Holly Valance This Australian sensation enjoys status as both an actress and a singer, but has enjoyed more recognition, critical acclaim, status, and success as the latter, being nominated for the ARIA (Australian Recording Industry Association) Music Awards. Holly Valance was born in Melbourne, Australia, on May 11, 1983, as Holly Rachel Vukadinović, to a Serbian father and British mother. She is also related to Benny Hill, the late British comedian. She shortened her name to Holly Valance when she broke into show business. She first started out as a model in her early teenage years, and then got her big break as the feisty Felicity Scully in the popular Australian soap opera Neighbours from 1999 to 2002. After her stint on Neighbours ended, Valance turned to music, and released her first single, “Kiss Kiss,” in 2002, which debuted at the number-one spot in both Australia ARIA charts and the U.K. Singles Chart. “Kiss Kiss,” which snagged four ARIA nominations, was also popular for the music video that was released, in which Valance appeared to be dancing naked for parts of it. Later in 2002 Valance released her first full-fledged album, Footprints, which peaked at #15 in Australia and ninth in the U.K. Footprints included singles “Down Boy” and “Naughty Girl."
Her follow-up album, State of Mind, was released in 2003, and included her hit single of the same name; however, State of Mind, although still popular, didn’t ultimately fare quite as well as her debut album. Around this time, Valance also spent a great deal of time modeling in the U.K, particularly for Schwarzkopf Live, a hair products company, with whom she signed a major contract deal. Valance decided to try her hand at acting again in 2004, which led to her coming to the U.S. and snagging guest roles in a number of dramas, including CSI: Miami, which stars David Caruso, Emily Procter, Adam Rodriguez, Khandi Alexander, and Jonathan Togo; Entourage, starring Jeremy Piven, Kevin Connolly, Adrian Grenier, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrara, and Debi Mazar; CSI: NY, in which Gary Sinise, Melina Kanakaredes, Eddie Cahill, Claire Forlani, Carmine Giovinazzo, Hill Harper, Anna Belknap, and Robert Joy star; and Prison Break, in which she played the recurring role of Nika Volek. Prison Break stars Wentworth Miller, as well as Dominic Purcell, Amaury Nolasco, Sarah Wayne Callies, and Paul Adelstein.
Valance most recently appeared on the big screen in National Lampoon’s Pledge This! (2006), which starred Paris Hilton, who, incidentally, was also the executive producer for the film. Valance also garnered much public attention back in 2003 when she fired her manager, Scott Michaelson, via fax. Michaelson ended up suing Valance and Valance Corp. under his company, Biscayne Partners Pty Ltd, and won, getting awarded "damages." YUDDY |
