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Yasmine Amanda Bleeth (born June 14, 1968 in New York City) is an American TV and film actress. Yasmine, which is pronounced yes-MEEN, is the Persian version of Jasmine, the name of a flower. Her nickname is Yaz or Yazmania.

Bleeth is most famous for her role as Caroline Holden [1] on the worldwide-syndicated TV series Baywatch, where she played an always red-swimsuit-clad lifeguard on the Los Angeles County beaches, along with David Hasselhoff, Pamela Anderson, and Alexandra Paul.

Filmography

Television Series

Notable TV guest appearances

• Baywatch (October 25, 1993) as Caroline Holden [34], [35]
• Baywatch Nights (March 9, 1996) The Curator as Caroline Holden [36], [37]
• Before They Were Stars (1996) (episodes 4 and 7)
• Boy Meets World (May 5, 1995) (2nd season, episode 43) The Thrilla' In Phila [38], [39]
• Candid Camera: 5 Decades of Smiles - The Best of the 1990s - Yasmine Bleeth's Candid Experience [40], [41]
• Celebrity Dish aka TV Guide's Celebrity Dish (2000) [42]
• Celebrity Jeopardy! (1990)s (Season 12)
• The Daily Show (January 27, 1999) (Episode 21 of 744) [43], [44]
• Daytime's Greatest Weddings (2004) as LeeAnne Buchanan [45]
• E! True Hollywood Story (July 1, 2001) (Episode 46 of 289) Baywatch [46]
• Herman's Head (December 2, 1993) (Season 3, Episode 11) An Actor Prepares as Linda [47]
• Howard Stern (September 21, 1994 [48]; June 16, 1995 [49]; February 3, 1999 and February 20, 1999) [50]
• I Love the 90s (2004)
• Late Night with Conan O'Brien (September 18, 1997 [51] and October 7, 1998 [52]
• Late Show with David Letterman (July 29, 1998 and January 25, 1999)
• Live with Regis and Kathie Lee January 13, 1989 [53]
• Margarita Bowl (1997) [54], [55]
• The Naked Truth (February 20, 1997) (Season 2, Episode 6) The Dating Game as Natalie [56]
• One Life to Live (June 3, 2005)
• Playboy: The Best of Pamela Anderson (1995) archived footage of Bleeth [57]
• Playboy: The Ultimate Pamela Anderson (2002) archived footage of Bleeth [58]
• Punk'd – (Season 1)
• Revealed with Jules Asner (April 2, 2003) [59], [60]
• The Rosie O'Donnell Show (September 2, 1996 [61]; September 16, 1997 [62] and January 26, 1999) [63]
• Saturday Night Special (May 11, 1996) (episode 5)
• The Simpsons (October 31, 1999) Treehouse of Horror X
• The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (July 18, 1995), (November 19, 1998) [64]
• V.I.P. (April 20, 2002) Miss Con-Jeannie-Ality as Kristen Grayson [65]
• Veronica's Closet (February 26, 1998) (Season 1, Episode 15) Veronica's a Drag as Katerena [66], [67]

Plays

• Welcome to My Life (late 1980s) ... off-broadway play
• Looking for It (late 1980s) ... off-broadway play

TV Roles

Due to her role as Caroline Holden on Baywatch, [68] Yasmine was offered many more roles, and it gave her the opportunity to work in films. She continued to work as a model, frequently appearing in swimwear or lingerie, but she refused to ever pose nude even though she had many offers.

Yasmine turned down roles in Aaron Spelling's Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990) and Pacific Palisades (1997) but accepted the starring role in the short-lived series Titans (2000)[69], [70]. Aaron Spelling was so eager to cast Yasmine in the role of vixen on Titans that his company convinced CBS to grant her an early release from her Nash Bridges [[71] contract.

Commercials

Bleeth portrayed herself in a humorous Motorola television commercial.[72]

Bleeth and Victoria Principal were highlighted in a Titans television commercial.[73]

Magazines

Interviews

• Maxim (USA) December 1998, Iss. 14, pg. 115-118, by: Stephen Russell, Yasmine Bleeth [74]
• FHM (UK) August 1998
• Detour (USA) August 1998, pg. 62-63, by: Robert Ellsworth, All That Yasmine
• TV Guide (USA) 31 January 1998, Vol. 46, Iss. 5, pg. 14-19, by: Hilary De Vries, Beyond The Bay

Articles

• Movieline (USA) July 1998, Vol. 9, Iss. 10, pg. 12, by: Dennis Hensley, She Can Cut It
• Channels (USA) December 1999, by: Dennis Hensley, YAS-AMATAZ [75]
• The Onion (USA) March 3, 1999, Issue 35 08, by: Pete D'Alessio, I Have Newfound Respect For Yasmine Bleeth After Reading This Month's Maxim [76]
• by: Yasmine Bleeth, A Mother's Legacy [77]
• by: Joe Coplan, Yasmine Bleeth - Turning Point for an Actress [78]

Pictorials

• Celebrity Sleuth (USA) July 2003, Iss. 26, pg. 64-67, by: staff, Nose...Out of Joint
• Playboy (USA) November 2000, Vol. 47, Iss. 11, pg. 184, by: Fitzroy Barrett, Grapevine: Made a Sexy Splash on Nash
• Us Weekly (USA) July 1999, Iss. 258, pg. 74, by: Tom Conroy, The Bod Squad: Yasmine Bleeth
• Celebrity Sleuth (USA) 1999, Vol. 12, Iss. 9, pg. 48-49, by: staff, Police Sirens: Nash Bridges
• Maxim (USA) December 1998, Iss. 14, pg. 114-119, by: Albert Sanchez, Yasmine Bleeth [79]
• Playboy (USA) June 1998, Vol. 45, Iss. 6, pg. 131, by: staff, The Babes Of Baywatch
• Celebrity Sleuth (USA) 1995, Vol. 8, Iss. 9, pg. 68-69, by: staff, Channel Surfing: Baywatch

Magazine cover photographs

• American Woman (USA) June 1997 [80]
• Bikini (USA) May 1995 [81]
• Celebrity Sleuth (USA) July 2003, Issue 26
• Celebrity Style (USA) April 1999 [82]
• Channels (USA) December 1999 [83]
• Complete Woman (USA) [84]
• Details (USA) October 1997 [85]
• Entertainment Weekly (USA) September 29, 2000, Vol. 1, Issue 561 [86]
• Entertainment Weekly (USA) September 4, 1997, [87]
• Entrevue (France) April 1997, Issue 56 [88]
• Entrevue (France) March 1999, Issue 79 [89]
• Entrevue (France) October 1995, Issue 38 [90]
• Episodes (USA) November 12, 1992 [91]
• FHM (UK) October 1996, Issue 10 [92]
• FHM (UK) September 1999 [93]
• FHM (UK) March 2003 [94]
• FHM (UK) August 1998
• Herald (Newfoundland, Canada) 1995 [95]
• Hitkrant (Netherlands) August 10, 1996, Issue 32
• Hitkrant (Netherlands) September 20, 1995, Issue 39
• Inside Sport (USA) February 1996 [96]
• Ladies Home Journal (USA) circa 1972 when Bleeth was 4 years old
• Maxim (USA) December 1998, Issue 14 [97]
• Maxim (USA) October 1999, Issue 14 [98]
• Men's Perspective (USA) [99]
• Ocean Drive (USA) [100]
• Self (USA) [101]
• Sky Magazine (UK) April 1995, Issue 4 [102]
• Smoke (USA) 4th anniversary issue [103]
• Soap Opera (USA) February 1992 [104]
• Soap Opera (USA) December 1991 [105]
• TV Guide (USA) January 31, 1998, Vol. 46, Issue 5 [106]
• TV Hören und Sehen (Germany) February 1998, Issue 7
• TV Movie (Germany) September 1997, Issue 19
• TV-Spielfilm (Germany) 1998, Vol. 1; Issue 22
• TV Today March 26, 1999 [107]
• Veronica (Netherlands) July 15, 1995, Issue 28 [108]
• Veronica (Netherlands) October 17, 1998, Issue 42
• Veronica (Netherlands) July 10, 1999, Issue 28
• Veronica (Netherlands) August 3, 1996, Issue 31
• Veronica (Netherlands) 1995, Issue 38
• Webber [109]
• Webber [110]
• Woman's Own (British) February 1998
• YM (USA) June 1996 [111]

Bleeth's Quotes

• Regarding her mother's death: "'I am not an activist. If Carina hadn’t died of this, I wouldn’t have done what I’m doing. For six years, I didn’t talk about it. She just didn’t think it could happen to her. It was not a conscious decision to suddenly take up the cause. I just wanted to see if I could talk about it. I don’t want to be phony. I had to step out of myself to do this. It’s been a catharsis. I want to get people to be real, and my experience can relate to a lot of people. I’m not trying to impress anyone. I’ll do it in a more hip manner and not always in a serious forum. You don’t have to appear on MacNeil-Lehrer to be serious. Young people can relate to this. I find it too manipulative to be so serious. It's about helping people separate fact from fiction. There is no cure right now. The way to prevent it is through early detection. Get a second opinion. Mom was in denial. My mom took very good care of herself, watched what she ate, and espoused a healthy lifestyle. I really have to stand behind what I’ve said. I had a mammogram at age 26." (Source: Longevity, 1996)

• Regarding games: "I'm very serious about Monopoly. I own four different versions. And if I make a side deal with another player, I write it down. Documentation is very important." Her favorite game piece: "I almost always pick the little dog. I like to pee on other people's property. I used to like Pictionary, but I was cut off by my friends because I'd get violent. If my partner couldn't draw, I'd be screaming, 'You call that a pig? That's not a pig! Who in their right mind would think that's a pig!?'" (Sources: Maxim, October 1998; Stuff, February 2002)

• Regarding her first crush: "There was this little boy who lived next door. I'd bribe him with G.I. Joes to show me stuff." Stuff? "His penis. Hey, we were only seven years old! It was a long-term relationship. It took quite a few G.I. Joes. More than anything, I wanted him to kiss me, but he wouldn't have any of that. He would rather show me his equipment so he didn't have to touch me." So what did she think when she finally saw his seven-year-old equipment? "I thought he should give me a couple of those G.I. Joes back!" (Source: Maxim, October 1998)

• Regarding her Jeopardy! celebrity tournament appearance: "I was winning all the way up to the final round, but then I couldn't remember the name of Ross Perot's running mate." Her answer? "I just wrote down 'David Hasselhoff'. I'm a big Jeopardy! fan. I actually turn off the phone when I watch at home." (Source: Maxim, October 1998)

• Regarding her most embarrassing acting moment: "Probably the most humiliating job was an infomercial I did about eight years ago. It was for the Psychic Network. I filmed a testimonial about how I called up my psychic, and she'd predicted my whole future. The producers had told me it was just a test, but it ended up being huge." To Bleeth's great dismay, three years later it was still on the air. (Sources: imdb.com; People magazine)

• Regarding her competition in a world championship poker game in Atlantic City: "I'd only played a few hands in my life, but this gambler friend offered to sponsor me. He spent an hour teaching me the basic rules; then there I was, sitting at a table with $7,000 worth of chips. I figured I'd lose it all instantly, but I ended up coming in 28th out of 120 high-stakes poker players. Pros. These guys were thinking, 'Oh, look at the cute little girl from Baywatch.' And I'm thinking, 'Oh, look, I've got another full house.'" (Source: Maxim, October 1998)

• Regarding whether she would ever resort to cannibalism: "I wouldn't be an eager cannibal, but if the person were already dead, and I were starving to death, and I had my nice cookware..." Which part would she eat first? "Probably the shoulder muscle, I think it would be nice and chewy. I'd maybe wrap it in a bit of fat, like bacon on a filet mignon..." (Source: Maxim, October 1998)

• Regarding the name Bleeth: "It used to be Blut, which is 'blood' in German." (Source: Maxim, October 1998)

• Regarding why she turned down offers to pose for Playboy? "I'm not interested in Playboy. I'm a fashion maven, and I love people to see me with my clothes on." (Source: E! Online)

• When asked regarding Friends, what do you think of Joey and Chandler's obsession with Baywatch? Chandler even put you on his "five celebrities I can sleep with and my mate can't get mad" list. Is this weird for you, or are you flattered?: "I'm flattered — and it sure doesn't hurt our show, either." (Source: E! Online)

• Regarding her husband: "They say you shouldn't get into any relationship in the first year of sobriety — especially with someone in the program, but Paul and I fell in love immediately. Consciously trying to stay off drugs is now part of my life and always will be." (Source: Glamour, April 2003)

• Regarding her addiction: "It was almost like falling in love... It became my boyfriend, my best friend, my family." (Source: Us Weekly, April 2003)

Biography

Family

Bleeth's American father, Philip, is Jewish of Russian and German ancestry, while her mother, Carina, was a Pied-noir [112].

Her mother was a former fashion model, while her father was a successful photographer. They both ran a business that rented vans to fashion photographers for on-location shoots. Her father became Yasmine's business manager [113].

Bleeth's parents separated, and she was raised by her mother. Her parents divorced when she was 18 years old, and her father remarried. He then fathered two sons, Tristan Bleeth (born in 1986) and Miles Bleeth (born in 1988).

Childhood

Bleeth's earliest known acting role was in a Johnson & Johnson's No More Tears baby shampoo television commercial at age ten months at the end of 1968 or the beginning of 1969. She once said: "I did my first commercial when I was 10 months old, and I've been in the business ever since." [114]

At age six, she appeared in a Max Factor cosmetic campaign, along with the model, Cristina Ferrare. Her work in this campaign caught the eye of fashion photographer, Francesco Scavullo, who subsequently included her and her mother, Carina, in his book entitled Scavullo's Women. [115]

Total Film magazine, issue number 21, dated (October 1998), contains a two-page interview with Bleeth. In the article she said, "When I was a girl I used to have to force boys to kiss me. My toughest friend had to hold them down."

Bleeth attended the United Nations International School in Manhattan, New York, and she received a bilingual (French-English) education [116]. Although she was very popular with boys, girls frequently beat her up. At one time when she was 14 years old, she had to be away from school for a few months for her acting career. When she returned to school, she was devastated to learn that the students had been gossiping about her, and how they suggested that she was pregnant, and that was why she was away from school for so long.

On-screen beginnings

Bleeth starred in her first movie at the age of 12. She was cast opposite Buddy Hackett in the feature film Hey Babe! in 1980. The movie was also known as Babe! and Rise and Shine.

When Bleeth graduated from high school, she had already been working on the soap opera Ryan's Hope since the age of 16. She won the role of Ryan Fenelli on the ABC soap opera. In 1991, staying in the ABC family, she created the role as Lee Anne Demerest on the highly acclaimed soap opera One Life To Live.

Mother's death

At the age of 20, Bleeth lost her mother, Carina, [117] who suffered from inflammatory breast cancer, the deadliest type of breast cancer. According to Bleeth, her mother had always been very healthy and conscientious about not smoking or drinking, and eating right and exercising, etc. Carina even traveled up the Amazon River all by herself, spending nights under the stars. [118].

Bleeth said that she never accepted the fact that her mother was dying until Carina took her very last breath. Just two months after Carina's 47th birthday, her fight with cancer was over [119].

After Carina died, Bleeth sank into depression, and she turned down offers for acting or modeling work for about eight months.

Fiancée

After she met Ricky Paull Goldin, a soap actor who helped her with her depression, and she decided to work on another soap opera, One Life to Live. The two lived in Manhattan, but after she was cast for Baywatch, she moved to Los Angeles. The couple were planning to get married, but shortly after the wedding invitations were made out, the marriage was called off.

Breast cancer advocate

Bleeth was the 1998 spokesperson [120] for the Lee National Denim Day fundraising campaign, which raises millions of dollars for breast cancer research and education. In 1998 it occurred on October 9th, and was called the 'Wear Jeans to Work' campaign. Through Bleeth's help, $5 million was raised on that one day to help the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.[121] Her primary message to women was to pay attention to their bodies; Her mother was initially misdiagnosed by a doctor who thought that she was going through early menopause.

Bleeth donated the proceeds of her $10,000 win on Celebrity Jeopardy to breast cancer research. She hoped to use her celebrity status to expand breast cancer awareness - particularly to young women who might overlook what an older woman would not ignore [122].

Bleeth has been a spokesperson for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation who, along with corporate sponsor Ford, put together the nationally run Race for the Cure.

Drug addiction and arrest

In December 2000, Bleeth voluntarily entered the Malibu-based Promises rehabilitation clinic to overcome a cocaine addiction.

On September 12, 2001, the day after the September 11th attack on the World Trade Center in Bleeth's hometown of New York City, Bleeth was arrested in Michigan after her car pulled off the highway and wound up on a median. No other cars were involved. The car accident occurred on Interstate 94 near Detroit as she and her future husband, Paul Cerrito, were heading to Detroit Metropolitan Airport [123]. .

Police found four syringes with an injectible form of cocaine in them and a small plastic bag with cocaine residue on it. The next day police conducted a search of her hotel room, and they found more cocaine and drug paraphernalia. In November 2001, through a plea bargain, Bleeth pleaded guilty to possessing less than 25 grams of cocaine and to driving while impaired. She was sentenced in January 2002 to two years of probation and 100 hours of community service.[124]

Bleeth's lawyer, Jerry Sabbota, stated that the actress was satisfied with the plea bargain, noting that her record will be cleared of any felonies after she fulfills the terms of her probation. "When all is said and done she'll have a traffic ticket on her record. She wasn't treated any better than anyone else, and she wasn't treated any worse", Sabbota said. Bleeth completely fulfilled the terms of her probation as of January 2004, and her record was cleared as previously determined by the plea bargain.

Rehabilitation

Attorney Sabbota stated that Bleeth underwent psychotherapy from the founder of the Malibu-based Promises rehabilitation facility, where she and stars such as Ben Affleck, Charlie Sheen, Paula Poundstone and Tim Allen have all sought treatment.

In an issue of Glamour from April 2003, Bleeth wrote a three page article entitled "Back From my Drugs Hell" about her rocky path to recovery, her drug addiction, and her struggle to remain sober. She wrote that she had a cocaine habit that was so severe that she collapsed at a photo shoot for Glamour magazine, and she went without sleep for five days at a time. She wrote that "consciously trying to stay off drugs is now part of my life and always will be." [125]

Commenting on her cocaine addiction, Bleeth said, "It was almost like falling in love... It became my boyfriend, my best friend, my family." [126]

Marriage

Bleeth married former bar owner Paul Cerrito [127] on August 25, 2002. They met each other at the Promises clinic. They married in Santa Barbara, California and now live in Los Angeles, California.

In the (April 2003) edition of Glamour, Bleeth stated, "They say you shouldn't get into any relationship in the first year of sobriety — especially with someone in the program, but Paul and I fell in love immediately."

Miscellaneous

• Bleeth was one of the top 45 poker players when she joined the competition at The United States Poker Championship in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
• She was one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People in 1995. She was also one of FHM's 100 Sexiest Women in the World every year from 1996 - 2001, and FHM's U.S. 100 Sexiest Women every year from 2000 - 2003.
• On the sitcom Friends, Chandler Bing and Joey Tribbiani purchase a chick and a duck, and Chandler names the chick "Yasmine", presumably after Yasmine Bleeth, when she appeared on Baywatch, a television program Chandler and Joey frequently watched. (See "The One with a Chick. And a Duck.".) Also, Chandler admitted to being in love with Bleeth in many an episode. He also has a human sized cardboard display of her, which Rachel and Monica use to trick Ross into thinking that they are watching him perform some of his tricks in his apartment.
• Interestingly, Bleeth once dated Matthew Perry, who played Chandler Bing in the sitcom.
• Bleeth was asked by a fan: "On Friends, what do you think of Joey and Chandler's obsession with Baywatch? Chandler even put you on his "five celebrities I can sleep with and my mate can't get mad" list. Is this weird for you, or are you flattered?" Yasmine responded: "I'm flattered — and it sure doesn't hurt our show, either." [128]
• Bleeth was asked by a fan: "Why have you turned down repeated offers to pose for Playboy?" Yasmine responded: "I'm not interested in Playboy. I'm a fashion maven, and I love people to see me with my clothes on." [129]
• Her given name Yasmine is Persian for a fragrant flower and Hebrew for Jasmine. Bleeth is Yiddish in origin, and was once spelled as blut, which is German for blood.
• Bleeth appeared on Candid Camera in 1974 at the age of 6 from her Kindergarten class in school.

See also

Caroline Holden

External links

• Carina's Memorial Site - Yasmine's mother
• Yasmine's description of her mother
• Yasmine Bleeth Interview
• Yasmine Bleeth Forum
• Yasmine Bleeth Image Slideshow
• Yasmine Bleeth and Pamela Anderson's Photoshoot

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