Jennie Garth Bio
Jennifer Eve Garth (born April 3, 1972) is an American actress and fashion designer who became a household name through her long-running work in prime-time television. She is best known for portraying Kelly Taylor across the entire Beverly Hills, 90210 franchise and for her co-starring role as Val Tyler on the sitcom What I Like About You. Over the course of her career, Garth has moved easily between drama, comedy, reality programming, writing, and entrepreneurship, while remaining a familiar presence on screen.
Garth began her professional acting career in 1989 and has stayed active in the industry ever since. Beyond acting, she has released a memoir, launched lifestyle and clothing ventures, and co-created a podcast with one of her earliest co-stars. Her work has spanned broadcast networks, cable channels, and digital platforms, giving her one of the most versatile résumés of any television actress from her generation.
Early Life and Background
Jennie Garth was born in Urbana, Illinois, to John and Carolyn Garth. She was the youngest of seven children and the only child her parents had together, and she spent much of her youth on a 25-acre horse ranch between Sadorus and Arcola, Illinois. The family later lived in Tuscola, Illinois, before settling in Glendale, Arizona, when Garth was around 13 years old. The move west opened the door to new opportunities in performing arts.
As a young girl, Garth studied dance and modeled, and she was soon discovered at a local talent competition by Randy James, a Hollywood scout and manager. She attended Greenway High School in Arizona as a freshman and transferred to Apollo High School the following year. Determined to become an actress, she began working with Jean Fowler, a local acting coach, on audition materials sent from Los Angeles.
She left school during her junior year to pursue acting full-time in Los Angeles with her manager. She later earned her high school diploma in California, completing the studies she had set aside to chase her Hollywood dream. That decision set the stage for a career that would eventually span more than three decades.
Path to Celebrity
After arriving in Los Angeles, Garth began landing small television parts that allowed her to build experience on set. Her early work in the late 1980s helped her develop the discipline and screen presence that would soon attract the attention of casting directors for larger projects. By the end of the decade, she was ready for a leading role on a major network series.
In 1990, she was cast as Kelly Taylor on Beverly Hills, 90210, a decision that would define her career. She appeared in all ten seasons of the original series and became one of the few cast members to direct multiple episodes, eventually directing two installments and becoming the only female cast member to do so. The role also helped launch the spin-offs Melrose Place and 90210, and her character became a continuity thread woven through the entire franchise.
Jennie Garth Career
Early Career (1989–2001)
Jennie Garth began her career in 1989 with small on-screen parts while still a teenager. Her breakout came in 1990 when she was cast as Kelly Taylor on Beverly Hills, 90210, the Aaron Spelling teen drama that quickly became a cultural phenomenon. She appeared in every season of the show, watched her character age from high school into adulthood, and earned a Young Artist Award along with a Teen Choice Award nomination for her performance.
Outside of the hit series, Garth took on a string of made-for-TV movies during the 1990s, including Danielle Steel’s Star (1993), Without Consent (1994), Lies of the Heart: The Story of Laurie Kellogg (1994), Falling for You (1995), and An Unfinished Affair (1996). She also appeared in smaller theatrical films such as Power 98 (1996), My Brother’s War (1997), and Telling You (1998), and in 1993 she released a workout video titled Body In Progress. She made a memorable pop-culture appearance at the World Wrestling Federation’s WrestleMania X pay-per-view in 1994, serving as guest timekeeper for the main event.
Breakthrough (2002–2013)
In 2002, Garth shifted into comedy by co-starring with Amanda Bynes on the WB sitcom What I Like About You, playing Val Tyler, the older sister of Bynes’ character. The show ran for four seasons and gave Garth a chance to show a lighter, more humorous side. During this period, she also starred in television films such as The Last Cowboy (2003) and the Christmas family drama Secret Santa (2003), the latter of which earned the cast the 2004 CAMIE Award.
Garth continued expanding her range with a guest voice appearance in the Family Guy special Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story in 2005, a starring turn in the TV film Girl, Positive (2007), and a high-profile appearance on season five of Dancing with the Stars in 2007, where she and partner Derek Hough reached the semi-finals. Her performances in Girl, Positive earned her a Prism Award, an honor recognizing accurate portrayals of substance use and mental health. In 2008, she returned to her most famous role when The CW launched the spin-off series 90210, reprising Kelly Taylor as a high school guidance counselor and connecting the new generation to the original show.
Notable Works and Milestones
Beyond the small screen, Garth published her memoir, Deep Thoughts from a Hollywood Blonde, on April 1, 2014, co-written with Emily Heckman. She later launched a lifestyle subscription service called MomGiftBox.com in 2017 and collaborated with Dune Jewelry on a Travelling Heart Collection in 2018. In 2020, she joined Beverly Hills, 90210 co-star Tori Spelling and TV personality Sisanie Villaclara to launch the podcast 9021OMG, sharing memories from their years on the original series. In 2024, she debuted a QVC clothing line titled Me by Jennie Garth, expanding her work as a fashion designer.
Jennie Garth Award Nominations
Throughout her career, Jennie Garth has earned recognition from a variety of organizations for her television work. She received a Teen Choice Award nomination for her long-running performance as Kelly Taylor on Beverly Hills, 90210, and she has been honored by the Young Artist Awards for her early contributions to the series. Additional nominations and honors have followed her work in made-for-TV films, sitcoms, and reality programming, reflecting her range across genres.
Jennie Garth Awards Won
Jennie Garth has collected a number of honors over the years, beginning with a Young Artist Award for Beverly Hills, 90210 and a CAMIE Award shared with the cast of Secret Santa. Her performance in the television film Girl, Positive brought her a Prism Award, shared with co-star Andrea Bowen, for an accurate portrayal of a person living with HIV. She has also been recognized for her charitable television appearances, including a $100,000 win on Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? that she donated to the American Heart Association and a $168,000 win on Celebrity Wheel of Fortune that she directed to the Central Illinois Foodbank.
Jennie Garth Family
Jennie Garth was born to John and Carolyn Garth and raised as the youngest of seven children. She is the only child her parents had together, and she grew up surrounded by older siblings on a horse ranch in central Illinois before the family relocated to Arizona during her teenage years.
Personal Life
Garth was first married to musician Daniel B. Clark from 1994 to 1996. In 1995, while filming An Unfinished Affair, she met actor Peter Facinelli, and the two married on January 20, 2001, in a traditional Catholic wedding ceremony. Together they had three daughters, born in 1997, 2002, and 2006. Facinelli filed for divorce in March 2012, and the divorce was finalized in June 2013.
Garth later began dating actor David Abrams in the fall of 2014, became engaged in April 2015, and married on July 11, 2015. The couple separated in 2017 and filed for divorce in April 2018, but in February 2019 Abrams filed a petition to dismiss the divorce proceedings, indicating a reconciliation. In 2002, at age 30, Garth was diagnosed with a mitral valve prolapse and leaky heart valve, a condition she has spoken about publicly, and she has also shared that she has dealt with anxiety since the age of 19.