Mayim Bialik

Background

Mayim Bialik was born on December 12, 1975, in San Diego, California. She was brought up as a Reform Jew but now considers herself Modern Orthodox Jewish. Bialik celebrated her Bat Mitzvah and describes herself as a “staunch Zionist.” In 1993, she graduated from North Hollywood High School in North Hollywood, California. Because of her acting commitments, she was granted a deferred acceptance and went to the University of California, Los Angeles. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and minors in Hebrew and Jewish studies in 2000. She pursued a doctorate in neuroscience before returning to acting in 2005. She returned to U.C.L.A. in 2007 to seek her Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience with Dr. James McCracken.

In the late 1980s, Bialik began her career as a child actress, appearing as Ellie in an episode of the fantasy T.V. show “Beauty and the Beast.” It was through this show that Bialik received her Screen Actors Guild card. Since 1988, she has appeared in several T.V. shows such as “Webster,” “MacGyver,” “Saving Grace,” and “Call Me Kat.” Bialik appeared as a celebrity contestant guest in the episode “Disturbing the Heavenly Peace” on September 8, 1992. She also played a major role in the Woody Allen comedy film “Don’t Drink the Water” in 1994. Bialik mostly did voiceover work for cartoons between 1995 and 2005, including “The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest,” Disney’s “Recess” and “Kim Possible,” Cartoon Network’s “Johnny Bravo,” and Nickelodeon’s “Hey Arnold!”

Bialik became a household name when she appeared in the season three finale of the show “The Big Bang Theory” in 2010 as Dr. Amy Farrah Fowler, a love interest for Sheldon Cooper’s character. She debuted as a recurring character in season four as Sheldon’s “girlfriend who isn’t a girlfriend.” Her performance in the show earned her Emmy nominations for ‘Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series’ from 2012 until 2015. In August 2014, she co-hosted a revival of “Candid Camera” on TV Land with Peter Funt. Bialik hosted “Jeopardy!” as a guest from May 31 to June 11, 2021. It was announced two months later that she would host the series’ future primetime specials and spinoffs. When executive producer Mike Richards stepped down as host after only one week, it was revealed that Bialik would take over for three weeks. Her contract was extended for seven weeks, after which she alternated with Ken Jennings for the remainder of the calendar year. On July 27, 2022, it was officially confirmed that Bialik and Jennings would be the show’s permanent hosts in a job-sharing arrangement.