Sister Act
"Former Naperville teens embrace their inner drama queens"
By Jeff Bell
Sunday, June 13, 2004As youngsters, Danielle and Kay Panabaker were two sides of a coin: The former an extreme introvert, the latter a precocious pop rock given to spontaneous effervescence. When their parents enrolled the former Naperville residents in a day camp run by a part-time acting instructor, they hoped that Kay's uninhibited nature might rub off on her elder sister.
Did it ever. After appearances on everything from "The Bernie Mac Show' to "The Guardian,' 16-year-old Danielle recently filmed a lead role in the 2005 HBO film "Empire Falls,' opposite Paul Newman, Ed Harris and Helen Hunt. And, in addition to appearing on the Disney Channel sitcom "Phil of the Future,' Kay, 14, is a regular on the new WB drama "Summerland.'
But don't call it an overnight success. "My sister and I focused very hard on our acting careers for a long time,' says Danielle, a self-possessed sylph with honey-brown hair and Noxema skin.
"At one point, we were taking acting classes seven nights a week as well as trying to balance school and auditions. It all has finally started to pay off.'
After filming commercials while living in Atlanta, both sisters began booking bigger gigs during their three years in the Chicago area. Mom relocated to California while they worked, and their father, a DuPont marketing exec, stayed behind. When the youngest Panabaker nabbed "Summerland' last year, the entire clan moved to Los Angeles, where Kay followed in Danielle's footsteps by passing her high school equivalency exam.
"This is what I've wanted to do,' insists Kay, an effusive brunette. "I'd rather not go to high school, because in junior high I saw the cattiness that went on with the girls. I [said], 'High school is going to be awful.' And I'm not giving up everything. I'm still going to my prom.'
And if she missed out on anything due to her accelerated adolescence, she'll have a second chance to experience it as Nikki Westerly, her "Summerland' character. Fittingly, she's the old-soul middle child of three Kansas orphans who relocate to the Southern California beachhouse of their aunt (Lori Loughlin, "Full House'). Kay's already received her first kiss -- from Zac Efron, the 16-year-old actor who plays her boyfriend. "When he was 14, he had to kiss a 12-year-old, and she was freaking out. He said, 'You know, you're kind of mellow.' Then I [told] him it was my first kiss ever. He [said], 'Really? I hope I didn't ruin it for you.' And he didn't.'
But Kay insists that the vibe on the "Summerland' set is familial, not carnal. She's quick to scold Jesse McCartney, the teen pop idol who plays her older brother, when he wears his boxers too low. And although Nick Benson, her youngest TV sib, recently proposed to her, no rings were exchanged -- after all, he's barely 10. "He said, 'When I get old enough, can I marry you?' And I said, 'Yes!' So, technically, we're engaged!"
Danielle also has designs on a "Summerland'-er: Australian Ryan Kwanten, who plays a free-spirited surfer. "My heart beats faster every time he comes around,' she confesses sheepishly. "I love Australians -- I don't know why.'
She's less flustered when discussing her upcoming projects: The July 16 Disney Channel movie "Stuck in the Suburbs'; the upcoming Ben Affleck film "Surviving Christmas'; and the aforementioned "Falls,' where she plays an anorexic teen. The wealth of talent in that telepic, which shot in Maine, wasn't lost on her visiting relatives. "They all told me they came to see me because it was easier to get to Maine than California,' says Danielle, "but the fact that Paul Newman or Helen Hunt would be on the set didn't hurt.'
While respectful of such celebrity wattage, neither girl is preoccupied with stargazing. Both plan to transfer to local universities after finishing community college. And although Kay in particular feels the pressure of balancing academics with a five-day workweek, neither Panabaker is panhandling for sympathy.
"Oh, I enjoy it,' says Kay. "What [else] am I going to do -- sit in front of the TV like a couch potato? Some TV is ridiculous.'
From Northwest Indiana News