Kari Samantha Wuhrer was born April 28, 1967, in Brookfield, Connecticut. The daughter of Karin, a payroll officer and Andrew, a former police officer and car salesman, it was no secret to Kari or her family (she also has three siblings) that she wanted to become a performer when she was older.
Before heading into the music industry, Kari wanted to be an actress. Always the attention seeker, her dreams of appearing on television as a young child led to her study acting at the age of 13. A young Kari headed to New York City to begin doing the rounds of auditions. Taking the path that most aspiring actresses have, Kari signed with Ford's Model Talent division.
Kari's mother took her to the agency, thanks to Kari's persuasiveness, and Ford recognized her beauty immediately. She appeared in several commercials, most notably for Clairol, and began performing in theatre productions.
After a role in the 1986 film Fire With Fire, Kari's star quickly rose when she landed a job on MTV as a VJ for the network's game show Remote Control.
No stranger to music, she realized her dreams of becoming a musical performer at an early age. As a teenager, her nighttime ritual was sneaking out of her house to sing with a band at various bars. Kari was the youngest member of the punk rock band, Freudian Slip.
Although she was most recognized for her Remote Control gig, Kari moved on to other television projects. She brushed up on her acting skills while studying drama at NYU and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London.
One of her most defining roles was in the 1990 Andrew Dice Clay film, The Adventures of Ford Fairlane. Although she already knew that music was a passion of hers, she realized it even more after this film.
Kari appeared on a couple of episodes of the sitcom Married... with Children in 1991, and had a recurring role on Beverly Hills, 90210 as Ariel Hunter. She also had a role on the TV series Swamp Thing from 1991 to 1993.
She has an extensive list of film credits, albeit none of them are too memorable. Her film resume includes: Sensation, Beastmaster 2: Through the Portal of Time, Jackie Trent Boulevard, Red Blooded American II, Beyond Desire, Thinner, and Sex and the Other Man (no, Kari is not a porn actress).
Her most notable film credits include Higher Learning, with Tyra Banks; The Crossing Guard, with Jack Nicholson; Anaconda, starring Jennifer Lopez; and the 1998 comedy Kissing a Fool.
Ms. Lopez was not the only one to crossover from the screen to the recording studio. Thanks to her success on Remote Control, Rick Rubin was more than eager to sign her to his label after having heard her demo tape. Kari released her debut album, Shiny, last year. Her album has since spawned the successful single There's a Drug.
Kari was married to a punk rock musician, Salin; the couple recently divorced. She can currently be seen on the television show Sliders, as one of the show's stars.