Alyssa Milano was born in Brooklyn, New York to parents Tom (a music editor) and Lin Milano (a fashion designer), and she has a younger brother, Cory (born 1982), who is also an actor. She and Cory grew up on Staten Island. Alyssa always liked to be home schooled. Alyssa went to Pacific Hills School in West Hollywood. She said once to a reporter" I never liked going to school with other people. I always liked being home schooled". She began her career at the age of eight when she won a part in an open audition for a national tour of Annie. Having gained a reputation, she appeared in television commercials and off-Broadway productions. At the age of 11, she earned her first major role in the television program Who's the Boss?, alongside Tony Danza, Judith Light, Danny Pintauro and Katherine Helmond. She starred as Samantha Micelli, the daughter of Danza's character, Tony Micelli. Her family relocated from Staten Island to Hollywood when Alyssa won the role. Alyssa also appeared in the Josie music video by Blink-182.
Later career
At the beginning of her career, Alyssa was known mainly for her role as Samantha Micelli on Who's the Boss? (1984-1992). She tried to shed her "nice girl" image by appearing in several films targeted at adults, such as Casualties of Love: The Long Island Lolita Story (1992), Embrace of the Vampire (1994), Confessions of Sorority Girls (1994), Deadly Sins (1995), and Poison Ivy II: Lily (1995), where she starred opposite Johnathon Schaech and Xander Berkley. She gained more mainstream success in TV as Jennifer Mancini on Melrose Place (1997-1998), Meg Winston in Spin City and most notably as Phoebe Halliwell on Charmed (1998-2006). Both Alyssa and Holly Marie Combs became producers for Charmed during the show's fifth season. Alyssa played the role of Eva Savelot in MCI's 1-800-COLLECT commercials.
On stage, she starred in Tender Offer, a one-act play written by Wendy Wasserstein, All Night Long, and the first American musical adaptation of Jane Eyre. She returned to her theater roots in 1991, when she starred in and produced a Los Angeles production of Butterflies Are Free.
Alyssa is also filming a new movie called The Blue Hour; although very little has been released about the film, we know she plays a grieving mother named Allegra.
In February 2007, Alyssa was cast in an ABC drama pilot about a lawyer cum new mother, Annie Stevens, who moves from Atlanta to her hometown of Savannah, Georgia where her family still lives. The Futon Critic lists this pilot with the title of "All Fall Down".
Personal life
Alyssa is an avid fan of tattoos and has eight of them. She has a sacred heart on her behind, a fairy kneeling in grass on her hip, rosary beads on her back, an angel on her left ankle, an Ouroboros (a snake biting its own tail) on her right wrist, an "om" on the other wrist, garland of flowers around her right ankle and a tribal tattoo on her neck.
She is a liberal and supported John Kerry in the 2004 Presidential Election.
Alyssa has taken groundbreaking action to protect her rights and the rights of celebrities on the World Wide Web. She has won several copyright infringement suits, and has dedicated the settlement money to the launch of a new search index on the web, Safesearching.com, a global community dedicated to offering a safe way to get the best entertainment information on the Internet.
Alyssa recently became a National Ambassador for UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund). She traveled to India, as well as Angola, to work with UNICEF field officers there. In the fall of 2004, she launched UNICEF's pivotal "Trick or Treat" campaign as an official spokesperson. She raised approximately $50,000 for South African women and children who have AIDS by selling her photo work, and that of a school's.
Alyssa is also a supporter of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).
She announced on June 30, 2006, that she'll be partnering with G-III Apparel Group and Major League Baseball to create a line of ladies' baseball gear designed for juniors.
Alyssa resides in West Hills, California. Outside of acting, her hobbies include photography, humanitarian work and spending time with her 4 dogs; Ripely, Stella, Hugo, and Lucy. Her other pets are birds and horses.
Enjoys playing internet Scrabble. One of her opponents in the game is Sarah Silverman, who lives in the same building as Milano.
Ariel's (main character of The Little Mermaid, the 1989 Disney film) body shape and personality were based upon that of Alyssa Milano, then starring on TV's Who's the Boss?
