Growing Up
She probably always knew that her steps were firmly set towards a Hollywood career. She grew up being privy to the seamier side of LA, not as far as money went but definitely as far as morals went. With parents who were adult movie actors, one of the people who was termed a family friend was High Hefner. These were people she actually got to meet as a child and they were even invited to the Playboy mansion.
She was four years old when her talent was discovered, thanks to a babysitter who told her parents how she loved to act out the TV commercials she watched. Well, from there, it was a quick step to auditions and she was in the commercial for California Raisins. That was in ’86 and for Thora, there has been no looking back. She went through her childhood starring in a number of commercials from pickles to oats and then she got her break in Day by Day, which exited the airwaves like a damp squib but Thora got her launching pad and was soon starring in Purple People Eater. That debut role brought her an award.
Then there was Parenthood where she acted with Leonardo di Caprio which also never really took off and then came Paradise where she won the role being picked out of thousands who had applied for the part.
Imagine – by the time she was into her teens, she had a whole lot of experience and commercials, TV parts and movies under her belt. For one so young, she handled her roles with a maturity that far exceeded her years. There was Now and Then, Clear and Present Danger, Patriot Games – then nothing for a while. One doesn’t really know why – was it a troubled teenage or was it that she just wasn’t being offered or winning any roles? Whatever the reason, Thora Birch had her name written in the stars so she just couldn’t be kept out of the limelight for too long. She bounced back – with American Beauty. If she was out of the public eye and almost forgotten, at 17, she made sure that she came back into focus and stayed there. What a performance – and what a growing up. Suddenly, the child star image was gone and in her place was this older star, with so much promise and so much talent.
The awards flowed in from all over the world and the offers poured in to. Thora went back to being a favorite with casting directors and producers. She was back where she belonged – on center stage.