Straight forward, witty and timeless. #TellItLikeItIs, is a blog for our generation 
Every generation has its slew of popular child actors who were fan favorite’s. Well, we’re about to look at our top 5 childhood actors & actresses who rose to stardom when we were growing up and who you might not hear much about these days.
#wherearetheynow
Let’s start off with Jaleel White. He is most popularly known for his role as Steve Urkel in the hit sitcom Family Matters. This show ran for 9 seasons, from September 1989 to July 1998. And you must admit this show was a definite favorite among our generation and unforgettable. I’m sure you recall Urkel’s signature phrase “did I do that?”. Well, let’s see what he’s doing now.
This 44 year old actor moved on from Family Matters to pick up several roles over the years. He copped quite a few awards and received many nominations during his career. White appeared in the shows Grown Ups, House, Psych, and Legal, just to name a few. Movie credits include Dreamgirls, Scooby Doo and Guess Who? He also dabbled in voice acting portraying the voice of Sonic The Hedgehog. Jaleel also made sure to follow up on his education, attending UCLA and obtaining a degree in Film and Television. To date he has a recurring role on the Netflix show ‘The Big Show’.
Up next we have a double whammy with the Olsen Twins: Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. These two were double trouble for the television industry as they were highly sought after and had specially crafted roles being mirror images of each other.
You may first remember them from the series Full House. But they’ve also had roles in New York Minute, Holiday in The Sun, Double Double Toil and Trouble, The Parent Trap and It Takes Two etc.
However, these two, both 35 years old, are no longer in the movie business. They are now fashion designers. The twins owned a clothing line for girls aged 4 to 14 in Wal-Mart stores in North America. They also owned a fashion line titled ‘Mary Kate and Ashley: Real Fashion for Real Girls’. These fashionistas also launched a couture fashion label ‘The Row’. In 2012 the Council of Fashion Designers of America named the twins Womenswear Designer of the Year for ‘The Row’. They received this award again in 2014.
We’re moving on to Mark Paul Gosselaar. Who can forget this teen heart throb who played Zack Morris on the ever popular ‘Saved By The Bell’ ? This show ran from 1989 to 1993 and followed a group of six high school friends through their school years.
Mark Paul, currently 47 years old, has also since then starred in films such as Mixed-ish, NYPD Blue, and Franklin & Bash. He also has several awards to his name as his career spans over thirty years. While staying true to his love for acting, Gosselaar has delved into a number of other activities which have also earned him recognition such as race car driver, track cyclist, and dirt biker.
Next on our list as well is Raven Symone, another child actress who caught the eye of many from a tender age. She appeared on the Cosby Show as Olivia Kendall from 1989 to 1992. Raven, like several other child actors, has numerous awards, nominations and accolades to her name.
This actress, who is also a singer and songwriter is well associated with Disney having starred in works such as Cheetah Girls (both movies), Xenon Girl of the 21st Century, and That’s So Raven. Her relationship with Disney also saw her using her voice talent in the animated series Kim Possible. Dr. Dolitte and College Road Trip are just two of the many movies she has starred in which went on to become box office hits.
To date Raven Symone continues her work in the entertainment industry acting and singing and picking up more fame and recognition along the way.
We’ll wrap up this top five with our girl Tatyana Ali from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. She played Ashley Banks during the show’s run from 1990 to 1996.
42 year old Tatyana is also a singer has performed alongside her Fresh Prince co-star Will Smith in songs such as Boy You Knock Me Out and Who Am I. Apart from accumulating numerous awards and nominations, Ali has picked up roles in several tv projects and has had a recurring role on the popular daytime drama ‘The Young and The Restless.’
Ali made sure she prioritized higher education attending Harvard University and obtaining a Bachelor of Arts edger in African-American Studies and Government. She traveled the United States as a spokesperson for Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign.
Thanks for checking out our list of five child actors and where they are now. We know you may have another top five and we’d love to hear from you who made your list so leave us a comment!
Generation Y Dominica 