Printable Biography of Ashley Tisdale

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Ashley Michelle Tisdale (born July 2, 1985) is an American actress and singer. After appearing in several television roles during the late 1990s and early 2000s, she became known to young audiences for playing Maddie Fitzpatrick on the Disney Channel Original Series The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and Sharpay Evans in the Disney Channel Original Movie High School Musical. Tisdale has also pursued a music career and released her debut album Headstrong on February 6, 2007. She also participated in High School Musical: The Concert and reprised her role as Sharpay Evans in High School Musical 2.

Tisdale was born in Monmouth County, New Jersey on July 2, 1985,[2] to Lisa (née Morris) and Mike Tisdale. She grew up there in Ocean Township.[3] Her elder sister Jennifer Tisdale is also an actress, most notably starring in Bring It On: In It to Win It. Her maternal grandfather is Arnold Morris, the developer of Ginsu Knives; and through her grandfather, she is also related to businessman Ron Popeil.[4][5] Tisdale is Jewish on her mother's side and considers herself Jewish.[7] She was discovered by Bill Perlman, her current manager, at South Shores Mall, when she was three. After booking her first audition, she went on to star in around one hundred national network commercials. At the age of eight, she got a leading role in the Broadway musical, Les Misérables and later toured internationally with the cast of Annie. She began acting, appearing in stage productions of Gypsy: A Musical Fable and The Sound of Music at the Jewish Community Center of Monmouth County.[9]

Tisdale underwent a rhinoplasty procedure on November 30, 2007. According to Tisdale, this was done for health-related reasons and not out of a belief in plastic surgery; her "septum was 80 percent deviated" and she had "two small fractures on [her] nose", and this was interfering with her breathing. She spoke to People magazine about the surgery, saying that it was important to her to be honest with her fans.

During the late 1990s, Tisdale had guest appearances in several television series, which included Smart Guy, 7th Heaven, Grounded for Life, Boston Public, Strong Medicine, Charmed, and Beverly Hills, 90210. She had a minor role in the 2001 film, Donnie Darko and a guest appearance on The Amanda Show. She had recurring roles on the sitcoms The Hughleys, and Still Standing. In 2002, she starred in a notable TV commercial for Fruit Gushers, in which her head transformed into an oversized orange. She also starred in a T-Mobile commercial with Catherine Zeta-Jones and was in a Toys r Us commercial with Abigail Breslin.

In 2005, Tisdale was cast in the role of Maddie Fitzpatrick on The Suite Life of Zack & Cody after auditioning for the roles of Maddie Fitzpatrick and London Tipton. As the series became popular, Tisdale became a featured performer on the Disney Channel and performed a voice role in Whisper of the Heart. She was also cast in Disney Channel Original Movie High School Musical, which became a major success for the channel after its premiere on January 20, 2006. Tisdale also auditioned for the role of Erin Ulmer in Final Destination 3 but lost out to Canadian actress Alexz Johnson.[citation needed]

Tisdale was cast as Sharpay Evans in Disney Channel Original Movies, High School Musical. Tisdale had originally auditioned for the role of Gabriella Montez, but was eventually cast as Sharpay Evans, because it was felt that her alto voice suited a darker character. She reprised her role as Sharpay Evans in High School Musical 2 which premiered on August 17, 2007. She appeared in the Disney Channel Games 2006 as captain of the Green Team. Tisdale is also appearing in the second rendition of the Disney Channel Games this year. More recently, Tisdale signed a deal with Staples, Inc. to appear in the promotional campaign for the company's "Geared 4 School" sweepstakes in the fall.