Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Fuller Olsen (born June 13, 1986) are
American actresses and entrepreneurs. They are fraternal twins who
have appeared in television and films since infancy. Since then, they
have attained international fame through numerous television programs,
films, interviews, as well as commercial endorsements. As a rule, they
appear together.
Born in Sherman Oaks, California to David Olsen and Jarnette Jones,
the Olsen twins started their acting careers on the television series
Full House in 1987. Hired at the age of five months, filming began
with seven months. The show was widely popular during the late 80s and
early 90s, and both sisters played one character, Michelle Tanner,
taking turns during the tapings to do so, in order to comply with
strict child labor laws regarding child actors. Because the producers
did not want viewers to know that Michelle was played by twins, the
sisters were originally credited as "Mary Kate Ashley Olsen", but
later credited as separate people.
Shortly after the end of Full House, they returned to the
entertainment industry, riding the momentum of their role on Full
House by heavily merchandising their image. Taking the world of tweens
by storm, their names have become a very profitable industry, with
their likeness seen in clothes, fragrances, magazines, movies,
posters, and even video games like Mary Kate and Ashley's Magical
Mystery Mall.
Today, Mary-Kate and Ashley are popular figures in today's tween
market, following along the lines of such Hollywood child stars as
Shirley Temple, Ron Howard and Macaulay Culkin among others.
They starred in The Adventures of Mary-Kate and Ashley and the ABC
show Two of a Kind (now rerun on ABC Family), as well as ABC Family's
So Little Time. They also have their own book series.
In 2004 Mary-Kate and Ashley surprised many when they announced that
they would be attending college after graduating high school. Most
child and teenage actors usually choose to pursue acting full time
after graduating from high school, with few (such as Brooke Shields,
Jodie Foster, Julia Stiles, and Natalie Portman) choosing to further
their education. They both studied at New York University at the
Gallatin School of Individualized Study until Mary-Kate took a break
in 2005 and moved back to California. She decided to stay in the west
coast and pursue more individualized work with their company,
DualStar. Ashley, still in NY, remains in contact with her sister.
Selected filmography
Theatrical
* New York Minute (2004)
* Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003) (cameo appearance)
* It Takes Two (1995) - The only film in which they don't play
sisters.
* The Little Rascals (1994) (cameo appearance)
Direct to video
* Getting There (2002)
* When In Rome (2002)
* Holiday in the Sun (2001)
* Winning London (2001)
* Our Lips Are Sealed (2000)
* Passport To Paris (1999)
* Billboard Dad (1998)
Made for TV
* The Challenge (2003)
* Switching Goals (1999)
* How the West Was Fun (1994)
* Double, Double, Toil and Trouble (1993)
* To Grandmother's House We Go (1992)
TV Series
* Mary-Kate and Ashley in Action (2002)
Trivia
The twins received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on April 29,
2004. They are the youngest celebrities to receive this honor. They
are reported to be worth $150 million each. The twins were named by
the industry publication Hollywood Reporter as the "Most Powerful
Young Women in Hollywood."
In the episode of Family Guy "Fifteen Minutes of Shame", they replaced
Brian and Stewie in the show-within-a-show The Real Live Griffins.
They ranked at number three on the VH1 program 100 Greatest Child
Stars.
They are mentioned and insulted along with other celebrities in the
song Ass Like That by rapper Eminem. The song was released as a single
in 2005. A portion of the music video features the two as puppets who
engage in lesbian activity together. The song also makes references to
the 2004 movie New York Minute in which they both starred.
Their paternal heritage is Danish.