Happy Go Lucky

THIS IS US STAR CHRISSY METZ ON THE POWER OF PERSEVERANCE

- Jennifer Ferrise

All I’ve ever wanted to do is make people smile. As a kid, I’d make up silly stories and do impressions. I wanted to be Jim Carrey when I grew up. Seriously. I thought stand-up was the way to go, but as I got older, acting became the dream.

After I graduated from high school in Gainesville, my sister asked me to go to a casting call with her. While I was there, someone asked me, “Hey, do you sing, or do you act?” I was terrified, but I thought, “What the heck?” I belted out Christina Aguilera’s “Beautiful” in front of everybody. One of the managers looked over and said, “I don’t think you belong in Florida.” Deep down I knew she was right. But I’d never even driven on the interstate before. What did I know about making it big?

I started taking acting classes, and eventually, a few of us trekked across the country to Hollywood. I got a two-bedroom apartment with six other girls. We slept on air mattresses, and when one of us had an audition, we’d help each other prep.