Paula Abdul

Paula Abdul was born in San Fernando Valley, California. At the age of eight, she began dancing lessons. Van Nuys High School was her high school. She was also the head cheerleader and the senior class president. She graduated from high school in 1980. Following graduation she enrolled in college at Cal State Northridge. There she studied radio and TV. After joining the L.A. Lakers cheerleaders, she became head cheerleader/choreographer after only a few months, eventually dropping out of college to dance and choreograph full-time. The Jacksons hired her to choreograph their 1984 film "Torture" which was the first in a long series of films and videos she choreographed. After her debut album "Forever Your Girl" started singing, she turned to singing and was soon a well-known dancer and singer. The stint she held as an American Idol judge (2002) has made her a popular performer/dancer. Her father (Harry Abdul) is Sephardic Jewish and hails from Syria. Her mother, also Jewish, was born and was raised in Canada. Her parents were born in Canada, Brazil, Syria and Brazil. This diversity of backgrounds have resulted in diverse stories in the media about her nationality or religion. Born in Hollywood, California to Harry Abdul (another livestock trader in Brazil) & Lorainne Abdul (former assistant to director Billy Wilder), she grew up. She's been singing and dancing since she was 7 years old. older, when she was on the road in America. Tap dance classes were taken also, and she received a scholarship to tap dancing school. She attended Cal State-Northridge College, where she majored in Broadcast radio. She auditioned for the Los Angeles Lakers NBA cheerleading team. The result was getting paid $50 per match during her freshman year.