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Danica McKellar

Danica McKellar Quotes

Actress

Danica McKellar is an American actress, mathematician, and author. She gained fame in the 1980s for her role in the television series 'The Wonder Years'. McKellar has also made significant academic achievements, pursuing a degree in mathematics and publishing papers in the field.

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Famous Danica McKellar Quotes

“Look at Jessica Simpson. She's famous for being dumb. I guess it started with Marylyn Monroe, and she actually wasn't that dumb, but that's how she was perceived - and that's what got popular.”

Looks Fame Dumb Jessica

Author:Danica McKellar

“Most of the time I liked school and got good grades. In junior high, though, I hit a stumbling block with math - I used to come home and cry because of how frustrated I was! But after a few good teachers and a lot of perseverance, I ended up loving math and even choosing it as a major when I got to college.”

Home School Used Teacher Cry College Majors Perseverance Math Block Grades Coming Home Frustrated Juniors Stumbling Good Teacher Junior High Stumbling Blocks Good Grades

Author:Danica McKellar

“My husband is a composer, so he plays piano all the time and I sit there and clap telling my unborn child, 'Hear me clap, hear the music.' I know music, in general, is supposed to be good for babies to hear.”

Knows Children Play Baby Husband Be Good Supposed To Be Piano My Husband Composer Unborn Unborn Child

Author:Danica McKellar

“My main concern with the condition of mathematics in high school is that there's a lot of fear involved! Math is not, generally speaking, presented in a fun way. The concepts, as I see them, are fun, and that's the way I'd like to convey them myself.”

Way School Fun Conditions Involved High School Concepts Concern Mathematics Math

Author:Danica McKellar

“There are stereotypes that have been out there for a long time that tell girls that their main asset, the main thing that they are valued for, is their appearance and also that it's to the exclusion of anything else.”

Long Has Beens Girl Long Time Appearance Assets Stereotype Exclusion Tell A Girl

Author:Danica McKellar

“A reciprocal of a fraction is found by flipping it upside down. If you want the reciprocal of a mixed number or a whole number, just convert it to an improper fraction, and then flip it!”

Ifs Want Whole Found Numbers Flip Upside Down Fractions Reciprocal

Book:Maths Doesn't Suck: How to survive year 6 through year 9 maths without losing your mind or breaking a nail

Source: Maths Doesn't Suck: How to survive year 6 through year 9 maths without losing your mind or breaking a nail

“By the end of an intense four years at UCLA, I had co-authored a new math proof, which the media, in fact, loved. As it turned out, math itself blazed my entry back into the spotlight and consequently into wonderful acting jobs like 'The West Wing' and others. You just never know, do you?”

Knows Years Ends Facts Jobs Acting Four Wonderful Media Wings West Math Proof Intense Four Years Entry Spotlight Ucla

Author:Danica McKellar

“I didn't think that college math was for me. I didn't think I'd be able to hack it. And that perception of math not being for girls, not being for girls who see themselves as socially well adjusted has got to change.”

Thinking Wells Able Girl College Perception Math Hacks

Author:Danica McKellar

“I had done quite a bit of research about math education when I spoke before Congress in 2000 about the importance of women in mathematics. The session of Congress was all about raising more scholarships for girls in college. I told them I felt that it's too late by college.”

Done Girl Felt Bits College Late Research Importance Mathematics Congress Math Too Late Spokes Session Scholarship Math Education

Author:Danica McKellar

“I just did a spread in 'Maxim', I'm 35 years old. I've had women and parents email me asking if I should really be doing that, since I'm still considered a role model.”

Ifs Should Years Stills Parent Roles Models Asking Spread Role Models Email Maxims

Author:Danica McKellar

“I love teaching online at my website and soon I'll be writing a math book. I love to teach math. I just don't have time for a full-time teaching gig. Acting is way too time-consuming.”

Way Writing Book Acting Teach Teaching Math Online Gigs Website Consuming Time Consuming Love Teaching

Author:Danica McKellar

“I never had little brothers, so I was totally not used to hearing a lot of cussing at a young age! I learned what 'pull my finger' meant the hard way.”

Way Littles Hard Age Young Used Brother Fingers Hearing Birthday Young Age 60th Birthday Hard Way Little Brother Two Brothers Funny Brother

Author:Danica McKellar

“I noticed there were so many people, especially women, who would come up to me having recognized me from TV and say, 'I heard you were a math person, why math? Oh my gosh, I could never do math!' I could just see their self-esteem crumbling; I thought that was silly, so I wanted to make math more friendly and accessible.”

People Persons Self Wanted Heard Self Esteem Tvs Come Up Math Silly Esteem Friendly Crumbling Oh My Gosh

Author:Danica McKellar

“I recognize that I have a unique position to be a role model to young girls because I am doing something that they consider glamorous, which is acting, and yet I took a time to really get my education and study mathematics, and I think math is the cat's meow.”

Thinking Young Girl Acting Roles Study Position Unique Models Cat Mathematics Math Role Models Glamorous

Author:Danica McKellar

“I used to love to go to the movies - I'd see two in a row. A few times I even snuck into the second movie after it started... now that I think about it, that's kind of like shoplifting! Needless to say, I still love going to the movies, but I don't sneak in anymore.”

Thinking Kind Stills Two Used Actors Movie Sneak Used To Love Sneak In Shoplifting

Author:Danica McKellar

“I want to help middle-school girls stay interested in math and be good at it, and see it as friendly and accessible and not this scary thing. Everyone else in society tells them it's not for them. It's for nerdy white guys with pocket protectors.”

Want Helping School Guy Girl White Middle Scary Math Be Good Pockets Friendly Protector Middle School Nerdy White Guys Scary Things School Girl

Author:Danica McKellar

“I've always been really cautious about guys who have a Winnie Cooper fantasy, and I'm so glad about that. I mean, I can count on one hand the guys I've been with. It was really challenging, but I never gave it up too soon, if you know what I mean.”

Ifs Knows Mean I Can Hands Guy Challenges Fantasy Glad Cautious

Author:Danica McKellar

“I've been eating tons of organic foods, staying away from processed sugars, white flours, and anything artificial. It's the same as my normal regime, but I'm being even stricter, because everything I put into my body is literally building this precious baby inside me.”

Body White Building Baby Normal Eating Staying Sugar Regimes Artificial Flour Organic Food

Author:Danica McKellar

“It's such a diversion to be constantly thinking of better ways I can teach people math that my hunger is for that really, for new ways of translating the beauty of it.”

People Thinking Way I Can Teach Hunger Math Translate New Ways Better Ways Diversion Constantly Thinking

Author:Danica McKellar

“Teenage girls these days are more and more getting lured into thinking they should dumb themselves down, and that's going to attract the wrong kind of guy, and it's serious. It's serious business.”

Thinking Should Kind Guy Girl Serious Down And Dumb These Days Teenage Teenage Girl Serious Business

Author:Danica McKellar

“The camera fails to capture the 'business' in show business! We typically will give 10 percent of our salary to the agent, 10 percent to the manager, and 5 percent to the lawyer, plus the publicist gets a flat fee, which needs to be budgeted for.”

Needs Giving Shows Failing Percent Cameras Lawyer Agents Managers Flats Plus Capture Show Business Salary Fees Publicists

Author:Danica McKellar

“The fun little proofs that you can do with algebra - they are sort of like crowd pleasers in a way. Like, the .9 repeating equaling one. It doesn't take a lot of algebra to prove that, and it's really fun. It kind of wows people. It's like they're watching magic happen right before their eyes.”

People Way Kind Littles Happens Eye Fun Can Do Magic Prove Crowds Proof Wow Algebra Pleasers Crowd Pleasers

Author:Danica McKellar

“When I originally entered UCLA, I had planned to go for a film major, but I kept finding myself taking math classes for fun, 'cause I missed them from high school!”

School Film Fun Causes Class Findings Majors High School Math Ucla Finding Myself Math Class

Author:Danica McKellar

“When I was little, we had a Golden Book that had all these Disney characters in one portrait on the first page. My dad used to read from it every night. We'd play this game of find Pluto or find Donald Duck. He'd read us stories and do all the voices. Those are great memories.”

Firsts Littles Book Play Character Stories Used Night Father Games Voice Memories Dad Pages My Dad Golden Ducks Every Night Portraits Pluto Great Memories Donald Duck Disney Character

Author:Danica McKellar

“When you do a lot of acting your entire life, you see the entire set from one point of view. To have a chance to step back and pull it all together is really exciting. You want to do it all; you want to have a hand in everything.”

Want Hands Together Chance Views Acting Steps Exciting Point Of View

Author:Danica McKellar

“Note to self: When noticing flyaway hairs, do not use lip gloss as an 'on-the-go' hair gel.”

Inspirational Self Use Hair Notes Lips Empowering Funny Inspirational Noticing Gloss Note To Self Lip Gloss Hair Gel

Author:Danica McKellar

“Math is the only place where truth and beauty mean the same thing.”

Mean Science Mathematics Math Mathematical Truth And Beauty Mathematical Beauty

Author:Danica McKellar

“There seems to be so much shame wrapped up in speech disabilities. It seems very sad and complicated all at the same time.”

Seems Speech Shame Complicated Disability Very Sad

Author:Danica McKellar

“What I got which was unusual, especially as a child actress, was parents who believed that Hollywood was not that important. They told us education, family, health, all come first and they meant it.”

Firsts Children Important Care Parent Health Hollywood Actresses Health Care Unusual

Author:Danica McKellar

“Look at Michelle Pfeiffer: My God, she's 50 years old, but she is still so sexy. If I were into women, I would be totally into her.”

Ifs Years Looks Stills Would Be Sexy

Author:Danica McKellar

“The end of a marriage has got to be one of the saddest events one can experience. I’ve heard that the pain [of divorce] is second only to an actual death in the family, and that sounds about right.”

Ends Pain Sound Heard Events Divorce Divorced Saddest

Author:Danica McKellar

“When I got to college, I was intending to study film. But I found that my brain was feeling mushy, so I took a few math classes. I started doing really well at them, and solving equations was this, like, drug rush.”

Wells Feelings Film Found Brain Class Study College Drug Math Equations Math Class

Author:Danica McKellar

“I want girls to feel the confidence you get from being smart.”

Want Feels Girl Smart Being Smart I Want A Girl

Author:Danica McKellar

“At the risk of being forgotten completely by the media, I went to college and pursued a passion that had nothing to do with acting: mathematics.”

Passion Acting Risk Media College Mathematics Forgotten Pursued

Author:Danica McKellar

“I know we can’t always know what medical surprises may happen during childbirth. But my hope is to go fully natural – no epidural, no interventions.”

Knows May Happens Natural Surprise Medical Intervention Childbirth Epidurals

Author:Danica McKellar

“I took a break from acting for four years to get a degree in mathematics at UCLA, and during that time I had the rare opportunity to actually do research as an undergraduate. And myself and two other people co-authored a new theorem: Percolation and Gibbs States Multiplicity for Ferromagnetic Ashkin-Teller Models on Two Dimensions, or Z2.”

People Years Two States Opportunity Acting Break Four Degrees Models Research Mathematics Dimensions Four Years Multiplicity Theorems Ucla Undergraduate Rare Opportunities

Author:Danica McKellar

“I went to about one frat party a year. A year seemed to be enough time for me to forget how much I didn't like frat parties, and my friends would eventually convince me to go to one. Cheap beer, guys looking for a quick hook-up, and girls playing 'dumb' to get in on the hook-up. I just never got into it.”

Years Enough Guy Girl Forget Party My Friends Dumb Beer Convince Hook Enough Time Hook Up Frat Parties

Author:Danica McKellar

“If I had caused any trouble worth mentioning, you would have read about it in 'Star' magazine, which is probably why I didn't cause any trouble worth mentioning.”

Ifs Stars Causes Trouble Magazines

Author:Danica McKellar

“If you're beautiful, you're led to believe that you can't also be smart.”

Ifs Believe Beautiful Smart Stem Being Smart Beautiful You You Re Beautiful

Author:Danica McKellar

“People talk about 'getting rid of the old image', and I guess there's some merit in that. But the truth is that people loved 'The Wonder Years' - I can't turn my back on it.”

People Years I Can Turns Wonder Truth Is Merit Wonder Years

Author:Danica McKellar

About the Author

Born: January 3, 1975
Known for: Actress
Quotes: 90

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Maths Doesn't Suck: How to survive year 6 through year 9 maths without losing your mind or breaking a nailRelated source material

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