"Small Wonder" Actress Works Hard Away from the Hollywood Spotlight

Although she wasn't made of plastic in real life, young actress Tiffany Brissette really was fantastic as the star of the 1980s syndicated sitcom "Small Wonder." Brissette, who was just 10 years old when filming began, played Vickie, a cute little girl who had an odd way of speaking and behaving.

Vickie may have looked human, but in reality, she was a "Voice Input Child Identicant" (V.I.C.I.), the creation of a brilliant robotics engineer. Determined to perfect his invention, her creator brought Vickie home with the intention of working out all the bugs in her systems. Unfortunately, Vickie had at least one major malfunction per episode, often with hilarious and disastrous results.

With the recent release of "Small Wonder" on DVD, fans of this popular 1980s show have been checking the Internet for information about Tiffany Brissette. Unlike many former child stars, however, Brissette has been leading a pretty normal life outside of the Hollywood spotlight.

After "Small Wonder" stopped production in 1989, Brissette, then a teenager, made a memorable appearance on "Parker Lewis Can't Lose," one of two television adaptations of the Matthew Broderick movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." It was kind of refreshing to hear Brissette's normal speaking voice after four years of robotic mannerisms.

Tiffany Brissette's last regular television appearance was a recurring role on the ABC legal drama "Equal Justice." While working on this show, Brissette was able to rub elbows with future "Sex and the City" star Sarah Jessica Parker and "Malcolm in the Middle" star Jane Kaczmarek.

Even though Vicky has been "in her cabinet" for almost 25 years, she would be proud to know that her flesh-and-blood alter ego is doing just fine. Now 35, Brissette earned a psychology degree from Westmont College in Santa Barbara after "Equal Justice" left the air. On at least one occasion, Brissette even competed in the Los Angeles Marathon.

More than one Web site reports that Brissette also has spent much of her post-Hollywood career working with children and young adults. For the woman who was a "Small Wonder," that career path seems quite appropriate.

Resources:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0109890/