Happy Birthday Amy Paffrath!

Curt Menefee calls on Amy

Picture Legend:

1. Ms Paffrath (it even says so down there at the bottom)
2. Young Amy
3. Gateway Arch in St. Louis
4. Gateway Arch  and St. Louis 32 years from now
5. Customer Service
6. Animated
7. Bobble Head Amy
8.  North Rhine-Westphalia
9.  Let the pictures begin! An early favorite
10 - 14. Examples of fitness
15. Depressed
16 - 21. Yoga!
22. Beth Dian Prandini
23.  University of Missouri Tiger Cheer Leaders
24. KNBC Burbank
25. Becoming popular
26. I have no idea what they talk about on this show
27. On The Walk of Fame
28. “Dinner at Eight”
29- 32. Amy and Astro
33. Another Astro
34. Cheating on Astro
35. Relaxing at Home After a Hard day at Work
36.  Drew
37. Wedding Day
38. The Bride
39. My Goodness!
40. Dating Naked, the First Show
41 - 43. Feet
44 & 45. Promoting “The Purge, Anarchy,” with Drew
46. Amy

   This afternoon it is my great pleasure and honor to give a great big happy birthday shout out to one of my favorite actresses, television hosts and personalities, the lovely and talented Amy Paffrath  (pronounced amy  p-a-ff-r-a-t-h)!  

   Amy Christine Paffrath was born at a very early age as a tiny female infant in St Louis, Missouri, which is right here in the good old United States of America, and is exactly the same city where my own cousin, Janet Joyce is living at this very moment. Imagine that.

   St Louis (38° 37′ 38″ N, 90° 11′ 52″ W, 38.627222, -90.197778) was named after Louis IX of France, of course, who lived a long time ago... in France, and was the only French king to become a saint. That’s why cities, and other stuff have been named after him. He built the Sainte-Chapelle, which was consecrated  (dedicated) in 1248 as a nice place to house the Crown of Thorns that Jesus Christ supposedly wore on his way to the crucifixion, and a piece of the True Cross he was crucified on, which Louis bought from the Emperor Baldwin II of Constantinople, and which cost him more than twice what he paid for the chapel.      

   Three major professional sports teams call St. Louis their home. The St. Louis Cardinals, which I believe is involved in baseball some how, the hockey team, St. Louis Blues, and the St. Louis Rams of the National Football League, which St. Louis stole from us here in Los Angeles in 1995.

   Curse you St. Louis!

   St. Louis is also the home to the largest Bosnian population in the world outside their homeland. The city experiences hot, humid summers and cold winters, just like Bosnia.

   Amy’s dad’s name is Mark, and her mom’s name is Mary, or M & M for short. She is one of seven children, with three brothers and a corresponding three sisters, Christy, Mark, Steven, Stacey, Matt and Brittany. It’s safe to say that Amy is either the oldest sibling, or the youngest, or somewhere in between. 

   I first became aware of Amy, and her work, from her appearance as a customer service representative for the Amazon Kindle, which is one of those newfangled electronic book learning devices, or as Wikipedia tells us: “The Amazon Kindle is a series of e-book readers designed and marketed by Amazon.com. Amazon Kindle devices enable users to shop for, download, browse, and read e-books, newspapers, magazines, blogs, and other digital media via wireless networking. The hardware platform, developed by Amazon.com subsidiary Lab126, began as a single device and now comprises a range of devices, including dedicated e-readers with E Ink electronic paper displays, and Android-based tablets with color LCD screens.”

   I have no idea what any of that means, and don’t want to know. It scares me a little. However, I just discovered via the Internet machine, that I can publish blog posts like the one you’re reading now, and my other stuff, on the Amazon Kindle, and it will be available to anyone... everywhere, throughout the world, just as it is now when I post on the Internet, only I may get paid for it. Not being concerned about being monetarily compensated for this work just yet, and not wishing to overly tax my dear readers during these strenuous economic times, I think I’ll just keep on doing what it is that I’m doing.

   But I’m sure the Amazon Kindle is a very fine device, and all of you should buy one immediately, saying Amy sent you.

   Anyway, here’s another example of one of her Kindle commercials.

   Isn’t she wonderful! She’s nice, and helpful, and empathetic, and knowledgeable, and pretty. Just the kind of customer representative that everyone wants to deal with. 

   I worked as a customer service representative for twenty or more years at AT&T, AAA, and Blue Cross, and every single representative is exactly like her...  but not as pretty, or knowledgeable, or empathetic, or helpful and nice. 

   Some are though... I was (not as pretty though).

   Anyway, through interacting with Amy on Facebook occasionally, I happen to know that Amy is just as nice in real life. And what we love about her here at Joyce’s Take, is that she does interact with others on Facebook, which is a nice, human thing to do. 

   Many celebrities don’t.

   I’m not going to name any names though (you reading this DeVito?!).

   So and accordingly, I discovered who Amy the Kindle rep was, as I do occasionally with other impressive young actors, “Liked,” her on Facebook, and have followed her career since. 

   And her career is certainly going places. 

   I think she may be a little bit hyper, this Amy Paffrath. Not being one to waste time, it is rumored that Mary Paffrath gave birth to Amy 9 minutes after arriving at the hospital. This is just another blatant example of Amy’s consideration for others, as she waited to get to the hospital at least, before popping out and getting to work. 

   When I look at all of the projects that she works on, or hosts, or whatever, which she shares with us on Facebook, it makes me feel old and tired. Exhausted actually. 

   I’m tired right now just thinking about it. I think I’ll take a little nap. Please excuse me.

   Okay, back now. 

   By the way, the Internet machine tells me that the family name “Paffrath,” is: “German: habitational name from Paffrath in North Rhine-Westphalia [51° 28′ 0″ N, 7° 33′ 0″ E 51.466667, 7.55].” 

   As of yet I can find only one source of biographical information concerning Amy, thanks to the Internet Movie Data Base, and Amy herself doesn’t help matters much by providing none whatsoever on her own website (Amy!), so please excuse me if I am a tad repetitive and plagiaristic.

   How did the IMDB get it’s information? That’s easy, they have a PayPal account with the National Security Agency... and also from her Facebook page, which credits her website, where I can’t find any biographical info. 

   Like many successful actresses and entertainers, Amy enrolled in ballet, tap, and jazz, which are different forms of dance, at an early age. Amy was 3 at the time. Her mom was astounded by her daughter’s display of youthful energy and ambition, and once she found out about it, supplied a goodly amount of maternal support.  

   Throughout the years Amy would become proficient at Boogie-Woogie, Break, Foxtrot, Shuffling, Lindy Hop, Texas Swingout, Lap, Cakewalk, Black Bottom, Drunken Sailor, Vomiting Parachutist, Jitterbug, Disco, Swing, Stomp, Crip Walking, Slide and Glide, Slip’N Slide, Texas Tommy,  Cabbage Patch, Charleston, Pole, Belly, Tango, Clog, Hustle, Flamenco,  Melbourne Shuffle, Waacking, Tecktonik, Moshing, Pogo, English Country, Baroque, Medieval, Liturgical, Perafic, The Lucker Stomp, Contact Improvisation, Mambo, Salsa, Bachata, Merengue, Fire Dance, Line, Zumba, with a smattering of Popping, Krumping, and Memphis Jookin' thrown in for good mesure. 

   That girl can dance!

   She began gymnastics training at age 9 (I wonder what took her so long), eventually winning many awards and medals in various competitions. I mean, well look at pictures 10 through 14 above. Are you looking? Yes, I see you are. Okay, stop looking... STOP IT! Now those are examples of a gymnastically fit individual. 

   I won a ribbon once. Shot put... 3rd place. It was blue. My body today does not represent the intensive and dedicated rigors of training that I undertook back in high school. I don’t know why. 

   And she does yoga! I have pictures to prove it. Look above at pictures 16 through 21. She even does it on a freaking surf board!

   I myself practice yoga a little every morning (sometimes), and once a week with my lovely friend and teacher Beth while frolicking in the ocean (picture above). 

   My body does not reflect my years of intermittent yoga practice either, through no fault of my teacher. She tries and tries.

   Amy also became interested in drama while in elementary school, and produced plays with her buddies.

   I can’t remember what I did while in elementary school. Oh yeah, I watched “The Addams Family,” and The Million Dollar Movie on channel 9, which showed the same movie five days in a row... the forerunner to modern cable T.V., and “encore presentations.”

   Amy attended St. Thomas-Aquinas Mercy High School in Florissant, Missouri, which is a suburb of St. Louis, and  was ranked 76th in the top 100 list of Money Magazine's Best Places to Live in 2012. 

   She discovered and developed an interest in television production while there, and worked in the media department, both in front of and behind the camera. This experience would come in handy later on. At the ripe age of 14, Amy  signed with Toni's International Models (which enjoys an “A+” rating by the Better Business Bureau) in 1997. The agency helped her to book many local jobs, including runway shows and print ads for catalogs.

   Amy graduated from high school in 2001, along with Mark Buchheit, Jessica Coggins, and Natalie Maschmeyer. In 2003, St. Thomas Aquinas-Mercy High School and Rosary High School were closed and a new school, Trinity Catholic High School was opened on the former Rosary Campus.  

   Oh, the memories.

   Since it was relatively nearby, in Columbia, Missouri (38° 57′ 5.59″ N, 92° 19′ 42.95″ W), about 124.6 miles west of St. Louis, Amy attended the University of Missouri, or Mizzou, as I like to call it, and was a member of the cheer leading squad for the Missouri Tigers. She secured an agent, who got her work throughout her college years. She was featured in the  Athlon, an athletic magazine. She worked in a local television station, KOMU-TV, in Columbia as a reporter and an anchor. 

   In her Junior year she won not one, but two internships (internship is what American colonists once called indentured servants) here in Los Angeles. One on the entertainment news program, Entertainment Tonight, working with the lovely Mary Hart, and the other at KNBC in lovely downtown Burbank. 

   No doubt she gained a huge amount of experience about the entertainment industry during this time, and wanted to begin her career. However, displaying a great degree of maturity and discipline, she returned to Columbia for her Senior year, graduating in 2005 with a BA in Broadcast Journalism and a minor in Textile and Apparel Management.

   Early in 2006 Amy made the move from Missouri to Los Angeles (34° 3′ 25.2″ N,118° 14′ 16.8″ W, 34.057, -118.238), where she’s been ever since. 

   And she’s been very busy since she got here. 

   Here’s a compilation of information derived from the Internet machine: 

   “Immediately, she landed hosting gigs on two shows, "Created by U" and "In the Mix", both on Direct-TV (2006-2007), and was the star of Broadcaster News a popular pop culture news show. She booked several national commercials and has completed many independent film projects. She completed 4 movies in 2006, Dinner at Eight (2007), Moonlight on Ivy (2006), Fly Kidz (2006) and Hauntsville (2007), of which she was the lead. She is currently the voice of channel 101 on Direct TV and continues to book work in TV and Film. Amy is an ambitious, smart, and creative young woman. She is currently enjoying her hectic life and thriving career in Los Angeles.”

   Who it was who made that final analysis in those last two sentences is unknown. I wholeheartedly agree with it’s contents though.   

   Oh, she’s making me tired again. Time for another nap.

   Back now. 

   Here’s what the good old IMDB tells us of Amy’s busy career: 

   Starting in 2007 Amy guest starred in the reality television series, “M80,” which besides being  a powerful firecracker, had something to do with extreme sports, such as blind motorcycle riding. Perhaps Amy was one of the token hottie hosts. Here’s a clip not featuring Amy. 

   She also appeared in the T.V. movie, “Science of Love,” which asked the question, “When it comes to finding true love, can scientific methods be applied or does it come down to simple physical instinct and chemistry?” 

   I wonder what was their conclusion. 

   She was also in starred in the short film, “Dinner at Eight .” 

   “Molly-Sue is the perfect wife and soon-to-be mother. Granted, she's a little peeved at the small annoyances in life... but she can always count on dinner at eight.”

   Here’s a clip which does feature Amy.

   She was in “Hauntsville,” in 2007 as well (please keep in mind these projects were all produced on an earlier date, and the dates I’m supplying are when they were released), which concerns a family moving into a haunted house. 

   In 2008 she was in the short films, “Propel,” "Shadow on the Wall," and “Siamese Connection,” in which Amy plays a pair of Siamese twins who were separated at birth. 

   “Siamese Connection,” was the inspiration for both “Stuck on You,” the Farrelly brothers comedy starring Matt Damon and Greg  Kinnear, and “The French Connection,” starring Gene Hackman. Both of these films were actually produced after 2008, but sent back in time to premier in 2003 and 1971 respectively. 

   In 2009 Amy was busy yet again, playing the “3rd Row Brunette” in “Fired Up!” which was difficult for her as she’s a redhead. The film was about two popular guys in high school who  decide to ditch football camp for cheerleader camp. I don’t know why. It is aired on Comedy Central occasionally.

   She also appeared as a nurse in the short “Fun with War Crimes,” (concerning the debacle which was the Bush Jr., administration), the horror film “The Pit and the Pendulum,” and as a possible member of the notorious “ Poontang Tribe," in the comedy/horror film, “Evil Bong II: King Bong,” which may or may not have something to do with combustible drugs.

   She also starred with Tracy Morgan, Kim Kardashian, and Denise Richards in “Deep in the Valley,” and in the T.V. shows “Twenty Something,” and “I Kissed a Vampire,” the musical.

   In 2010 she guest hosted twice on “ACME Saturday Night,” a comedy, variety show, originating from the ACME Comedy Theater here in Hollywood, and which doubles for the secret supply depot where Wile E. Coyote gets all of his stuff. 

   She was in the short films “Black Red Yellow,” and “Greetings,” as well as the television show, “The Defenders,” which also starred John’s brother, Jim Belushi, and Jerry O'Connell.

   Amy reprised her role of “Velicity,” and starred in “Evil Bong 3-D: The Wrath of Bong,” which in a limited theatrical release utilized scratch and sniff cards that movie’s viewers could smell at certain times during the film, which is the first time I’ve ever come across this particular technique, and may have historical significance. 

   HorrorNews.net reviewed “Evil Bong 3-D: The Wrath of Bong,” stating it “trumps the previous sequel." High praise indeed.   

   Let’s let the good people at VH1 continue:

   “Her Midwestern magnetism helped her to immediately land two on-air reporting jobs at Direct TV for "In the Mix" and "Created by You." The ambitious actress-reporter also nabbed roles in film, commercials and music videos, including Paramore's number one hit "Misery Business." In early 2007, she was given the opportunity to host her very own pop culture news show, "Broadcaster News" on broadcaster.com, which aired daily and racked up more than 300 episodes.   

   Since then, Amy’s career has grown exponentially. She has served as the longtime host of "E! News Now," a red carpet correspondent for TV Guide’s Hollywood 411, series regular on MSN's "The Big Debate," and guest host on both G4’s "Attack of the Show" and Fuel TV’s "The Daily Habit." She spent 2011 and early 2012 recapping the best moments from your favorite shows with "Last Night on TV," daily on MSN.com. Her infectious energy is what makes her so appealing to all audiences.

   Amy could most recently be found holding court with the guidos and guidettes of Seaside Heights on MTV’s "Jersey Shore: After Hours" and is currently appearing daily on "The Girl Spot" on Bite Size TV as well as a red carpet correspondent for Yahoo! Movies. She is a budding stand up comic and frequently performs her act in famous LA comedy clubs. Amy is also a regular at Improv Olympics in "Top Story! Weekly," a sketch comedy show skewering the latest news and pop culture. She is making a name for herself as a sitcom star, appearing in 5 guest-starring roles last year alone. Amy’s most recent credits include the CBS pilot Oh F***, its You!,” directed by James Burrows, as well as appearances on "Hot in Cleveland," "Sullivan & Son," and "2 Broke Girls." In addition, Amy is the spokesmodel for Sibu Beauty and plays “Mayday Amy” in the wildly popular Amazon Kindle Fire commercial campaign. Her latest project, "Dating Naked" premieres on VH1 July 17th. When she's not a set, she can be found volunteering, writing, going on romantic dates with her husband Drew Seeley, or hiking the Hollywood hills with their dog Astro.”  

   Astro! There’s pictures of Amy with Astro above, if you care to look. 

   Astro of course (formerly Tralfaz), is named after The Jetson’s dog, because of both of their rare abilities to speak in a rough sounding English resembling dog barks and growls. 

   Like Scooby Doo.

   Oh yes, Amy married about a year ago to fellow actor Drew Seeley (who comes from Canada, which is up north somewhere (and another example of these snowbacks marauding from the frozen wastelands to take away our jobs and women... curse you Dan Aykroyd and Ryan Gosling!)) on April 28th, 2013, in Key West, Florida (I don’t know what time... perhaps Amy will read this some day and leave a comment, clearing up this important matter).  

   I have secured a secret clip of Drew proposing to Amy that can be found on the Internet by anyone. Here it is.

   And here’s a youtube slide show of the wedding.

   “Couldn’t have had a clearer, more beautiful day for a wedding. We were truly blessed,” the actor wrote in the blog post.

   FYI: Amy wore a wedding gown by Anne Barge with a Justine M Couture belt. Drew wore an Indochino suit.

   Well, well, what next. 

   It is true, Amy hosts the new show, “Dating Naked,” on VH1, Thursday nights at 9:00pm here in Los Angeles. 

   It was my pleasure to watch the first show last week, and I enjoyed it very much because I had my clothes on. As the title would indicate, the show is sort of like the old “Dating Game,” where couples who had not known each other previously get together to explore romantic possibilities, except they’re in the tropics somewhere, and they’re outside most of the time instead of in a studio, and... oh yeah, their naked.

   Now I know what you’re thinking, and you should be ashamed of yourselves. Amy stays clothed throughout... although: 7-14-14: “I made a promise today on @AccessHollywoodLive's 1000th episode. If @DatingNaked hits the same milestone, I'll host it naked. Think we can do it?”

   Of Course we can! And this gives us something to look forward to, which is always important.

   Amy sends me pictures of her feet every once in a while. I don’t know why.

   And if all of the above wasn’t enough, Amy has a part in “The Purge, Anarchy,” which just opened nationwide last Friday.

   “The Purge, Anarchy,” is a sequel to 2013's “The Purge,” which starred Ethan Hawke, and made  $89,328,627. 46 worldwide, which made it a very successful film considering it only cost $3 million to make. $3 million, plus marketing and distribution costs, oh let’s say the total cost of the film came to $7 million. That equals almost exactly $82,328,627.46 in pure, sweet profit for the studio and producers, and maybe Hawke. And that’s pretty damn good. 

   Well, I’m happy to report that “The Purge, Anarchy,” was “released in North America in 3,303 theaters, and earned $2.6 million in its first night. In its opening weekend, the film grossed $28.4 million, finishing in second place. This was just under $6 million less than the opening of the original film ($34 million).” -Wikipedia  

   “The Purge: Anarchy opened in second place with $29.8 million, which is down 13 percent from the first Purge's $34.1 million debut. That's actually an impressive retention rate, given the fact that the first movie burned out quickly on horrible word-of-mouth. Chalk this up to a strong marketing effort from Universal that promised The Purge: Anarchy would actually explore what it's like to be stuck outside during the lawless 12-hour period known as "The Purge."

   According to Universal, the movie's audience was 52 female and 61 percent under the age of 25. They gave it a solid "B" CinemaScore, which is a major step up from the last movie's "C" score. Ultimately, The Purge: Anarchy could exceed the first movie's $64.5 million [domestic] total.” -Ray Subers for Box Office Mojo.

   “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,” won the weekend’s top spot for the second week in a row.

   I congratulated Amy Sunday night on her Facebook page:

   “Almost $29 million predicted for “The Purge, Anarchy,” this weekend, with a budget of $9 million, plus marketing and distribution, I show the Purge 2 already making a profit of approximately $6.289 million bucks... American. I have little doubt that you are a large reason why this film is so successful. You beat out Jason Segel and Cameron Diaz [in "Sex Tape"]! Congratulations Amy!”

   12 minutes later she replied:

   “I'm a small part in a very big movie but grateful nonetheless! It's a fantastic film and I'm proud to have a role!”

   See, I told you she was very nice.

   I don’t Tweet, but for those of you who do, you can follow Amy here. 

   What else?

   Amy’s name in Elvish is Larien Léralondë, which is very pretty.

   If she were a dwarf her name would be Una Chip-Moon.

   Don’t take my word for it... here’s Fili (the one Evangeline Lilly likes), from The Hobbit movies.

   “Fili, if Amy Paffrath were a dwarf, what would her name be?”

   “ Una Chip-Moon.”

   See!

   And if she were a Hobbit her name would be Azaelia Goodbody of Brockenborings.  

   My Hobbit name is Marroc Danderfluff, so obviously Amy and I have a great deal in common.

   And of course, all of us here at Joyce’s Take wish Amy, Drew, and Astro, and all of her friends and family, continued good fortune and health (now armed with a “Joyce’s Take Bump” that’s sure to happen), and a very happy birthday.

   Happy Birthday Amy!

P.S. Birthday message from Amy:

"Birthdays are very important to me. I don't lie about my age either because each of my 31 years on this planet brought me to this very moment in time. I'm so grateful for all of the experiences I've been through because they shaped me into the person I am today. LIFE is worth celebrating! Thank you all for cheering me on and showering me with kind words. It means a lot! xo"