Danica McKellar
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Danica McKellar (born January 3, 1975)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> is an American actress, mathematics writer, and education advocate. She is best known for playing Winnie Cooper in the television series The Wonder Years.
McKellar has appeared in various television films for the Hallmark Channel. She has also done voice acting, including Frieda Goren in Static Shock, Miss Martian in Young Justice, and Killer Frost in DC Super Hero Girls. In 2015, McKellar joined part of the main cast in the Netflix original series Project Mc2.
In addition to her acting work, McKellar later wrote seven non-fiction books, all dealing with mathematics: Math Doesn't Suck, Kiss My Math, Hot X: Algebra Exposed, Girls Get Curves: Geometry Takes Shape, which encourage middle-school and high-school girls to have confidence and succeed in mathematics, Goodnight, Numbers, and Do Not Open This Math Book.<ref name="nytimes.com">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Early life and education
[edit]McKellar was born in La Jolla, California.<ref name="TVGuide-bio">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She moved with her family to Los Angeles when she was eight. Her mother, Mahaila McKellar (née Tello), was a homemaker; her father, Christopher McKellar, is a real estate developer; her younger sister, Crystal, is a lawyer and former child actor.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She is of Scottish, French, German, Spanish, and Dutch descent on her father's side, and of Portuguese descent, by way of the Azores and the Madeira islands, on her mother's side.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In 1998, McKellar earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics (summa cum laude) from UCLA, where she was a member of the Alpha Delta Pi sorority.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> As an undergraduate, she coauthored a scientific paper with Professor Lincoln Chayes and fellow student Brandy Winn titled "Percolation and Gibbs states multiplicity for ferromagnetic Ashkin–Teller models on <math>\mathbb{Z}^2</math>."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Their results are termed the "Chayes–McKellar–Winn theorem".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later, when Chayes was asked to comment about the mathematical abilities of his student coauthors, he was quoted in The New York Times, "I thought that the two were really, really first-rate."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As a result of her past collaborative work on research papers, McKellar is currently assigned the Erdős number four, and the Erdős–Bacon number six.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Acting career
[edit]The Wonder Years and early acting career Template:Anchor
[edit]At age seven, McKellar enrolled in weekend acting classes for children at the Lee Strasberg Institute in Los Angeles.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In her teens, she landed a prominent role in The Wonder Years, an American television comedy-drama that ran for six seasons on ABC, from 1988 to 1993. She played Gwendolyn "Winnie" Cooper, the main love interest of Kevin Arnold (played by Fred Savage) on the show. Her first kiss was with Fred Savage in an episode of The Wonder Years.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She later said, "My first kiss was a pretty nerve-wracking experience! But we never kissed off screen, and pretty quickly our feelings turned into brother/sister, and stayed that way."<ref name="comedy" />
Later acting career
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McKellar has said that she found it "difficult" to move from being a child actress to an adult actress.<ref name="comedy">Template:Cite web</ref> Since leaving The Wonder Years, McKellar has had several guest roles in television series (including one with former co-star Fred Savage on Working), and has written and directed two short films. She appeared in two Lifetime films in the Moment of Truth series, playing Kristin Guthrie in 1994's Cradle of Conspiracy and Annie Mills Carman in 1996's Justice for Annie. She briefly returned to regular television with a recurring role in the 2002–03 season of The West Wing, portraying Elsie Snuffin, the half-sister and assistant of Deputy White House Communications Director Will Bailey.
McKellar was featured in the video for Debbie Gibson's eighth single from the Electric Youth album, "No More Rhyme", which was released in 1989. She plays the cello in the beginning of the video.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
McKellar appeared in lingerie in the July 2005 edition of Stuff magazine<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> after readers voted her the 1990s star they would most like to see in lingerie. McKellar explained that she agreed to the shoot in part to obtain "grittier roles".<ref name="comedy" />
In 2006, McKellar starred in a Lifetime film and web-based series titled Inspector Mom about a mother who solves mysteries.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On the August 1, 2007, edition of the Don and Mike Show, a WJFK-FM radio program out of Washington, D.C., McKellar announced that the producers of How I Met Your Mother were planning to bring her back for a recurring role (she guest-starred on the show in late 2005 in "The Pineapple Incident" and again in early 2007 in "Third Wheel"). She also made an appearance on the show The Big Bang Theory, in the episode "The Psychic Vortex".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In 2008, she starred in Heatstroke, a Sci-Fi Channel film about searching for alien life on Earth and in 2009 she was one of the stars commenting on the occurrences of the new millennium in VH1's I Love the New Millennium and was the math correspondent for Brink, a program by the Science Channel about technology. In 2013, she played Ellen Plainview in Lifetime's reimagining of the 1956 Alfred Hitchcock film The Wrong Man.
McKellar has also worked as a voice actress, having provided the voice of Jubilee in the video game X-Men Legends (2004), and Invisible Woman in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance (2006) and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 (2009). She provided the voice of Miss Martian in the TV series Young Justice.
In 2012, she starred in the Lifetime film Love at the Christmas Table with Dustin Milligan.
In January 2013, she starred in the Syfy film Tasmanian Devils with Apolo Ohno.
On August 20, 2013, Canadian singer Avril Lavigne released the music video for her single "Rock N Roll" from her self-titled fifth album, which features McKellar as "Winnie Cooper".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
On March 4, 2014, she was announced to be competing on season 18 of Dancing with the Stars. She paired with Valentin Chmerkovskiy.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> McKellar and Chmerkovskiy were eliminated on Week 8, finishing in 6th place.
She had a guest appearance in the Impractical Jokers season four episode six titled "The Blunder Years". She made another guest appearance in the season seven episode ten titled "Speech Impediment".
In 2015, she starred in the Netflix original series Project Mc2 as The Quail.
She has starred in several Hallmark Channel films, including Crown for Christmas, My Christmas Dream, Campfire Kiss, Love and Sunshine, Christmas at Dollywood, and You, Me & the Christmas Trees as well as the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries series The Matchmaker Mysteries.
McKellar was a judge on the single season of Fox's Domino Masters<ref name="DMA">Template:Cite web</ref> which premiered on March 9, 2022.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Books
[edit]McKellar has authored several mathematics-related books primarily targeting adolescent readers interested in succeeding at the study of mathematics:
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Her first book, Math Doesn't Suck: How to Survive Middle School Math without Losing Your Mind or Breaking a Nail, was a New York Times bestseller,<ref name="nytimes.com" /> and was favorably reviewed by Tara C. Smith, the founder of Iowa Citizens for Science and a professor of epidemiology at the University of Iowa.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The book also received a review from Anthony Jones, writing for the School Librarian journal, who described the book as "a trouble-shooting guide to help girls overcome their biggest maths challenges," noting what he described as "real-world examples of great mathematics in action."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> In an interview with Smith, McKellar said that she wrote the book "to show girls that math is accessible and relevant, and even a little glamorous" and to counteract "damaging social messages telling young girls that math and science aren't for them".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
McKellar's second book, Kiss My Math: Showing Pre-Algebra Who's Boss,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> was released on August 5, 2008. The book's target audience is girls in the 7th through 9th grades. Her third book, Hot X: Algebra Exposed!<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> covers algebra topics, while the previous two titles were intended as "algebra-readiness books."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hot X was published on August 3, 2010. Her fourth book, Girls Get Curves – Geometry Takes Shape,<ref name="book-curves">Template:Cite book</ref> focuses on the subject of geometry, and attempts to make the subject more accessible.<ref>Template:Cite interview</ref>
Three of McKellar's books were listed in The New York Times children's bestseller list.<ref name="Schuessler">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She received Mathical Honors for Goodnight, Numbers.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Published papers
[edit]Awards and honors
[edit]McKellar was named Person of the Week on World News with Charles Gibson for the week ending August 10, 2007. The news segment highlighted her book Math Doesn't Suck and her efforts to help girls develop an interest in mathematics, especially during the middle school years.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In January 2014, she received the Joint Policy Board for Mathematics (JPBM) Communications Award. The citation credited her books, blog, and public appearances for encouraging "countless middle and high school students, especially girls, to be more interested in mathematics."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Personal life
[edit]McKellar married composer Mike Verta on March 22, 2009, in La Jolla, California; the couple had dated since 2001.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> They had their only child, a son, in 2010.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> McKellar filed for divorce from Verta in June 2012.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On July 16, 2014, she became engaged to her boyfriend Scott Sveslosky, a partner in the Los Angeles legal firm Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton. On November 15, 2014, they married in Kauai, Hawaii.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
McKellar is a Christian and regularly attends church services.<ref name="Alcindor2022">Template:Cite web</ref> She cites Candace Cameron Bure as having been a major influence in her life after Bure gave her a copy of the Bible.<ref name="Alcindor2022"/>
Cultural references
[edit]McKellar's notoriety for Hallmark mystery films was spoofed in the 2019 film Knives Out, complete with the parody title Deadly By Surprise.<ref name="Jirak2019">Template:Cite web</ref>
Filmography
[edit]Film
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Sidekicks | Lauren | |
| 2001 | Good Neighbor | Molly Wright | |
| XCU: Extreme Close Up | Sarah | ||
| Speechless... | Dana Woodman | Short film | |
| 2002 | Sex and the Teenage Mind | Debbie | |
| Black Hole | Rachael | ||
| Reality School | Sexy Sally | Short film | |
| Jane White Is Sick & Twisted | Tiffany | ||
| The Year That Trembled | Pam Hatch | ||
| Hip, Edgy, Sexy, Cool | Sissie | ||
| 2004 | Raising Genius | Lacy Baldwin | |
| Intermission | Sleepwalker | Short film | |
| Quiet Kill | Pet Shop Girl | ||
| 2007 | Hack! | Emily | |
| 2008 | Heatstroke | Caroline | |
| 2009 | 21 and a Wake-Up | Jenny Valentine | |
| 2010 | Scooby-Doo! Abracadabra-Doo | Madelyn Dinkley | Voice, direct-to-video<ref name="btva">Template:Cite web A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.</ref> |
| Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam | Sally | Voice, direct-to-video<ref name="btva" /> | |
| 2012 | Flatland 2: Sphereland | Aero | Direct-to-video |
| Mancation | Rebecca | ||
| 2014 | Where Hope Grows | Susan Malcolm | |
| 2017 | The Jetsons & WWE: Robo-WrestleMania! | Judy Jetson | Voice, direct-to-video<ref name="btva" /> |
| 2018 | The Fiddling Horse | Leslie Heart | |
| 2018 | Lego DC Super Hero Girls: Super-Villain High | Frost | Voice, direct-to-video<ref name="btva" /> |
| 2018 | DC Super Hero Girls: Legends of Atlantis | Voice, direct-to-video<ref name="btva" /> |
Television
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985–1987 | Template:Sortname | Nola (age 10), Deidre Dobbs | 2 episodes |
| 1988–1993 | Template:Sortname | Winnie Cooper | Main role |
| 1989 | Template:Sortname | Patty | Voice, 2 episodes |
| 1990 | Camp Cucamonga | Lindsey Scott | Television film (NBC) |
| 1992 | Captain Planet and the Planeteers | Lisa | Voice, episode: "A Formula for Hate" |
| 1994 | Babylon 5 | Aria Tensus | Episode: "The War Prayer" |
| Moment of Truth: Cradle of Conspiracy | Kristin Guthrie | Television film (NBC) | |
| Walker, Texas Ranger | Laurie Maston | Episode: "Stolen Lullaby" | |
| Sirens | Alison Trent | Episode: "Victims" | |
| 1996 | Justice for Annie: A Moment of Truth Movie | Annie Mills Carman | Television film (NBC) |
| 1998 | Love Boat: The Next Wave | Mary Dutton | Episode: "How Long Has This Been Going On?" |
| Working | Jolie | 2 episodes | |
| 1999 | Random Play | Daughter | Episode: "1.4" |
| 2000–2004 | Static Shock | Frieda Goren | Voice, recurring role (15 episodes)<ref name="btva" /> |
| 2001 | Template:Sortname | Wendy | Episode: "Don't Ask" |
| Even Stevens | Sandrine | Episode: "Sibling Rivalry" | |
| The Weakest Link | Herself | TV Child Stars Special Edition | |
| 2002 | Justice League | Sapphire Stagg | Voice, episode: "Metamorphosis"<ref name="btva" /> |
| 2002–2003 | Template:Sortname | Elsie Snuffin | Recurring role (season 4) |
| 2004 | King of the Hill | Misty | Voice, 1 episode |
| Game Over | Elsa, Renee | Voice, recurring role (season 1)<ref name="btva" /> | |
| Century City | Sally | Episode: "Without a Tracer" | |
| Eve | Claudia | Episode: "Friend or Foe?" | |
| 2005 | NCIS | Erin Kendall | Episode: "Witness" |
| Jack & Bobby | Keirsten | Episode: "And Justice for All" | |
| NYPD Blue | Rosemary | Episode: "Moving Day" | |
| Strong Medicine | Natalie Pascal | Episode: "Feeling No Pain" | |
| Path of Destruction | Katherine Stern | Television film (Sci-Fi Channel) | |
| How I Met Your Mother | Trudy | Episode: "The Pineapple Incident" | |
| 2006 | Inspector Mom | Maddie Monroe | Television film (Lifetime) |
| Cyberchase | Wanda | Voice, episode: "Designing Mr. Perfect" | |
| 2006–2007 | Inspector Mom | Maddie Monroe | Recurring role (Season 1) |
| 2007 | Random! Cartoons | Katerina "Kat" Metropoulos | Voice, episode: "Girls on the Go: The First Date"<ref name="btva" /> |
| How I Met Your Mother | Trudy | Episode: "Third Wheel" | |
| 2010 | Template:Sortname | Abby | Episode: "The Psychic Vortex" |
| 2010–2013, 2019–2022 |
Young Justice | Miss Martian, Marie Logan, Tuppence Terror, Angel O'Day, Reach Commercial Singer | Voice, main role<ref name="btva" /> |
| 2010–2013 | Generator Rex | Claire | Voice, 3 episodes<ref name="btva" /> |
| 2010 | G.I. Joe: Renegades | Sister Leia | Voice, episode: "Brothers of Light"<ref name="btva" /> |
| 2012 | Template:Sortname | Herself | Talk show |
| Love at the Christmas Table | Katherine "Kat" Patton | Television film (Lifetime) | |
| 2013 | Tasmanian Devils | Alex | Television film (Syfy) |
| Template:Sortname | Herself | Episode: "Interference" | |
| Nerdist: Course of the Force | Bounty Hunter | Episode: "Michael Rooker & CM Punk: Lighstaber Hunt" | |
| The Wrong Woman | Ellen Plainview | Television film (Lifetime) | |
| 2014 | Transformers: Rescue Bots | Hayley | Voice, 2 episodes<ref name="btva" /> |
| Dancing with the Stars | Herself | Contestant on season 18; finished in sixth place | |
| Phineas and Ferb | Becky | Voice, episode: "Doof 101"<ref name="btva" /> | |
| 2015 | King of the Nerds | Herself | Judge |
| 2015, 2017–2018 |
Impractical Jokers | Herself | 3 episodes |
| 2015 | Perfect Match (aka A Perfect Wedding) | Jessica Summers | Television film (Hallmark Channel) |
| Miss America 2016 | Herself | Judge | |
| Crown for Christmas | Allie Evans | Television film (Hallmark Channel) | |
| 2015–2017 | Project Mc2 | The Quail | Main role (Seasons 1–2,4–5) Netflix original series |
| 2015–2018 | DC Super Hero Girls | Frost | Voice, recurring role (Seasons 1–5)<ref name="btva" /> |
| 2016 | My Christmas Dream | Christina | Television film (Hallmark Channel) |
| Wedding Bells | Molly | Television film (Hallmark Channel) | |
| 2016–2018 | Shimmer and Shine | Layla, Generic Female Genie | Voice, 3 episodes<ref name="btva" /> |
| 2017 | Mommy, I Didn't Do It | Ellen Plainview | Television film (Hallmark Channel) |
| Campfire Kiss | Dana | Television film (Hallmark Channel) | |
| Coming Home for Christmas | Lizzie | Television film (Hallmark Channel) | |
| 2018 | Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | Taylor Martin | Voice, episode: "Hypno! Part Deux!"<ref name="btva" /> |
| Very, Very, Valentine | Helen | Television film (Hallmark Channel) | |
| Love in Design | Hannah | Television film (Hallmark Channel) | |
| Christmas at Grand Valley | Kelly | Television film (Hallmark Movies & Mysteries) | |
| 2019 | Love and Sunshine | Ally Craig | Television film (Hallmark Channel) |
| The Matchmaker Mysteries: A Killer Engagement | Angie Dove | Television film (Hallmark Movies & Mysteries) | |
| Christmas at Dollywood | Rachel | Television film (Hallmark Channel) | |
| 2020 | Matchmaker Mysteries: A Fatal Romance | Angie Dove | Television film (Hallmark Movies & Mysteries) |
| Christmas She Wrote | Kayleigh King | Television film (Hallmark Channel) | |
| 2021 | Matchmaker Mysteries: The Art of the Kill | Angie Dove | Television film (Hallmark Movies & Mysteries) |
| 2021–2022 | Home Economics | Allison | 2 episodes |
| 2021 | You, Me & the Christmas Trees | Olivia Arden | Television film (Hallmark Channel) |
| 2022 | The Winter Palace | Emily Miller | Television film (Great American Family) |
| Domino Masters | Herself | Judge<ref name="DMA"/> | |
| The Wonder Years | Winnie Cooper | Episode: "Love & War" | |
| Christmas at the Drive-In | Sadie Walker | Television film (Great American Family) | |
| 2023 | Swing into Romance | Christine Sims | Television film (Great American Family) |
| A Royal Date for Christmas | Bella Sparks | Television film (Great American Family) | |
| 2024 | A Cinderella Christmas Ball | Chelsea Jones | Television film (Great American Family) |
Music videos
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | "No More Rhyme" | Girl Playing Cello | Debbie Gibson |
| 2013 | "Rock n Roll" | Winnie Cooper | Avril Lavigne |
Video games
[edit]| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | X-Men Legends | Jubilee<ref name="btva" /> |
| EverQuest II | Lolla Cotgrove / Pona | |
| 2006 | Marvel: Ultimate Alliance | Invisible Woman<ref name="btva" /> |
| 2009 | Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 | |
| 2013 | Young Justice: Legacy | Miss Martian, Batgirl<ref name="btva" /> |
References
[edit]External links
[edit]- Template:Official website
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- Website for McKellar Math
- Website of Math Doesn't Suck
- Website for Kiss My Math
- Interview with McKellar about her theorem at NPR
- February 2006 Proof and Prejudice: Women in Mathematics Conference, at which McKellar was a speaker
- Science Friday for September 21, 2007 with McKellar among the guests
- Public School Insights Interview with McKellar about girls and math
- Pages with broken file links
- 1975 births
- Living people
- 20th-century American actresses
- 21st-century American actresses
- 21st-century American mathematicians
- 21st-century American screenwriters
- 21st-century American women writers
- 21st-century American women mathematicians
- Actresses from Los Angeles
- Actresses from San Diego
- American child actresses
- American Christians
- American film actresses
- American people of Dutch descent
- American people of French descent
- American people of German descent
- American people of Portuguese descent
- American people of Scottish descent
- American people of Spanish descent
- American television actresses
- Television writers from California
- American video game actresses
- American voice actresses
- American women film directors
- American women television writers
- American education activists
- Film directors from Los Angeles
- Harvard-Westlake School alumni
- Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute alumni
- Mathematics writers
- People from La Jolla, San Diego
- University of California, Los Angeles alumni