the TV movie Frog (1987). She then got work as an extra in some TV series, including TV 101 (1988) and Day by Day (1988).   In the summer of 1989 she was in Los Angeles and auditioned for a role on Saved by the Bell (1989). She got the role and became a TV star. After four seasons she left the show to try to break into films.

In 1994 Berkley filmed four movies, including Showgirls (1995), and continued to guest-star in popular TV shows, such as Diagnosis Murder (1993). At the same time she was studying English Literature at a college in California. After “Showgirls” she signed with United Talent Agency and got some small roles in major films, including The First Wives Club (1996) and Oliver Stone’s Any Given Sunday (1999), and starred in some indies (Taxman (1998), Last Call (1999), The Real Blonde (1997))

In 1999 she performed on stage in London as Honey in “Lenny”, opposite Eddie Izzard, and was directed by the legendary Sir Peter Hall. Her performances in Roger Dodger (2002) and Moving Malcolm (2003), two independent movies released in 2002 and 2003, impressed the critics. She made her Broadway debut in “Sly Fox” in February 2004, three months after her marriage to New York artist Greg Lauren. She then returned to New York City in the Off-Broadway production “Hurlyburly” directed by Scott Elliott and co-starring Ethan Hawke, Parker Posey and Wallace Shawn. She received some of the best reviews of her career for her performance as Bonnie.

She appeared for several seasons in the hit series CSI: Miami (2002) as Julia Winston, and in the final season of Showtime’s The L Word (2004).

Today is Elizabeth Berkley Lauren’s birthday.  Let’s wish her a Happy Birthday.

Here is her IMDB page.   http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000924/?ref_=fn_nm_nm_1