Ever since “Cheer” debuted on Netflix, the world has been sporting the school spirit. Chrissy Teigen even mentioned it on her Instagram how the docuseries got her reminiscing about her cheerleading gig in school. But is Teigen the only TV personality who cheered her way to stardom? There are many famous personalities whom we’ve seen in movies, cooking shows, reality TV and numerous other platforms and not realized that they once had pom-poms in their hands! Many years may have passed since their on-field glory days but their spirit is still the same. Let’s have a look at some of our favorite celebrities who lived by the slogan, “Eat, Sleep, Cheer, and Repeat”!
Cameron Diaz
One of the highest-grossing U.S. domestic box office actresses, Cameron Diaz is a well known name in the industry. Best known for her roles in Charlie’s Angels and the Shrek series, she has many accolades to her name but only few know about her humble beginnings. Born into a Cuban-American family, Diaz has admitted that her family collected soda cans for some extra cash. Things changed only when the blonde beauty signed a modeling contract with Elite Model Management at age 16. Interestingly, her first taste of popularity was as a cheerleader at Long Beach Polytechnic High School. Of course she had to spark to become the big name she is!
Rachael Ray
Rachael Ray is one of the most recognized names in the culinary industry. With her lifestyle program, Rachael Ray and the Food Network series, 30 Minute Meals, she is no stranger to television. She even has several cookbooks to her name, including the magazine, Every Day with Rachael Ray. While the details of Rachael’s early life are known to all, her gig at Lake George High School, in Lake George, New York is relatively unknown. Before rising as a culinary star, Rachael Ray was in fact a cheerleader. Could she be any cooler?
Jessica Simpson
The girl who realized she wanted to achieve success as a singer while singing in the church choir grew up to be a big name, a name we’ve all heard- Jessica Simpson! From ‘In This Skin’ to ‘Do You Know’, we’ve all seen Jessica showcase her versatility in music. But few people know that her talents aren’t restricted to singing. She was a cheerleader during her years at Richardson North Junior High School in Texas. Even after dropping off from school at 15, she was remembered as Tony Romo’s former biggest cheerleader.
Sandra Bullock
From being the most beautiful woman to being the highest paid actress to being included in Time’s list of the most influential people, there is nothing that Sandra Bullock hasn’t achieved! But where did her journey to stardom began? Bullock attended Washington-Lee High School where she performed in the school’s theater productions before graduating in the class of 1982. That’s where the seeds of acting were sown but her star like charisma comes from her stint as a cheerleader leading pep rallies at her school. Acting and cheerleading, the perfect recipe for stardom!
Paula Abdul
There is no doubt about Paula Abdul’s dancing talent since she has been a judge on multiple shows like The X Factor, Live To Dance, So You Think You Can Dance and The Masked Dancer. From giving successful albums to getting choreography credits in numerous films, Abdul has proved her mettle time and again. Looking at her dance moves, it doesn’t come as a shock that she began her career as a cheerleader at the age of 18 before becoming the head choreographer for the Laker Girls. Perhaps all the cheerleading practice came in handy when she joined The Jacksons!
Katie Couric
The founder of Katie Couric Media is one of the most respectable journalists out there. Katie Couric has been a television host at all of the Big Three television networks in the United States and has been inducted into the Television Hall of Fame. But who was she before getting famous? Before beginning a promising career in journalism in 1979, Couric attended school in Arlington, Virginia where she was an enthusiastic cheerleader. She surely had some moves back in the day!
Halle Berry
Ageless beauty, Halle Berry is easily one of the most attractive women Hollywood has ever seen. She began her career as a model and entered several beauty pageants with her first runner-up position in the Miss USA pageant being one of the most highlighted. But before the world began talking about her beauty and acting abilities, her school had already understood her talent. She was an honors student at the Bedford High School in Cleveland and was an editor for the school’s newspaper in addition to being a cheerleader. This girl was meant to go places!
Kelly Ripa
Hayley Vaughan from ‘All My Children’ is etched in our memories but more than the character, it is the actor who we floored by! Kelly Ripa is not just an actor but also a talk show host and a TV producer. Her professional success stems from a strong foundation laid in the early years. Some people might know that Kelly was studying psychology at the Camden County College when she dropped out and moved to New York to pursue acting. But only few people know that she was a cheerleader in high school when her drama teacher encouraged her to take up acting. Perhaps her acting skills were visible in her dance routines!
Fergie
We first got to know Fergie from the hip hop group Black Eyed Peas and she has been going strong since then. Apart from working with the group, she has ventured further with her solo albums and has even created her own fragrances. But was she always an overachiever? Born as Stacie Ann Ferguson, Fergie was a straight-A student in school. She actively participated in spelling bee championships and was a proud Girl Scout. If that was not enough, she was also a cheerleader at Glen A. Wilson High School. Doing a lot more than others was probably always her thing!
Eva Longoria
Nobody is ever forgetting Gabrielle Solis from the television series Desperate Housewives. The woman who brought the character to life was Eva Longoria who has been seen in projects like Over Her Dead Body, For Greater Glory and Overboard. But before she barged into the acting scene, she was a cheerleader! While studying at Roy Miller High School, in Corpus Christi, Texas, Eva was a cheerleader and continued shaking her pom-poms during her college years at Texas A&M-Kingsville. Then in 1998, she won the Miss Corpus Christi pageant where she was spotted by a theatrical agent in Los Angeles and the rest is history.
Ciara
From topping the Billboard Hot 100 chart with the first album to getting multiple nominations at the Grammys, Ciara Princess Wilson had all the things going for her right from the beginning of her career. Apart from rocking the music world, she had a few modeling stints on the side as well. But before any of this happened, Ciara was a high-schooler and a popular one at that. She was the captain of Riverdale High School’s cheerleading squad but had to take it slow since around that time she started focusing more on her music. We wonder what would have happened had she not traded her pom-poms for the microphone.
Mandy Moore
Mandy Moore’s career graph has been on an incline right from the start. She began as a singer, moved to being a voice actor and then plunged into acting with her role as Lana Thomas in the comedy movie The Princess Diaries. Ever since she’s worked in a multitude of films with the most notable being A Walk To Remember and License To Wed. But how did Moore perform so well right from her first movie? The reason she was so good in the role of the pom-pom shaking Lana might be because Mandy was a cheerleader at Bishop Moore Catholic High School!
Kirsten Dunst
We can’t imagine any other actress in the role of Mary Jane Watson in the Spider Man series. Kirsten Dunst lived that character and had us believed she really was Mary Jane. But before becoming our favorite superhero’s love interest, Kirsten had appeared in over 100 commercials starting at the age of 3. Her modeling gigs didn’t keep her from living a normal school life. She still found time to be a cheerleader for Laurel Hall School and later Notre Dame High School. It was perhaps her experience with pom-poms that made it easy for her to shine in the cheerleading comedy Bring It On.
Kathie Lee Gifford
Not many women can confidently say that they had a 15-year-run on a talk show but Kathie Lee Gifford can! Her talent can’t be quantified but the fact that she has received 11 Daytime Emmy nominations can explain a lot. She didn’t get the stardom by luck, she worked hard for it by studying drama and music at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Not many people know that her love for performing began in high school where she was a singer in a folk group, "Pennsylvania Next Right" and also a cheerleader.
Madonna
The ‘Queen of Pop’ is one of the most influential figures in popular culture without a doubt. Her works have generated both critical acclaim and controversy but that’s part of the parcel when you push the boundaries of artistic expression in mainstream music. But Madonna wasn’t always a controversial figure. Born to blue-collar Italian-American immigrants, Madonna attended Rochester Adams High School where she was a straight-A student. She was also a cheerleader in school and then received a dance scholarship to the University of Michigan but had to drop out to turn into a music icon.
Nene Leakes
Born in Queens and raised in Athens, Linnethia Monique "NeNe" Leakes is an American television personality, actress, presenter, author, and fashion designer. Whether it was her recurring character in Glee or her stint in ‘Dancing With The Stars’, she has never failed to wow the audience. She is best known for her role in the reality series Real House Wives Of Atlanta but strangely, it never occurred to anyone why Nene was so spunky and spirited in it. The answer lies in her school days when she was a cheerleader. She always knew how to put on a good show, at least her skills with pom-poms say that!
Megan Fox
The beauty from Transformers, Megan Fox doesn’t need any introduction. Her pictures have appeared in leading magazines like Maxim, Rolling Stone, and FHM. She has appeared in many films including ‘The Dictator’, ‘This is 40’ and ‘The Battle of Jangsari’. One of the more famous works of Megan is her stint with Lindsay Lohan as a cheerleader in Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen which now makes more sense. When Fox was attending Morningside Academy in Port St. Lucie after moving to Florida, she was a member of the cheerleading squad. Strangely, it didn’t translate into high school popularity but none of it matters now that she is way more popular than any girl from her class!
Denise Richards
Who would believe that the former fashion model and TV personality, Denise Richards was an athletic tomboy? Before barging into the TV scene with Loaded Weapon 1, she was a tomboy during her school years in Illinois. That quickly changed when her family moved to Oceanside California. She graduated from El Camino High School where she gained popularity as a cheerleader and later was even voted best looking in her high school yearbook. That explains why she was casted in Drop Dead Gorgeous, like that should practically be her name!
Brooklyn Decker
You know a model is successful when she has worked with Victoria’s Secret and has appeared on the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. After sweeping the ramp with her impeccable walk, Brooklyn Decker moved to the world of movies with ‘Just Go With It’. But before becoming a famous model, Brooklyn was a cheerleader for Butler High School in Charlotte, North Carolina. Apart from being a part of the spirit squad, she was also the school’s senior class president. She was probably the one who arranged her 10-year reunion!
Olivia Wilde
The American actress and filmmaker, Olivia Wilde is best known for her role in the TV series ‘House’ and movies like ‘Butter’, ‘Her’ and ‘Love The Coopers’. But before she went “wild” showcasing her acting talent, she was on the step team of Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. About this picture Wilde said, “This was a great squad. The funny thing about this picture is that my high school happens to also be the school that George W. Bush went to. And one of the most famous photographs of him was as head cheerleader in almost this exact same outfit.”
Lindsay Lohan
When other girls were playing with dolls, Linday Lohan was a regular at television soap opera Another World at age 10. She gained fame with The Parent Trap and later rose to prominence in the music industry with her album Speak. Even though she has been in the limelight right from the age of 3, she attended school like normal kids. The teen idol from ‘Mean Girls’ grew up on Long Island in New York, where she jumped with her pom-poms for both Cold Spring Harbor High School and Sanford H. Calhoun High School. But she had to resort to homeschooling in grade 11 when her career picked up pace.
Olivia Munn
We know her from political drama series The Newsroom, but Olivia Munn has been a part of many big projects in the industry. Her role in Iron Man 2 is hard to forget, so is her appearance in The Predator. The woman belonged to showbiz, especially after she completed her degree in journalism and moved to LA. Many people know that Munn spent a lot of time in Japan where her father was stationed in the Air Force. But the fact that she has her roots in Oklahoma is relatively unknown. While she was studying at Putnam City North High School, she was part of the cheerleading squad and enjoyed the popularity it got her!
Meryl Streep
Meryl Streep’s face is etched in our memories ever since we watched ‘The Devil Wears Prada’. She has more accolades to her name than one can count. She has a record 32 Golden Globe nominations, winning nine and out of her 21 Academy Awards nominations, she won 3. Meryl was popular way before she became the "best actress of her generation". She was a varsity cheerleader at Bernards High School in New Jersey. Someone sneaky got a picture from her high school yearbook to share the evidence!
Kathy Griffin
Kathy Griffin is one of the most controversial comedians of her time. That might have only cemented the idea of her unbeatable talent. She has released six comedy albums, all of which received Grammy Award nominations. With her very first album, she became the first female comedian to debut at the top of the Billboard Top Comedy Albums chart. She wasn’t always the goofy person as we know her. Back in the day when she was attending Oak Park and River Forest High School in Illinois, she was a fresh-faced member of her school cheerleading team. An astonishing photo of this outspoken redhead was found in her yearbook.
Alicia Silverstone
Earning the MTV Award for Best Breakthrough Performance with her debut movie, Alicia Silverstone created quite a buzz in the industry. After she appeared in the teen comedy movie Clueless, there was no looking back for her. But she didn’t jump to stardom in her teen years without any effort. Our Batgirl honed her dance and acting skills at San Mateo High School, by cheering on her fellow Bearcats. She probably had no idea that being a cheerleader would catapult her into stardom!
Blake Lively
Best known for her role in Gossip Girl, Blake Lively needs no introduction. She has worked in movies like Green Lantern, Savages, The Shallows and A Simple Favor. When she is not busy shooting, she indulges in funny online banter with husband, Ryan Reynolds which is always awaited by her followers. Not many people know that Blake wasn’t interested in performing as a child. But years of acting conditioning and her cheerleading stint at Burbank High School gave her the direction and she ended up balancing school with her shooting of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.
Renée Zellweger
Renée Zellweger is a known name in the acting industry. She has two Academy Awards and four Golden Globe Awards to her name. One of her finest performances was the portrayal of Bridget Jones in the romantic comedy Bridget Jones's Diary. Zellweger might be a successful actor today but that wasn’t her original plan! She was aspiring for a career in journalism when she felt drawn to acting after her time on stage during college. But it was her cheerleading stint at Katy High School in Katy, Texas that gave her the confidence to perform.
Amy Poehler
The founder of the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, Amy Poehler began her journey with a half-hour sketch-comedy series on Comedy Central in 1998. Slowly she climbed her way up and stared as Leslie Knope in the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation. Through the years she has won many awards for her knack for comedy. But who was Amy Poehler before she started making the crowds laugh with her comedy timing? While she was studying at Burlington High School, Amy was a pom-pom shaking cheerleader for her school’s football games. It was only after college that she moved to Chicago to barge into the comedy scene.
Diane Sawyer
One of the most well known broadcast journalists in America, Lila Diane Sawyer has been an anchor on major programs like ABC World News Tonight, Good Morning America, Primetime newsmagazine and 20/20. Before her journalism career kicked off, she was a member of U.S. President Richard Nixon's White House staff. It is hard to believe that a woman who has made a career out of speaking and facing the camera was a loner during her school years. It was her spot in the cheerleading squad for Seneca High School in Louisville, Kentucky that changed her life completely.
Jennifer Lawrence
With her movies grossing over $6 billion worldwide, Jennifer Lawrence is one of the most sought after actresses of the time. How she landed her first gig is an interesting story as well. She was spotted by a talent scout while vacationing in New York with her family. But what most people don’t know about her back story is that while growing up in Louisville, Kentucky, she had a very busy extracurricular schedule. She played basketball, softball and field hockey. If the sports weren’t enough, she was also a cheerleader during her high school years
Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus is another name for controversy in the music world but that doesn’t take away from her talent. Her music range is wide, spreading from pop to hip hop to experimental and rock. She is often regarded as one of the few examples of successful child actors-turned-singers. It won’t be wrong to say that performing was in her blood since she is the daughter of country music singer, Billy Ray Cyrus. Before becoming the teen sensation with her character Hannah Montana, she was a cheerleader for the Tennessee Premier Soccer team in her small hometown of Franklin when she was only 7.
Kendall Jenner
One of the world’s highest paid models, Kendall Jenner is a brand ambassador for Estée Lauder. She has done cover shoots for LOVE and various international Vogue editions. During the Paris, Milan and New York fashion weeks, she can be seen walking the runway for high fashion designers. Kendall rose to fame with her family’s reality TV show ‘Keeping Up With The Kardashians’ and moved to the modeling industry at the age of 14. But when this fame got too much for her, she would don her snazzy blue and white uniform and escape with her pom-poms to be on the varsity squad for Sierra Canyon School.
Dakota Fanning
Jane from The Twilight Saga may have been one of the major antagonists but she had no haters. Though we loved Dakota Fanning the most in this series, she first rose to fame at the age of 7 with her portrayal of Lucy Dawson in ‘I Am Sam’. As a young star, offers were pouring in left, right and center and soon she became a frequent guest in shows like ER, The Practice, Spin City and The Ellen Show. Once she had built a solid career, she began focusing on education and she joined the varsity cheerleading squad at Campbell Hall School.
Gabrielle Union
The world could have first seen Gabrielle Union in ‘Saved By The Bell’ by maybe we weren’t ready for her awesomeness. Today she is most known for her work in movies like The Brothers, Daddy’s Little Girls, Bad Boys 2 and Breaking In. Her breakthrough role was in Bring It On where she played Torrence’s rival cheerleader, Isis. Perhaps the reason for her impeccable performance was that Union herself had been a cheerleader during her high school years. Now we know where she got her moves from!
Paul Rudd
Not many people know but up until around 70 years ago, cheerleading was a predominantly male sport! This might help understand how Paul Rudd was a cheerleader or a “yell leader” when he was a high school student in Overland Park, Kansas. The Student Body President was known for his contagious smile which he surely ahs used in the movie business. From Clueless to Knocked Up, the man has showcased his versatility but nothing beats his Ant-Man role. A superhero, who was once a cheerleader, this couldn’t get any better!
Jenna Dewan
Actress and dancer, Jenna Dewan showed her killer dance moves as Nora Clark in Step Up. But her roots were more humble since she began her journey as a backup dancer for Janet Jackson. Her dancing goes way back to her school days when she was a varsity cheerleader at Grapevine High School in Grapevine, Texas where she voted prom queen during her senior year. The world today knows her for starring in series like The Playboy Club and American Horror Story: Asylum, and for hosting the reality television shows World of Dance and Flirty Dancing.
Danielle Brooks
We know Danielle Brooks as Tasha "Taystee" Jefferson from the Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black. Her performance in the series shook the world and was called “one of the most refreshing and exciting new talents of 2013” by a writer. But who was she before her big break? Danielle was a cheerleader in her school years but she quit due to insecurities. Later she wrote in an emotional letter online, “You really quit cheerleading because of how you felt you looked when you were wearing a skirt? OK! Never ever quit anything again because you’re scared of what others might think of you.”
Melissa Rycroft
Melissa Rycroft is the gorgeous bachelorette who won the thirteenth season of The Bachelor. Even though Jason Mesnick proposed to her in the season finale, he left her shortly for the runner-up of the show, Molly Malaney. This reality TV drama probably added to Rycroft’s popularity and she went on to host reality TV competition shows like Bachelor Pad and Redneck Island. Before stepping into reality TV, she was on the drill squad during her high school years and then later became a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader. That explains how she made a place for herself in Dancing with the Stars.
Stacy Keibler
Stacy Ann-Marie Keibler is most known for her work with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment. Due to her exceptionally long legs, she earned the titles of "The Legs of WCW" and "The Legs of WWE" during her wrestling years. She later moved to TV series to hone her acting skills. Stacy has used her good looks and smart wit to establish a career in the spotlight. Not many people know that it was her stint as a Baltimore Ravens cheerleader that landed her a place in WCW.
Samuel L. Jackson
One of the most popular actors of his generation, Samuel L. Jackson is noted for his performances in Jungle Fever, Old Boy, Pulp Fiction and The Hateful Eight. His movies have collectively grossed over $27 billion worldwide, making him the highest-grossing actor of all time. It seems odd that Jackson is on this list but surprisingly, he was on the cheer squad during his days at Morehouse College. He had a very smart reason for this choice, he wanted to meet women since Morehouse was a men’s school!
Jessie James Decker
Jessica Rose James Decker has done everything that her fans could ever expect from her. She’s a country pop singer-songwriter, dancer, reality television personality, fashion designer, and entrepreneur. But was the journey to stardom so easy for her? When Jessie was a 15-year-old cheerleader in school, she had made up her mind to make a career in music. That year she was rejected by most of the country labels in Nashville, Tennessee and started working with Carla Wallace of Big Yellow Dog Music. This was a turning point in her career since one of the songs landed her a recording contract with Mercury Records and the rest is history.
Lucy Hale
Karen Lucille Hale first rose to fame for her roles in the series ‘Bionic Woman’ and ‘Privileged’ before garnering worldwide praise for starring as Aria Montgomery in the series ‘Pretty Little Liars’. She has also made appearances in movies like Sorority Wars, Scream 4 and Fantasy Island. Before rocking the acting world with her talent, she was a cheerleader in her school years and was also interesting in music. She participated in the singing competition TV show American Juniors. That explains why she was so good in her debut studio album, Road Between.
Sally Field
It won’t be wrong to call Sally Field one of the most an award winning actresses of Hollywood. To her name she has three Primetime Emmy Awards, two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards and a Screen Actors Guild Award. She was also nominated for a Tony Award, and two British Academy Film Awards. Her career started on television with comedies like Gidget and The Flying Nun. But before her acting train took off, the Forrest Gump actress was a cheerleader at Birmingham High School in Van Nuys, California where she studied with actress Cindy Williams, financier Michael Milken, and talent agent Michael Ovitz.
Reese Witherspoon
One of the highest paid actresses in the world, Reese Witherspoon has received an Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award. She first gained fame for her role in Legally Blonde and then moved on to do TV series like Big Little Lies and The Morning Show. Many people don’t know that Witherspoon’s first taste of fame was at the age of 7 when she modeled for a florist's television advertisements. Throughout school, she was a multi-achiever with her top notch grades and performance as a cheerleader. It’s not wrong to say that she equally loved her books and pom-poms.
Steve Martin
Steve Martin’s name is taken with the world’s greatest stand-up comics. The greatness of his talent is hard to sum up but with the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, the Kennedy Center Honors, and an AFI Life Achievement Award, he has certainly proven his worth. Apart from comedy, he has branched into movies with his performances in L.A. Story and Pink Panther. The Dirty Rotten Scoundrels actor was a part of his high school cheerleading squad in Garden Grove, California. With comedy flowing through his veins, he attempted to write some humorous cheers for the team which didn’t go down well with the rest!
Kirk Douglas
The leading box-office star of 1950s, Kirk Douglas appeared in 90 films throughout his career. He debuted with The Strange Love Of Martha Ivers and moved on to starring in Champion, Detective Story and Seven Days In May. He even wrote ten novels and memoirs in his lifetime. While Kirk had a successful career, life wasn’t always a bed of roses for him. He had an impoverished childhood with immigrant parents and six sisters. But life took a turn when he joined the cheerleading squad Amsterdam High School, in Amsterdam, New York. Then his love for performing grew and a star emerged.
Michael Douglas
The elder son of Kirk Douglas, Michael is an actor and producer. He first achieved prominence with his role in the television series The Streets of San Francisco and then moved on to producing films. Michael surely followed his father’s footsteps in showbiz but there was one more thing that he took on from his dad. Just like Kirk Douglas, Michael was a cheerleader during his school years at Choate Preparatory School. He then studied at the University of California before joining The American Place Theatre in New York City.
Chrissy Teigen
Chrissy Teigen is a model, TV personality, author, chef and entrepreneur. She made her debut in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue in 2010 and was named "Rookie of the Year". She co-hosts the musical competition series Lip Sync Battle and is a judge on the comedy competition series Bring the Funny. With Chrissy doing so much currently, it makes sense that she was involved in extra-curricular during her school days. She was a football cheerleader at Snohomish High School loved the sport so much that years later she shared an old picture of her cheerleading days on her Instagram.
Kirstie Alley
Interior designer turned actress, Kirstie Alley broke into the acting scene with the sitcom ‘Cheers’, for which she received an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe. She started off strong and then moved on with movies like Summer School, It Takes Two and Drop Dead Gorgeous. She also appeared on Dancing With The Stars and Celebrity Big Brother. Before her acting debut, she had dropped out of college to pursue Scientology and work as an interior designer while simultaneously participating in many game shows. But what most people don’t know about her early years is that during her time at Wichita Southeast High School in Kansas, she cheered on her school’s athletes.
Jayma Mays
Jamia Suzette "Jayma" Mays is known for her roles in sitcoms and TV series like The Millers and Heroes. But at the start of her career, she was a part of movies like Red Eye, The Smurfs and Last Weekend. The Trial & Error actress started her career on the local radio station reading the obituaries at the age of 15. She obviously had a lovely voice and during her high school years, she was a cheerleader. This comes as a surprise since in her most famous role as Emma Pillsbury in Glee, she was always seen battling the cheerleading coach!
Rashida Jones
Everyone knows Karen Filippelli from the comedy series, The Office. Rashida Leah Jones is the woman behind the iconic character and going by her experience in front of the camera, it comes as no surprise that ‘Karen’ was so popular. Apart from showcasing her acting skills in The Social Network and The Muppets, she has co-written Tag and Toy Story 4. Rashida’s multi-talented personality glowed in the limelight but the seeds were sown during her school years. She was a well-rounded student with her regular participation in math club and National Honor Society while simultaneously shaking pom-poms as a part of the spirit squad. A nerdy cheerleader- we are here for it!
Phaedra Parks
Phaedra Parks is a known face in the entertainment industry. Her recurring spot on the riveting reality show Real House Wives Of Atlanta has been one of her top moments on the screen. The Southern Belle then stepped up to manage a boutique law firm specializing in intellectual property and entertainment law. But before Phaedra appeared on the screen or started throwing it in the court room, she was a simple country girl. While studying at Clarke Central High School in Athens, Georgia, she was cheering for her school with her squad. Who would’ve thought this pom-pom shaking girl would build a career in law?
Ann Margret
The Swedish-American actress, Ann Margret is known for her roles in Bye Bye Birdie, Tommy, The Train Robbers, The Villain and Going In Style. The woman has won five Golden Globe Awards for her acting abilities and was dubbed as the female version of Elvis Presley in the beginning of her career. Before making it big on the silver screen, Ann was a cheerleader at New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois. Her pictures from the time are proof that she was always made to shine in the spotlight!
Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi
Popular by her nickname Snooki, Nicole Elizabeth LaValle is a TV personality best known for being a cast member of the MTV show, Jersey Shore where she earned $150,000 per episode by the last season! She has been on numerous talk shows and web and TV series before competing at WrestleMania XXVII. While attending school in Marlboro, N.Y, Polizzi was a cheerleader but her story wasn’t all fun and games. As she later admitted, “Cheerleading was my life in high school, but it wasn’t always easy for me. I started to be anorexic. There were freshmen, who were 70 pounds and I was, like, my spot as a flier is going to get taken away. So I ended up starving myself.’
