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Crystal Bernard
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I O G R A P H Y
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BIOGRAPHY
Occupation - Actress, Musician
Date of Birth - November 11,1962
Birth Place - Garland, Texas, USA
Residence - Phoenix, AZ,
USA
Height - 5' 4" (1.63 m)
Eyes: Brown
Hair:
Dark Auburn Brown/blonde.
Education: Graduated from Spring High School in Texas.
Maritial Status: Currently Dating, never married.
Current boyfriend, music mixer Michael Shipley
Crystal Benard was born in Garland, Texas on November 11th 1962. With her family she grew up in Westador subdivision in Houston, Texas. Her father evangelist Jerry Wayne Bernard taught all the Bernard sisters to sing and perform from a very early age. Almost no information is known about her mother. She was raised mostly in Spring, a small town near Houston, Texas.
Crystal began her career at age three singing gospel music with her sister. They traveled the country, recording 12 albums, all before she turned seventeen. Singer Bobbie Gentry, known for her hit "Ode to Billy Joe," heard them perform at a gospel jubilee in Mississippi and asked Bernard and her sister if they'd be willing to be featured in her Vegas show. Bernard, who was 14 at the time, thought Vegas was exciting. She rode into town in the family Winnebago. "I remember squealing, screaming, I've never seen anything like that. How opulent the hotels are, red carpets. I'd never seen anything like it. It's was so fun. It's nothing like what you'd have in your home.
After high school she moved to LA of course to try become a star. On arriving in Los Angeles she continued with her songwriting but performing music took a backseat to acting. Her musical career has continued through the years she wrote songs for Paula Abdul, Lisa Stansfield, Tracie Spencer, and even Debbie and Angie Winans. They have all recorded her compositions. She also wrote several songs for her debut album (1996) and wrote and produced her second album released in late in 1999.
Crystal got her first movie role in the film Young Doctors in Love in 1982 as Julie at 20 years old. This opened the door for small television roles-on "Happy Days" 1982-1983, "It's A Living" and several sexy bikini girl appearances on "The Love Boat" and "Fantasy Island". Which led to her being cast in the TV Movie High School U.S.A. starring the then unknown Michael J Fox and 80's hottie Nancy McKeon ("Jo" from Facts of Life).
Nothing comes easy for the lovely young nubile Texas honey in the 80's. She pretty much scratched and clawed for any role that she could get. Finally by 1987 ahe agrees to appear in a low budget bra and panty horror sex flickSlumber Party Massacre II. This would be her only almost nude scene type role for her career. With the exception of her brief nude scene in
Her breakout role came with her seven-year stint on TV's Wings from 1990-1997. Spin off of the very successful "Cheers" TV comedy series. Originally, as the story goes, the character of Helen, who ran the lunch counter at the airport in Wings, was supposed to have been of Greek descent and played by Peri Gilpin (Roz on Frasier for the last several years). But she couldn't take the part so in stepped a hottie blond with legs from Texas. Crystal Bernard played Helen Chapel a wanna be concert chello player from the island of Nantucket, MA. This role was the pinacle of her career. Her tradmark short sexy mini skirts with innocent good girl looks made her a sex symbol in the 90's.
She has also made her rounds in many 90's television lifetime channel estrogen hyped movies such as: "When Will I Be Loved?", "Lady Against the Odds", "Miracle Child", "Siringo", "Dying to Be Perfect: The Ellen Hart Pena Story", "The Secret Path", "A Face to Kill For" and "To Love, Honor and Betray" and "As Good As Dead" the best of the lot. None of which is on DVD as yet. Crystal never appeared nude in any films or TV movies and after "Wings" Ended she focused on music.
As an accomplished child singer she "of course" had Celine Dion Diva dreams. She even manages to convice Platinum Entertainment to help her release her 2 solo albums in the 90's with great country titles like "Girl Next Door" in 1996 and the slap my naughty roaming hands "twanger" "Don't Touch Me There" in 1999.
As for Crystal's love life over the years, she has had many lovers but she admits, "I was never a firm believer in marriage." She says it's like a contract not a commitment. Crystal never made any tabloid scandels or news over the years. She was last known living in Beverly Hills with her current boyfriend music mixer Michael Shipley. Crystal's myspace page with her music clips is here. She continues to tour as a solo singer and still looks sexy as a hot country singing cougar.
After "Wings" her credits include work in the independent feature "Gideon Webb" in 2001, featuring an all star cast with Charleton Heston, Carroll O'Connor and Shelley Winters. She is also seen in in Single Santa Seeks Mrs. Claus in 2004 and Welcome to Paradisein 2006. She mostly works in theater confessing she loves it' with its much greater challenges and quality.
FACTS
Crystal got her start as a child entertainer, singing with her father at revivals in the early 1970s.
She co-wrote the song "If I Were Your Girl", which is performed by Paula Abdul and appears on her album "Head Over Heels".
She sang the duet "I wanna take forever tonight" with Peter Cetera.
Sister of Scarlett Bernard and Angelique Bernard who graduated from Westfield High Schoold in Houston, Texas.
Attended Bammel Middle School in Houston, Texas (close to Spring, Texas). Created her own video which included a self-written song about Tom Sawyer for a school project.
QUOTES
"I knew that I did not want to be a statistic, that I wanted happiness within, and I wanted to be present because I knew what a great mover I was. I could move things and make things happen."
"There's just a part of me that's introverted. The time between `action' and `cut' seems like the only time that I'm free, because anything can come out."
"We actors have to be conscious of ourselves; there's vanity involved. There's a competitiveness. There's something that's not appealing to me about myself that I try to get away from. I'm constantly trying. To see that in others, that doesn't feel like home to me."
S T A R C H
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