'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Kaley Cuoco is an American actress who got her first role in the sitcom, 8 Simple Rules. Before she got her big break as Penny in The Big Bang Theory, Cuoco played Billie Jenkins in the fantasy series, Charmed. The actress has also voiced the role of Harley Quinn in the animated series.
One of Cuoco’s earliest TV appearances was on the show, My So-Called Life, where she played a younger version of Claire Danes’ character, Angela. After The Big Bang Theory, the actress has worked in shows like Flight Attendant and has received nominations at the Emmy and the Golden Glober Awards.
She has also worked in shows like Based on a True Story and received the star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2014. She also founded the Yes, Norman productions.
Trending
Earning $1 million per episode, having a crush on Johnny Galecki, and other facts about Kaley Cuoco
1) Kaley Cuoco was home-schooled
Many fans of the actress might not know that Kaley Cuoco was home-schooled while growing up. While Kaley plays the simpleton Penny in The Big Bang Theory. The character dropped out of community college as Sheldon loves to point out.
However, in real life, Kaley not only did home-schooling, but she also earned her high school diploma early, at the age of 16. The actress therefore proves that even though she plays a character on TV that runs far from studies, in real life, she was a studious child.
2) She was not the first choice to play Penny
Fans of The Big Bang Theory and even those viewers who have not watched the show, cannot place anyone other than Kaley Cuoco as the adorable Penny on the show. However, another interesting and shocking fact about Cuoco is that she was not the first choice. The pilot episode of the show was shot with the Canadian actress, Amanda Walsh in the lead role as Katie.
However, it is alleged that the test audiences did not respond well to Walsh as the character was originally called Katie and was more edgy and less sweet. The character therefore came across as being mean and the role was rewritten and recast with Kaley Cuoco playing the role of Penny.
3) Kaley Cuoco dated Johnny Galecki and had a crush on him
In The Big Bang Theory, Cuoco’s character Penny and Galecki’s character Leonard, date each other and eventually get married and have a child. Fans of the show have always loved the chemistry between the two and in terms of sitcom pop culture history, the pair of Penny and Leonard is memorable. However, an exiciting fact about Cuoco is that she and Galecki also dated each other exclusively from 2008 to 2010 and Cuoco even had a crush on Galecki.
Even though they had a break-up, they were respectful to one another and their chemistry on the show therefore stayed authentic. In an interview to Vanity Fair, Cuoco stated that “what made Leonard and Penny work so well was my relationship with Johnny off camera…We’ve always had each other’s backs.” She also states, “I had a very big crush on Johnny early on.”
4) Kaley Cuoco earned $1 million per episode
Even though Kaley Cuoco was not the first choice to play Penny, she still earned $60,000 per episode, reportedly. While that is a generous amount in itself, the actress saw super success when The Big Bang Theory became one of the most popular shows. From season 4 onwards, Cuoco got a huge jump and earned $200,000 per episode. And in the later seasons, she also saw a $50,000 increase per season.
However, as the show entered its later seasons, it became even more successful. Therefore, Cuoco reportedly earned $1 million per episode during the show’s 8th to 10th seasons as reported by ET. The actress therefore became one of the highest paid actresses on TV during the mid-2010s. Cuoco joined the big leagues and earned as much as Sofia Vergara from Modern Family.
5) She loves playing tennis
Kaley Cuoco also has the athletic spirit inside her. While she has proven herself to be a talented actress, Cuoco also loves to play sports, especially tennis. As a kid, Cuoco even got a regional rank in Southern California and also competed at the national level. However, she left the sport to focus on her acting career.
Kaley Cuoco has always remained fit and active in her personal life and apart from working out, she is also a competitive horseback rider and even owns a horse called Bojangles. Interestingly, her ex-husband was a professional tennis player and another of her partners, Karl Cook, is an equestrian rider.
Kaley Cuoco has starred in shows like Charmed and voiced characters like Bratz and Monster Allergy.
