Shiri Freda Appleby was born on December 7, 1978 in Los Angelas California. Shiri (pronounced Sheer-ee) joined by her younger brother Evan and her parents Jerry, a telecommunications executive and her mother, Dena, a school teacher then moved to San Fernando Valley just outside of Los Angelas where she grew up. By the age of four, her career in the entertainment business had already started, and she did her first commercial, for the cereal Raisin Bran (which never aired) Shiri comments that, "It was fun, especially when I was younger, "Looking good" because you would go to sets and there would be donuts and people would just want to play with you and do your hair, so you think it's a magical place when you're younger." She went on to do some more commercials, and among them were commercials for Cheerio's and M&M's and Taco Bell.
Shiri Appleby attended Calabasas High, located in Los Angeles' West San Fernando Valley, where she then realized that it was going to be the greatest time of her life and she didn't really want to go to auditions. It came to the point where she would rather go to football games, and it was evident that high school was too important to her. In a recent interview Shiri commented, "It was this time when I was growing up and there were new people, and cute boys, and going to auditions seemed so mundane. Spending my high school on a set with a studio teacher just did not compare. So when high school came around, my motivation kind of slipped." During her high school years, she was the yearbook editor two years in a row, and was a cheerleader for the Calabasas Coyotes her sophomore year. She had a passion for photography and didn't care if it looked dorky to be on the yearbook.
After graduating in 1996, Shiri went on to attend the University of Southern California. At first she was accepted for acting, but then changed to English in her second semester of freshman year. Shiri would love the opportunity to study law, or perhaps psychology, mainly because she feels, "It's very similar to acting in the way that it's the breaking down of someone's psyche, it deals with how the human mind works and why people feel things." She had been in her sophomore year when her life changed drastically. The science fiction show Roswell, which she had auditioned for got picked up, so she put school on hold. Shiri had auditioned for all three roles, and at first the casting directors wouldn't even look at her resumé¬ but after some convincing, Shiri landed the role of Liz Parker. Shiri has plans to go back to school when Roswell finishes.
She did a film called A Time for Dancing based on the book by Davida Wills Hurwin. Appleby was in Bon Jovi's music video "It's My Life" with Will Estes. She was also featured in the 2004 music video for the song "I Don't Want To Be" by Gavin DeGraw, opposite Scott Mechlowicz.
In her spare time, Shiri Appleby enjoys going to the farmers market, practicing playing the guitar, crocheting, knitting, hanging out with friends and she also claims to be a compulsive backgammon player. She likes to visit Santa Barbara quite often because that's where a lot of her friends went to school. She has taken part in numerous charities, and community activities, such as reading to children at a local library.
I really like acting and auditioning. I like being put under pressure and having to perform. I also like the fact that I'm in different situations, and I have to figure my way out of them. I am also in love with the expression part of it. That's what really drives me. |
