Annette Joanne Funicello was an American actress and singer. Funicello began her professional career as a child performer at the age of twelve. She rose to prominence as one of the most popular Mouseketeers on the original Mickey Mouse Club. As a teenager, she transitioned to a successful career as a singer with the pop singles "O Dio Mio", "First Name Initial", "Tall Paul" and "Pineapple Princess", as well as establishing herself as a film actress, popularizing the successful "Beach Party" genre alongside co-star Frankie Avalon during the mid-1960s. In 1992, Funicello announced that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1987. She died of complications from the disease on April 8, 2013.
Born: | Annette Joanne Funicello, October 22, 1942, Utica, New York, U.S. |
Died: | April 08, 2013, Bakersfield, California, U.S. |
Occupation: | Actress and singer |
Years active: | 1954–1998 |
Children: | 3 |
IMDb: | Annette Funicello's IMDb |
About Annette Funicello
Former Mouseketeer who starred in Beach Party and How to Stuff a Wild Bikini and sang pop songs such as "Tall Paul" and "Pineapple Princess."
Annette Funicello Before Fame
She was discovered by Walt Disney at the age 12 during her performance as the Swan Queen in Swan Lake.
Achievement of Annette Funicello
She transitioned from an innocent Mouseketeer to a surfer babe in films such as Muscle Beach Party, Bikini Beach, Pajama Party, and Beach Blanket Bingo.
Annette Funicello Family Life
She married Jack Gilardi in 1965, and the couple had three children named Gina, Jack, and Jason. After their divorce, she married Glen Holt.
Associations of Annette Funicello
She was a part of the cast for the original Mickey Mouse Club, which later helped to popularize Britney Spears.
Information related to Annette Funicello
- Mouseketeers
- People with tetraplegia
- People with multiple sclerosis
- Women autobiographers
- Disney people
- Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)
- American autobiographers