Paula Abdul

Paula Abdul was born in San Fernando Valley, California. She began dancing when she was eight. Van Nuys High School was her high school. She was also the head cheerleader as well as the class president. She graduated from high school in the year 1980. Following graduation she entered college at Cal State Northridge. There she majored in radio and TV. 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. She was enlisted by The Jacksons to choreograph their 1984 "Torture" video, the first of a series of movies and videos she would choreograph. After the release of her debut CD "Forever Your Girl" was released, she began singing and soon became a well-known dancer and singer. Her time as an American Idol judge (2002) has helped her become more well-known as a performer and dancer. Her father, Harry Abdul, is Sephardic Jewish from Syria. Her mother, who was also Jewish was born in Canada. Her parents were born in Canada, Brazil, Syria and Brazil. The diverse backgrounds have led to very diverse stories in the news about her ethnicity or religion. Born in Hollywood, California to Harry Abdul (another livestock trader from Brazil) and Lorainne Abdul (former assistant to film director Billy Wilder), she began her life. As young as seven she performed in musical theatre ensembles that toured throughout America. She also attended tap dancing classes, which earned her an award to attend a tap dancing school. She attended Cal State-Northridge College, where she studied Broadcast radio. During that time, she auditioned for the Los Angeles Lakers NBA Cheerleading team, and that led her to a spot as a cheerleader on the team. The team earned 50 dollars per game in her first year of college.