Biography
Some artists toil for decades in hopes that the world will one day notice and appreciate their work and all its glorious nuance -- others such as Ashley Olsen of "Full House" (ABC 1987-1995) fame, are almost literally born into the public eye. The true test of talent comes when faced with the choice of continuing down their predestined path, or blazing a new trail. Having found fame on the small screen at just nine months old, the girl who (along with her fraternal twin Mary Kate) America watched grow up made the absolute most of what she was gifted before using her killer fashion instincts kick-off a successful second career. The daughter of a personal manager and a real estate developer/mortgage banker, Ashley and her twin sister were born in Sherman Oaks, California on June 13, 1986. Just six months later, both sisters were cast in the role of Michelle on "Full House." By casting both sisters, the producers of the show were able to remain in accordance with child labor laws by having one sibling work until her allotted hours were up, and then having the other step in to take her place. The critics didn't fawn, but the ABC sitcom centered on an unconventional yet loving San Francisco family found enough of an audience to carry the show through an impressive eight seasons. Later, when the show went into syndication, its popularity mushroomed. The youngest member of the family, precocious Michelle quickly became a hit with viewers, who adored her beaming smile and playful catch-phrases. The Olsen Twins were savoring their newfound fame, but over time they would seek to parlay their pop-culture status it into something a bit more sustainable. In 1993 -- two years before Full House ended its 192 episode run -- Dualstar Entertainment Group LLC was launched with the intention of expanding the sibling stars' empire into other realms of the entertainment industry. The first Dualstar release, the Christmas comedy "To Grandmother's House We Go" (1992), received a notable boost due to the twins' Full House" success, and the following year they returned for more fun and mischief in "Double, Double, Toil and Trouble" (1993). By the time "Full House" went off the air in 1995, Dualstar was in full swing, releasing 14 movies (primarily direct-to-video) including director Andy Tennant's feature directorial debut "It Takes Two;" two music video series; three short-lived television series (including one animated); and a series of books in which the sisters were portrayed as globe-trotting secret agents, among other things. Perpetually fashionable, the twins debuted "The Mary-Kate and Ashley Collection" at Wal-Mart in 2004, as well as a beauty line dubbed "Mary-Kate and Ashley: Real fashion for real girls." In December of that year, Ashley and her sister made news when they publicly signed a pledge to ensure mandatory paid maternity leave for their laborers in Bangladesh. It was Ashley's quest to conceive the perfect t-shirt that inspired the sisters to launch American luxury fashion house The Row in 2006. Over the course of the next decade, Ashley and her sister found success on their own terms. No surprise, then, that they would decline John Stamos' offer to appear in Netflix's "Full House" reboot "Fuller House" (2016-). For the twins it's always onward and upward; child stardom was a gift, but it was on the runways of Paris that their talents really took flight.
