Where Were They Then: Lucy Hale

Where Were They Then is a new series of posts I'm going to try out in my blog. It's fairly self explanatory, but the idea behind this is that I examine a fairly well known actor or actress's earlier roles. Sounds simple enough, right?

Lucy Hale

Photo Credit: ABC Family

While I don't watch Pretty Little Liars, it would be hard for me to deny that it's a popular series. On Monday nights, my Facebook feed is cluttered with comments like "PLL Night!," and on Tuesday mornings, the internet is flooded with recaps of the previous night's episode. So, for this first installment, I'm going to focus on Lucy Hale, one of the stars of Pretty Little Liars.

American Juniors

 When it aired, I thought American Juniors was pretty much the coolest show ever. I think I was in the fifth or sixth grade at the time, so you'll have to cut me a little slack. Anyway, for those of you who have never heard of American Juniors or were just much cooler than me in 2003, it was a show set up very similarly to American Idol, except the contestants were miniature-sized. The biggest difference in the structure of the show (that I can remember) is that once the top ten contestants made it to the final rounds of the show, one would make into the American Juniors "band" each week (for a total of five members) instead of one being eliminated each week. I guess they figured that the five losers could find comfort in each other at the show's end.

 

Anyway, Lucy Hale was one of the top ten American Juniors, and in fact, she actually made it into the short-lived band. Her personal song list during the show included songs such as "Get Here," "Make It Easy on Yourself," "I'm Going to Make You Love Me," "Breaking Up is Hard to Do," "I Surrender," and "Call Me." I remember being a little bit obsessed with her version of "Call Me" back in the day, and I wasn't the only one that like it because it was the song that got her voted into the group. She was included on two cds (both of which I bought as soon as they were released) associated with the show: a top ten compilation and the band's one and only cd.

 

I don't know her, but I feel Lucy Hale would kill her PLL stylist if she gave her an outfit like this to wear today.

 Privileged 

Pretty Little Liars isn't Lucy Hale's first starring role in a scripted show. Back in 2008, she was one of the leads in the CW show Privileged. Privileged was also based on a book, and was about a young woman (Joanna Garcia) hired by the grandmother and guardian of two spoiled, rich girls (Lucy Hale and Ashley Newbrough) to tutor them. It wasn't anything groundbreaking, but it was a really cute show that I enjoyed watching every week. Unfortunately, it got the axe after only eighteen episodes.

 

Lucy Hale with Baby Franco

Other Lucy Hale Appearances

 The two shows listed above are the main things in which I remember seeing Lucy Hale. However, she's had several notable guest appearances. Here are some the one's I remember:

I couldn't find a clip for it, but Lucy played Robin's sister in the "First Time in New York" (2x12) episode of How I Met Your Mother.

 

Did you watch Lucy Hale in any of these before Pretty Little Liars? Where you too a fan of American Juniors or Privileged? Maybe you saw her in something else. Whatever it is, I'd love to hear your thoughts below.