Paula Abdul

Paula Abdul was raised in San Fernando Valley. She began taking dance lessons when she was eight. She was a student at Van Nuys High School, where she was the senior class president and head cheerleader. Her high school graduation was in the year 1980. After graduation she enrolled in college at Cal State Northridge. There she studied radio and television. After joining the L.A. Lakers cheerleaders, she became head cheerleader/choreographer after only a few months, eventually dropping out of college to dance and choreograph full-time. The Jacksons recruited her to choreograph the 1984 "Torture" the first of many films and videos she would choreograph. After her debut CD "Forever Your Girl" she began to sing and became a popular artist and performer. The stint she held as an American Idol judge (2002) has made her an increasingly popular performer/dancer. Her father (Harry Abdul) is from a Sephardic Jewish background from Syria. Her mother, who is also Jewish was born in Canada. Her parents are from Canada, Brazil, Syria and Brazil. The diverse background has led to various stories being told in the media regarding her country of origin or religious beliefs. The daughter of Harry Abdul (once a livestock trader in Brazil) and Lorainne Abdul (former assistant to film director Billy Wilder), grew in Hollywood, California. At the age of seven, she sang and danced in community musical theatre groups while traveling around America. She also took tap dancing lessons, which earned her the opportunity to attend a tap dancing school. In the future she attended Cal State-Northridge College in which she majored in Broadcast radio. She was a candidate for the Los Angeles Lakers NBA cheerleading team. This resulted in her earning $50 per game her freshman year.