Over 90 years have passed since the world first witnessed the adorable little orphan named Annie. But most of you have only seen the 1982 adaptation by John Huston. The movie features many Broadway stars, but the most memorable of them all was a little kid – Aileen Quinn, who played Annie. By the way, did you know she was one of 20k kids who auditioned for this role? Now that’s either insane luck or a great talent. I bet my bottom dollar it’s actually both!
So what was she doing after fame reached her? Let’s find out!
1. TV Commercials
This shouldn’t come off a surprise to anyone, but child stars are like hot buns for the marketers. Everyone loves them and will probably buy whatever they’re selling. Aileen Quinn, after her big success, showed a limitless potential for TV commercials.
2. She kept waiting for the sequels
The creators of Annie put Aileen under a 7-year contract, which did not allow her to star in any other movies. See, they were hoping to get some sequels in, but despite the movie’s success, something must have gone wrong. Either way, by the time her contract was up, nobody remembered her. That’s when she decided to get a proper education.
3. Showbiz was still her plan A
In her teen years, Aileen did some theater. After she was freed from the contract and had some free time, she started appearing in different musicals, like The Frog Prince (1988), and TV shows, like the Great Space Coaster. In 1989, Aileen enrolled at Drew University, where she got a language major and a minor in political science. Spanish was her weapon of choice, and she even studied in Chile for a few months as a transfer student.
4. What happened after she graduated?
After plowing through college, Quinn went back to the theater once again. From 1994 to 1999, she traveled the US with three shows: Fiddler on the Roof, Saturday Night Fever, and Peter Pan. After the tour, there were plenty of smaller shows off-Broadway, like Dreamstuff and Yiddle With a Fiddle.
5. From student to teacher
Quinn was a hardworking student, and when the time came, she was offered to teach drama at New Jersey’s Monmouth University. In fact, I think she’s still teaching to this day! At least that’s what her Wiki info says. By the way, that’s the building in which they shot the 1982 version of Annie, which is kinda poetic.
6. Music is her new passion
You heard her sing, and she’s amazing! At least she was back in 1982. But she didn’t just stop developing her vocal talents, and after 30 years, Aileen has become a lead singer in a band called “Aileen Quinn and the Leapin’ Lizards,” which is a callback to Annie’s catchphrase in the comic strip. They play rockabilly, and I have to say, their music slaps and bops! If you wanna hear them for yourself, well, YouTube is still free. But you could also visit them on their Instagram page and comment on how much you loved Annie when you were little. No, but in all seriousness, go say hi!
