Thank you. Who knew?
“At the age of eight, (Melissa Francis) played Cassandra Cooper Ingalls on the world’s most famous prime-time soap opera, Little House on the Prairie, working alongside 1980s icons Michael Landon, Melissa Gilbert, and Jason Bateman.”
wiki:
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Francis graduated from Harvard University in 1995 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and served as executive editor of The Harvard College Economist magazine. She was also the captain of the Harvard Polo Team.
Career[edit]
Acting[edit]
Francis started her acting career on television before her first birthday, first appearing in a Johnson & Johnson shampoo commercial at 6 months of age. She was best known for her role as Cassandra Cooper Ingalls on Little House on the Prairie, for two seasons.[1][2] Other television appearances include two series regular roles: Morningstar/Eveningstar and Joe’s World, and three films including Man, Woman and Child, where she played Paula Beckwith. She has also had appearances in the television series St. Elsewhere in 1986 and the 1988 film Bad Dreams, where she played young Cynthia. Melissa appeared in nearly 100 commercials during her acting career. She is reportedly the inspiration for the fictional character Avery Jessup (conceived of and played by Elizabeth Banks) in the show 30 Rock,[3] although Banks herself has denied this.[4]
Television journalist[edit]
In January 2012, Francis became a financial news reporter and anchor for Fox Business Network.[5]
Previously, she was a financial news reporter and anchor for CNBC. She originally provided live hourly reports from the New York Mercantile Exchange on trading in crude oil futures contracts.
Prior to CNBC, Francis was a correspondent for CNET’s broadcast unit, where she covered finance, technology and consumer products.[6]
Writer[edit]
In November 2012, Francis authored a book, Diary of a Stage Mother’s Daughter: A Memoir, concerning the trials, tribulations and joys of having an overbearing mother.[7]