Childhood & Early Life
Lori Anne Loughlin was born on 28th July, 1964 at Queens, New York. She was born into a Christian family of Irish descent that raised her in Hauppauge, New York. Her father is Joseph Roy Loughlin and her mother is Lorellee Loughlin.
Her father worked at the ‘New York Telephone Company’ while her mother was a homemaker. At Hauppauge she studied first at the ‘Oaks Public Elementary School’ and later at ‘Hauppauge High School’.
Since childhood she was glued to acting, and at the age of eleven she became a print model. Her father allowed her to pursue modelling on the condition that she would have to score excellent grades in school and never alter her attitude towards life.
As she grew famous as a print model, she gradually started receiving more offers and was cast in several commercials. Towards the completion of high school, she began looking beyond the commercial world for projects in the entertainment industry.
Career
She got her first break in a guest role in the TV film ‘Too Far to Go’ and managed to harness attention for her main role as Jody Travis in the soap opera on CBS ‘The Edge of Night’ from 1980 to 1983.
She landed herself quite a few films after the success of the CBS show. She played the role of Susan Baxter in ‘Amityville 3-D’, she was also cast in two TV films as Linda Craig in ‘The Tom Swift and Linda Craig Mystery Hour’ and as Candy Cassidy in ‘North Beach and Rawhide’ in 1983.
In 1985, she starred in two Hollywood films. She was cast as Abby McWilliams in the horror-thriller ‘The New Kids’ in a lead role. She was also cast in a main role as Toni Williams in ‘Secret Admirer’.
In 1986, she was seen as Christian Hollings in the BMX racing film ‘Rad’ and as Christie in the Television film ‘Brotherhood of Justice’ alongside Keanu Reeves and Billy Zane.
From 1986 to 1988, she starred in several guest and recurring roles in numerous television shows such as ‘The Equalizer’, ‘CBS Schoolbreak Special’, ‘CBS Summer Playhouse’ and ‘Great Performances’. She was also cast in films such as ‘Back to the Beach’ in 1987 and as Tara Mitchell in ‘The Night Before’, ‘Empty Cradle’
After encountering financial difficulties she landed the role of Rebecca Donaldson Katsopolis in the ABC coming of age hit sitcom ‘Full House’ in 1988. She worked for seven years on the show until 1995.
After her critically acclaimed performance in ‘Full House’ she also showcased her versatility through main roles in TV Films such as ‘Doing Time on Maple Drive’, ‘A Stranger in the Mirror’, ‘One of Her Own’ and ‘Abandoned and Deceived’.
After her indelible role of Rebecca on ‘Full House’ she once again took the television industry by storm with her role as Melanie Clifford in the TV series ‘Hudson Street’. She even appeared in the legendary show ‘Seinfeld’ in a guest role in the episode ‘The Serenity Now’ in 1997.
In 1997, she was cast in three hit TV films – ‘In the Line of Duty: Blaze of Glory’, ‘Tell Me No Secrets’ and ‘The Price of Heaven’.
In 2001, she starred in two Hollywood movies ‘Critical Mass’ and ‘Suckers’. She also did several guest appearances in TV shows such as ‘Cursed’, ‘Birds of Prey’, ‘The Drew Carey Show’ and ‘Justice League Unlimited’.
Her role as Ava Gregory in the 2004 TV series ‘Summerland’ added to her many accolades. By 2007 she was a regular face on the ABC sitcom ‘In Case of Emergency’ and on the teen drama series ‘90210’ as Debbie Wilson the following year.
In 2013, she was seen in the TV film ‘A Mother’s Rage’ as Rebecca Mayer and appeared in guest roles in the TV shows ‘Psych’ and ‘Major Crimes’. She was cast as the leading actor in Josh Stolberg’s horror film ‘Crawlspace’ as Susan.
Since 2014, she is working in the Canadian-American TV drama ‘When Calls the Heart’ on ‘Hallmark’ in the US. On the show she plays the main role of Abigail Stanton.
She has also been a part of two TV films. She played Mackenzie Warren in ‘Northpole: Open for Christmas’ and appeared as Kate Harper in ‘Every Christmas Has a Story’.
In 2016, she appeared as a guest star on the police drama ‘Blue Bloods’ in the episode – ‘The Greater Good’. The same year, she was offered a recurring role in the ‘Full House’ sequel ‘Fuller House’ as Rebecca Katsopolis.
Major Works
Lori received huge critical applause for her role as Rebecca in the sitcom ‘Full House’. The show bagged several awards and has been placed amongst the most popular American shows of all time.
'Summerland' was her second most acclaimed performance in the television business. The show was reviewed well by critics. She plays a fashion designer with the responsibility of bringing up her niece and nephew after the death of their parents.
Her performance in the TV film ‘Empty Cradle’ was described as “soft and balanced” by the weekly magazine ‘Variety’, making the film a success.
Awards & Achievements
She won her first award in 1987 at the ‘Young Artist Awards’ in the category of the ‘Michael Landon Award’ for ‘CBS Schoolbreak Special’. She was also nominated at the ‘Daytime Emmy Award’ as ‘Outstanding Performer in a Children’s Special’ for her performance in ‘CBS Schoolbreak Special’ in 1989.
In 2006, she won the ‘PRISM Awards’ for ‘Best Performance in a Drama Series Storyline’ for Summerland. In 2009, she was nominated at the ‘Teen Choice Awards’ in the category of ‘Choice TV Parental Unit’ for her role in ‘90210’.
Personal Life & Legacy
Lori married Michael R. Burns in 1989. Michael is an investment banker and the two were happily married until 1996 when the couple split and filed for divorce.
Lori met and fell in love with Mossimo Giannulli in 1995. Mossimo is the founder of ‘Mossimo Clothing Line’ at ‘Target’. They eloped in 1997.
Lori had her first child in 1998 and named her Isabella Rose Giannulli and after a year the couple had another daughter, Olivia jade Giannelli. Olivia is now a famous ‘YouTuber’. Lori is also the stepmother of Mossimo’s first son, Gianni Giannulli.
