Kaley Cuoco

Kaley Christine Cuoco (pronounced /ˈkeɪliː ˈkoʊkoʊ/; born November 30, 1985, Camarillo, California) is an American television actress. She is best known for her roles as Bridget Hennessy on the sitcom 8 Simple Rules, Brandy Harrington on Brandy & Mr. Whiskers, Billie Jenkins on the supernatural drama series Charmed, and recently as Penny on the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory.

Early Life
Cuoco was born in Camarillo, California, to Gary Carmine Cuoco, an Oxnard, California, realtor, and Layne Ann Wingate, a homemaker. She has a younger sister, Briana. Kaley was schooled on the set and earned her high school diploma at the age of 16. She has many pets, including a Jack Russell Terrier named Raquel.

Career


Cuoco was named #1 on FHM-Us' 100 Sexiest Women in 2005 and #21 in 2008.[3] She began voicing the character of Brandy Harrington on the Disney Channel's cartoon, Brandy and Mr. Whiskers, later in 2004.

Cuoco played Bridget Hennessy on the ABC sitcom 8 Simple Rules. Bridget was the eldest child, despite Cuoco being six years younger than her on-screen little sister (Amy Davidson), and was portrayed as "the most beautiful girl in the school." She had several boyfriends throughout the series and used her feminine wiles to exert significant control over the boys she encountered. She has said that she learned a lot about comedy from her work with the late John Ritter.

In the eighth season of the hit cult TV show Charmed Cuoco appeared as Billie Jenkins. Executive producer Brad Kern stated Kaley's character was initially brought in as a possible spin-off. In 2004, Cuoco co-starred in the movie The Hollow with stars Nick Carter and Kevin Zegers.

In September 2007, Cuoco began a starring role in the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory. She plays Penny, a beautiful and down-to-earth Cheesecake Factory employee who moves in next door to two geeks, Sheldon (Jim Parsons) and Leonard (Johnny Galecki). In the show, she moved to California from the Midwest to pursue a career in acting.

Cuoco also starred in the Lifetime film To Be Fat Like Me which premiered on January 8, 2007.[4] She also played a minor role in the Prison Break episodes "The Message" and "Chicago" as well as taking the leading female role in the horror movie Killer Movie in 2008.

Attended the 2012 Comic-Con TBBT Panel. In 2013, Cuoco played William Shatner's (Star Trek) secret daughter in a Priceline commercial, acknowledging that her Big Bang co-stars -- including Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar -- are big fans and the Trekkie stuff goes with Big Bang. She dated Johnny Galecki who plays Leonard for two years.

Personal Life
Cuoco currently lives in San Fernando Valley, California, with her German Shepherd named Duke and her Chihuahua-Dachshund mix named Petey. She was once in a relationship with Johnny Galecki, although it was not made public until after they broke up. The two remain friends. She became engaged to Josh Resnik in October 2011. In February 2012, Kaley revealed at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences 21st Annual Hall of Fame ceremony that her engagement is off and she is back to being single.

She enjoys horseback riding, kickboxing, bowling, and playing the drums. One of her favorite hobbies is table tennis. On Ellen, she presented Ellen with a table tennis paddle signed by The Big Bang Theory cast. She was a nationally ranked amateur tennis player, a hobby she took up when she was three years old until she switched to acting full time with 8 Simple Rules in 2002.