Sarah Jessica Parker grew up as one of eight kids in a blended family in Nelsonville, Ohio, and then Cincinnati. Her mother and father constantly struggled to keep their larger family afloat. But when Sarah Jessica Parker was cast as Annie in the Broadway show of the same name, their lives changed forever. Here's the truth about the first role that changed her life.
Sarah Jessica Parker's Life Changed Forever When She Was Just 8 Years Old
Before she played Annie in the classic Broadway musical, Sarah Jessica was cast in the role of July. But soon the producers of the show saw the untapped talent within her. When Sarah Jessica was just 11-years-old, she booked the titular role in the classic play. After this, her career was launched.
Before Annie, when Sarah Jessica was merely 8-years-old, auditioned for The Little Match Girl on Broadway. She booked that role at the first audition. When she was 11, she got cast in another stage show, The Innocents. This is what opened up the door to her earning the lead role in Annie.
There's no question that Sarah Jessica was a bit of a savant since she had no acting lessons and continued to earn roles without putting in a great deal of effort.
After holding the role of Annie for a year, she was cast in the lead role on a CBS sitcom, then earned roles in Footloose, Girls Just Want To Have Fun, and L.A. Story. Without a doubt, Sarah Jessica has had a number of great roles over the years, mostly famous Carrie Bradshaw in Sex And The City, that have contributed to her massive net worth. A net worth, by the way, that helped pull her family out of poverty and give them the life they always wanted.
Given that Sarah Jessica Parker found success at a young age and grew up in a lower-class family, many believe that she did what Macaulay Culkin did for his family; become the breadwinner. But apparently, this wasn't the reason Sarah Jessica thrust herself into the world of performing at such a young age.
"You're this kid, and you decide to become an actor," Howard Stern said to Sarah Jessica Parker during an interview on his show in 2016. "You were a ballet dancer. You know, you were one of those kids who just was really into it. You knew at an early age what you wanted to do. You're eight years old and you're acting and dancing and stuff. And you go out and audition for stuff and the first audition you go out for, you get."
Howard then asked her to clarify that she just went into the audition without any training or experience and just nailed it on the spot. The Sex And The City Star's response was, "Sort of. I mean, yeah, that's sort of the short version."
Sarah claims that her love for acting, as well as the lack of fear that one feels as a kid, allowed her to just go for it. This sense of confidence and love allowed her to succeed at an early age.
How Sarah Changed Her Family's Life Forever
Not only did Sarah Jessica Parker get the first thing she auditioned for, The Little Match Girl, but her entire family packed up their lives and moved to New York. While Howard, and many of Sarah's fans, believe that her family did this because they wanted their daughter to succeed, Sarah claims there were multiple reasons this happened.
"There were a few of us working [in the entertainment industry]," Sarah Jessica Parker told Howard Stern. "My older brother Toby is an actor, continues to be. So, I think when we moved, my father wanted to start... he was a truck driver, my mother was a teamster, and he wanted to start a business in New York. And so we came and obviously there were hopes that we might find success -- the children. But, I will say that, because there were so many of us, [Sarah and Toby] weren't the center of the family. Like, we would just take subways to auditions."
"Do you think that's why you became an actor? That it was your way of getting attention? When you're in a family of eight..." Howard asked her.
"No, I think it's the opposite. It's a way of having something that's yours," Sarah Jessica responded. "And become somebody else."
Sarah Jessica went on to say that the process of becoming someone else when she was young was absolutely thrilling.
"I loved working [at a young age] not because I had to take care of people, but because I loved the experience and I could contribute to the family. It was an amazing feeling."
