Caroline Sunshine

Last updated

Caroline Sunshine
Caroline Sunshine 2012.jpg
Sunshine in 2012
Born
Caroline Mohr Sunshine

(1995-09-05) September 5, 1995 (age 29)
Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Education Claremont McKenna College [1]
Years active2004–2017 [a]
Political party Republican

Caroline Mohr Sunshine (born September 5, 1995) is an American political aide and former actress, who previously worked as a White House staffer during the Donald Trump administration in 2018. As an actress, she is best known for her co-starring role as flashy, rude European exchange student Tinka Hessenheffern on the Disney Channel series Shake It Up . Sunshine has also appeared in the feature film Marmaduke (2010) and the direct-to-video film The Outfield (2015).

Contents

Early life

Caroline Sunshine was born on September 5, 1995, in Atlanta, Georgia, to parents Thom and Karen Sunshine. [2] She was raised in Orange County, California, and has two younger brothers, Johnny and Christopher. [2] [3] Sunshine began studying ballet at the age of 3 and landed her first lead role playing Goldilocks in a kindergarten play. [2] [3] She later moved on to acting with the Orange County Children's Theater and dancing competitively with the South Coast Performing Arts studio in Tustin, California. [3] [4]

Career

Acting

Sunshine at the world premiere of Cars 2 in June 2011 Caroline Sunshine 2011.jpg
Sunshine at the world premiere of Cars 2 in June 2011

In 2004 Sunshine started in theater and her stage credits include Annie Warbucks at the Orange County Children's Theatre, The Nutcracker at the Academy of Dance and South Coast Performing Arts, and Stage Door at the Lutheran High School of Orange County. [2] [5] In 2006, Sunshine began going to professional auditions at the age of 11, and landed her first role in a commercial for Amazing Allysen the talking doll, as well as commercial work for Yoplait Go-Gurt, and Cap'n Crunch. [2] [3] [4] In 2010, Sunshine filmed her first pilot for the CBS sitcom, Team Spitz, co-starring as the teenage daughter of a high school coach played by Rob Riggle. [3] [6] [7] In the summer of that same year, she gained popular notoriety for her role as Barbara Winslow in her first feature film, Marmaduke , based on the comic strip of the same name. [3] [4] [6]

In the fall of 2010, Sunshine landed what would become her most famous role as a co-star on the Disney Channel original series, Shake It Up as European exchange student, Tinka Hessenheffer alongside Kenton Duty as her flamboyant twin brother, Gunther Hessenheffer. [8] [9] [10] [11] The glitzy brother/sister duo of Gunther and Tinka is said to be inspired by Ryan and Sharpay Evans of Disney's High School Musical franchise. [11] [12] [13] [14] She was a recurring cast member during the first season, but was promoted to a regular character for the second and third seasons. The series ended in November 2013. Sunshine appeared on the Disney Channel Christmas album Holidays Unwrapped ; her cover version of "All I Want for Christmas Is You" was featured as the tenth song on the album.

In June 2014 she filmed a Freeform pilot called Recovery Road based on Blake Nelson's novel of the same name, in which she co-starred alongside Samantha Logan. [15] Neither Sunshine nor Logan would appear in the actual series, however. Logan was replaced by Jessica Sula and Sunshine's character was removed from the script. During 2015, Sunshine appeared the television film Go Four Broke as Tiffani Brand. Earlier that year, she appeared in the big screen production of The Outfield .

Activism

In February 2011, Sunshine became the spokesmodel for the teen fragrance "Puppy Love 4 Girlz". [16] [17] "Puppy Love" Fragrances is committed to helping homeless dogs and puppies, with a portion of all proceeds of the perfume going to local animal shelters. [17] In May 2011, Sunshine was named one of Dream Magazine's "Top 16 Under 16". [18]

In addition to her work with "Puppy Love", Sunshine is involved in several other charitable causes including the "Joyful Sewing Organization," which makes blankets for cancer patients, "Working Wardrobes," which provides assistance to underprivileged women and victims of domestic abuse, the Orange County Child Abuse Prevention Center, which offers in-home parenting classes to families to break the generational cycle of abuse, the "Adopt A Hero" program, which provides for the needs of soldiers and their families; the "Loaves and Fishes Ministry" which helps to feed the homeless, and the "Thirst Project," which is dedicated to providing clean drinking water to communities in developing nations. [19] [20] [21]

Politics

Sunshine became involved in politics as a White House intern during the Trump Administration in January 2018, receiving a full-time job as a press assistant by mid-March 2018. [22] Prior to this role, Sunshine had interned for the office of Kevin McCarthy, then the House Majority Leader; the College Republican National Committee; and the California Republican Party. [23] In February 2023, Sunshine became the press secretary and communications director for Eric Doden, a gubernatorial candidate for Indiana governor. [24] In December 2023, Sunshine was hired as the press secretary for Vivek Ramaswamy's 2024 presidential campaign. [25] In June 2024, Sunshine was re-hired by Donald Trump, as the Deputy Communications Director of his 2024 presidential campaign. [26]

Personal

[2] [3] [4] [7] [27] Sunshine is a graduate of Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, California, and Orange Lutheran High School in Orange, California.[ citation needed ]

Filmography

Film roles
YearTitleRole
2010 Marmaduke Barbara Winslow
2015 The Outfield Emily Jordan
Television roles
YearTitleRoleNotes
2008What's the Word?HerselfEpisode: "Johnny Kapahala: Back on Board"
2010–2013 Shake It Up Tinka Hessenheffer Recurring role (season 1); main role (seasons 2–3); 45 episodes
2012 A.N.T. Farm EllaEpisode: "Some enchANTed evening"
2014 Fish Hooks AlexisVoice; episode "Algae Day/Bea Saves a Tree"
2017Mommy I Didn't Do ItSylvie GarrettTelevision film

Stage

YearTitleRole
2004 Annie Warbucks Orphan
2005 The Nutcracker Doll
2006 Stage Door Annie

Discography

Promotional singles

YearSongAlbum
2012"Roam" [28]
(with Davis Cleveland, Kenton Duty and Adam Irigoyen)		 Treasure Buddies

Other appearances

YearTitleAlbum
2012"The Star I R" Shake It Up: Live 2 Dance
"All I Want For Christmas Is You" Disney Channel Holiday Playlist
2013"Afterparty" (with Roshon Fegan) Shake It Up: I <3 Dance

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryWorkResultRef.
2011 Young Artist Awards Outstanding Young Ensemble in a TV Series
(shared with Bella Thorne, Zendaya, Davis Cleveland, Roshon Fegan, Adam Irigoyen and Kenton Duty)		 Shake It Up Nominated [29]
2012Nominated [30]

Notes

  1. ↑ Sunshine's acting career was from 2004–2017 while her political career is 2018–present.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brenda Song</span> American actress (born 1988)

Brenda Song is an American actress. Born in California, Song began her career at the age of six, working as a child model. She made her screen debut with a guest appearance on the sitcom Thunder Alley (1995), and went on to roles such as the children's television series Fudge (1995) and the Nickelodeon series 100 Deeds for Eddie McDowd (1999). She starred in the Disney Channel original film The Ultimate Christmas Present (2000), which won her a Young Artist Award. She subsequently signed a contract with Disney Channel and earned widespread recognition for playing the titular character in the action film Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior (2006), and London Tipton in the comedy franchise The Suite Life (2005–2011), earning her acclaim and two Young Hollywood Awards. She additionally played the character of Tia on Phil of the Future (2004–2005), and had starring roles in the television film Get a Clue (2002), the sports comedy film Like Mike (2002) and the comedy film Stuck in the Suburbs (2004).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anneliese van der Pol</span> Dutch and American actress (born 1984)

Anneliese Louise van der Pol is a Dutch and American actress and singer, based in the United States. She is best known for her portrayal of Chelsea Daniels on the Disney Channel series That's So Raven (2003–2007) and its spin-off Raven's Home (2017–2022). In association with Disney Channel, van der Pol has recorded several songs, including "Over It", which was featured on the Stuck in the Suburbs soundtrack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashley Tisdale</span> American actress and singer (born 1985)

Ashley Michelle Tisdale is an American actress and singer. During her childhood, she was featured in over 100 advertisements and had minor roles on-screen and in theatre. She achieved mainstream success as Maddie Fitzpatrick in the Disney Channel teen sitcom The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2005–2008). This success was heightened when she starred as Sharpay Evans in the High School Musical film series (2006–2008). The success of the films led to Tisdale's signing with Warner Bros. Records and subsequently releasing her debut studio album, Headstrong (2007), which was a commercial success, earning a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Tisdale also provides the voice of Candace Flynn in the Disney Channel animated series Phineas and Ferb.

<i>High School Musical 2</i> 2007 film by Kenny Ortega

High School Musical 2 is a 2007 American musical television film directed by Kenny Ortega and written by Peter Barsocchini. The 70th Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM), it is the sequel to High School Musical (2006) and the second installment of the High School Musical film series. The film stars Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel, Corbin Bleu, and Monique Coleman. In High School Musical 2, Troy Bolton (Efron), Gabriella Montez (Hudgens), and the Wildcats find summer jobs at a country club, but tensions rise when Sharpay Evans (Tisdale) recruits Bolton for a talent show performance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bella Thorne</span> American actress and singer (born 1997)

Annabella Avery Thorne is an American actress, singer, and writer. She first received recognition for her roles as Margaux Darling in the series Dirty Sexy Money (2007–2008) and as Ruthy Spivey in the drama series My Own Worst Enemy (2009), the latter of which earned her a Young Artist Award.

"Start It Up" is the pilot episode of the American television series Shake It Up, a female buddy-show with a dance concept, starring Bella Thorne and Zendaya. As the series' opening episode, it introduces the main characters in the series, and follows Rocky and CeCe as they try out for "Shake It Up Chicago", after being encouraged by Deuce and Ty. Also in this episode, Flynn tries to avenge CeCe and Rocky for his breakfast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Debby Ryan</span> American actress and singer (born 1993)

Deborah Ann Ryan is an American actress and singer. She started acting professionally onstage at the age of seven, and was later discovered during Disney Channel's nationwide search for new talent. She had starring roles in the series The Suite Life on Deck (2008–2011), the film 16 Wishes (2010), the series Jessie (2011–2015), and the film Radio Rebel (2012). She also appeared in the drama film What If... (2010), the series Insatiable (2018–2019), the comedy films The Opening Act (2020) and Shortcomings (2023), the thriller film Night Teeth (2021), and the Jeff Baena films Horse Girl (2020) and Spin Me Round (2022).

<i>Shake It Up</i> (American TV series) American sitcom

Shake It Up is an American sitcom that originally aired on Disney Channel from November 7, 2010, to November 10, 2013. Created by Chris Thompson and starring Bella Thorne and Zendaya, the show follows the adventures of CeCe Jones and Rocky Blue (Zendaya) as they star as background dancers on a local show, Shake It Up Chicago. It also chronicles their misadventures on and off-set and their troubles and rising social status at school. Davis Cleveland, Roshon Fegan, Adam Irigoyen, Kenton Duty, and Caroline Sunshine play other main characters in the series. The show's original concept was for Disney to create a female buddy comedy with a dance aspect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zendaya</span> American actress and singer (born 1996)

Zendaya Maree Stoermer Coleman is an American actress and singer. Her accolades include two Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. In 2022, Time named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Irigoyen</span> Musical artist

Adam Irigoyen is an American actor, singer, rapper and dancer. He is best known for his role as Deuce Martinez in the Disney Channel series Shake It Up.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenton Duty</span> American actor, singer, and dancer (born 1995)

Jeffrey Kenton Duty is an American actor, singer, and dancer. He is best known for his recurring role as "young Jacob" on the final season of the ABC primetime drama, Lost, and for his co-starring role as the flamboyant European exchange student, Gunther Hessenheffer on the Disney Channel comedy series, Shake It Up, and Matt Prylek in the anti-bullying movie, Contest.

<i>A.N.T. Farm</i> American teen sitcom

A.N.T. Farm is an American teen sitcom that originally aired on Disney Channel from May 6, 2011, to March 21, 2014. It first aired on May 6, 2011, as a special one-episode preview and continued as a regular series starting on June 17, 2011. After airing as the preview of the series, the pilot episode "transplANTed" later re-aired after the series finale of The Suite Life on Deck. The series was created by Dan Signer, a former writer and co-executive producer of The Suite Life on Deck and creator of the Disney XD/YTV series Mr. Young. In mid-November 2010, Disney Channel greenlit the series, with production beginning in early 2011. The first promo was released during the premiere of Lemonade Mouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rowan Blanchard</span> American actress

Rowan Blanchard is an American actress and activist. She began acting as a child, and played Rebecca Wilson in the action film Spy Kids: All the Time in the World (2011). She rose to prominence after playing Riley Matthews on the Disney Channel series Girl Meets World (2014–2017), which earned her nominations at the Kids' Choice, Teen Choice, and Young Artist Awards. She then starred in the TNT/AMC series Snowpiercer (2020–2024) and the Hulu coming-of-age film Crush (2022).

<i>Shake It Up</i> season 1 Season of television series

The first season of Shake It Up aired on Disney Channel from November 7, 2010 to August 21, 2011. The series revolves around two best friends, CeCe Jones and Rocky Blue (Zendaya) as they try to deal with the cons of being on the most famous TV show Shake It Up, Chicago. Throughout the series, they try to keep their head in the game when it comes to school, babysitting, and being on time and prepared to perform on the show. This season filmed from July 2010 to March 2011. The pilot episode was filmed in February 2010.

Matthew Tishler is a Canadian songwriter and music producer who has written and produced songs for film, television, radio, stage, and theme parks. He is known for his work with teen pop artists such as Olivia Rodrigo, Dove Cameron, Sabrina Carpenter, Ashley Tisdale, Olivia Holt and JoJo Siwa, as well as popular K-pop/J-pop artists like BTS, TWICE, EXO, NCT Dream, Enhypen, Taeyeon, Red Velvet, Namie Amuro, Kumi Koda, EXILE Atsushi, P1Harmony, and Stray Kids. His projects have combined sales of over 25 million units.

<i>Shake It Up</i> (Indian TV series) 2013 Indian Sitcom

Shake It Up is an Indian sitcom airing on Disney Channel India. The series premiered on 30 March 2013. It is an Indian adaptation of the American television series of the same name. The series was created by Chris Thompson.

<i>Shake It Up</i> season 2 Season of television series

The second season of Shake It Up aired on Disney Channel from September 18, 2011, to August 17, 2012. It consisted of 28 episodes, giving the series a total of 49 episodes thus far. Caroline Sunshine was added to the main cast this season.

The third and final season of Shake It Up premiered on Disney Channel on October 14, 2012. Kenton Duty is not a main cast member in this season and has been removed from the opening credits. This is the final season of the series, with the series finale airing on November 10, 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heather Youmans</span> American singer-songwriter

Heather Youmans is an American dancer and singer-songwriter known for her soundtrack work on the feature films, Moondance Alexander (2007), Flicka 2 (2010) and Marley & Me: The Puppy Years (2011). Youmans recently appeared on I Can See Your Voice episode 4 (FOX), other live performances include a UNICEF benefit opening solo ahead of headliners Sting and Natalie Cole in 2005, a National Anthem performance for the Los Angeles Kings on New Year's Eve 2019, and Parade magazine's, She Rocks Spotlight Series, in 2020. Her work has been featured in American Songwriter magazine, Forbes Women and Parade magazine profiled her career and music in 2020. Youmans holds an MBA and is publicist with Fender Guitars, she has written for the Los Angeles Times, and the Orange County Register.

References

  1. ↑ Larsen, Peter (March 28, 2018). "Caroline Sunshine, a former Disney Channel star from Orange County, joins the White House press office". Orange County Register. Retrieved March 29, 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Caroline Sunshine is "Tinka"". Disney Channel Medianet. Archived from the original on April 2, 2012. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Tustin teen stars in 'Marmaduke'". The Orange County Register. June 6, 2010. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Meet Marmaduke Star Caroline Sunshine!'". Hollywood Teen 'Zine. Archived from the original on January 7, 2011. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  5. ↑ "Disney Channel show stars actress with Chicago ties". WLS-TV: ABC Chicago. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
  6. 1 2 "Caroline Sunshine Exclusive Interview". The Star Scoop. Archived from the original on August 16, 2018. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  7. 1 2 "Caroline Sunshine Interview'". Portrait Magazine. Archived from the original on January 12, 2013. Retrieved February 7, 2011.
  8. ↑ "Characters – Gunther & Tinka – Shake It Up! – Disney Channel". Disney Channel Online . Disney. Archived from the original on November 8, 2010. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  9. ↑ "'Shake It Up': Meet Gunther & Tinka". ClevverTV. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  10. ↑ "1 on 1 with Caroline Sunshine & Kenton Duty". Fanlala. Archived from the original on July 10, 2011. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  11. 1 2 "When It Comes to Gay Characters, When Will the Teen Channels Grow Up?". AfterElton.com. Retrieved December 24, 2010.
  12. ↑ "O.C. teen lands role in Disney Channel's new "Shake It Up" series". The Orange County Register. Archived from the original on November 7, 2010. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  13. ↑ "Caroline Sunshine & Kenton Duty: Disney's New Ryan & Sharpay!". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  14. ↑ "Picks and Pans: Shake It Up". People Magazine. December 20, 2010. Archived from the original on May 31, 2012. Retrieved September 12, 2011.
  15. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (June 3, 2014). "Caroline Sunshine In Pilot 'Recovery Road'". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved June 20, 2014.
  16. ↑ "Caroline Sunshine Launches New Teen Fragrance". Net News Publisher. February 25, 2011. Archived from the original on March 27, 2012.
  17. 1 2 "Puppy Love Spokesmodel Caroline Sunshine". Puppy Love Frangrances. Archived from the original on April 2, 2012. Retrieved September 12, 2011.
  18. ↑ "Dream Magazine – May 2011 Cover". DreamMagazine.com. Archived from the original on June 17, 2012. Retrieved May 1, 2011.
  19. ↑ "Top 16 Under 16: Caroline Sunshine". DreamMagazine.com. Archived from the original on May 29, 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2011.
  20. ↑ "Caroline Sunshine on Pet Life Radio". Pet Life Radio. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved December 12, 2010.
  21. ↑ "Caroline Sunshine Interview". Star Chat Magazine. Archived from the original on October 19, 2012. Retrieved December 12, 2010.
  22. ↑ Klein, Betsy. "Former Disney star joins White House press team". CNN. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  23. ↑ "Former Disney actress joins White House". BBC News. March 28, 2018. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  24. ↑ Staff Reports. "Doden shakes up campaign with Disney Channel hire". Indiana Capital Chronicle. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
  25. ↑ Kochi, Sudiksha (December 16, 2023). "Ramaswamy held more than 40 campaign events this week. How he gets his energy – and how his staff is coping". USA TODAY. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  26. ↑ "Biden has to not just stand on debate stage, but stand on his record: Caroline Sunshine". Fox News. June 27, 2024. Retrieved July 3, 2024.
  27. ↑ "Top 16 Under 16: Caroline Sunshine". DreamMagazine.com. Archived from the original on May 29, 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2011.
  28. ↑ "Roam (From "Treasure Buddies") – Single". iTunes. January 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  29. ↑ "32nd Annual Young Artist Awards". YoungArtistAwards.org. Retrieved March 5, 2011.
  30. ↑ "33rd Annual Young Artist Awards". YoungArtistAwards.org. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.