Paula Abdul
Paula Abdul was raised in San Fernando Valley. At age eight, she began taking dance classes. Van Nuys High School was where she was president of the senior class and the chief cheerleader. Her graduation was in 1980 and went to the college process at Cal State Northridge to major in TV and radio. 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 hired her to choreograph their 1984 video "Torture" which was the first of a long series of movies and video she would choreograph. She began her singing career through her first album, "Forever Your Girl" that had a lackluster success until her hit single "Straight Up" exploded onto the charts in December of 1988. she's been a household dancer ever since, aided by her stint as a judge on the hit show American Idol (2002). Her father (Harry Abdul) is from a Sephardic J...