Paula Abdul
Paula Abdul was raised in San Fernando Valley. At the age of eight, she began taking dance lessons. She was a student at Van Nuys High School, where she was the class president and head cheerleader. After graduating in 1980, she enrolled in college at Cal State Northridge, studying 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. The Jacksons hired her to choreograph their 1984 movie "Torture" which was the first in a long line of movies and videos she choreographed. Following her debut album "Forever Your Girl" she began to sing and was soon a well-known singer/dancer. Her time as an American Idol judge (2002) has helped her become a more popular performer/dancer. Her father (Harry Abdul) is of Sephardic Jewish background from Syria. Her mother, also Jewish, was born and was raised in Canada. Her parents were born in Can...