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Alyson Hannigan as she appeared in the 1989 ABC "sitcom" Free Spirit (and I do use the term sitcom loosely). Sorry, Aly, nothing personal at all. :-)


On to bigger and much better things . . . Alyson as she appeared in the Season 1 opening credits of The WB's Buffy The Vampire Slayer. (1997) (Picture ©1997 Twentieth Century Fox Television and The WB Television Network.)

Alyson Hannigan could now be considered a veteran television actress. She first appeared on TV screens across America in 1978 (at the tender age of 4) in a commercial for Oreos cookies. During the 1980's, she also was featured in commercials for McDonalds and Six Flags amusement parks. Next followed several guest shots in various television series and movies, most notably her most famous role as Willow Rosenberg--the best friend of Buffy Summers (The Slayer, The Chosen One) in The WB's Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Alyson has also begun to make her mark on the big screen as well.

What follows is a breakdown of Alyson's acting career thus far, including current and upcoming projects. Also, I have included my personal commentary on the things I have seen or have some knowledge of. Most information contained herein is courtesy of The Internet Movie Database.

My Stepmother Is An Alien (1988)
(Motion Picture, Columbia TriStar Pictures)
Role: Jessie Mills
Commentary: Pleasant enough sci-fi comedy with a 13-14 year-old Alyson making her feature film debut as the daughter of Dan Aykroyd. Kim Basinger is Alyson's new stepmother who is not of this earth. There is a fine scene showcasing the fine dramatic talent of Alyson as she tearfully tries to convince her father that his new bride is not what she seems to be. Also of note is a little unintentional foreshadowing with an appearance by her future Buffy costar and on-screen romantic interest Seth Green as Jessie's date Fred Glass. A must-see for Alyson fans.

Free Spirit (1989)
(TV series, ABC)
Role: Jessie Harper
Commentary: I honestly do not remember Alyson being in this (thankfully) short-lived sitcom. I do remember seeing it when it was on and it was horrible. Something about witches (again, unintentional foreshadowing). Whatever. This was mercifully yanked after a short run. I'm sure Alyson was wonderful in it, though, especially given the material. :-)

Roseanne (1990)
(TV Series, ABC)
Role: Becky's friend #2 (Guest star)
Episode: "Like, A New Job" (Episode #3.4; 10/9/90)
Commentary: I finally caught this on TBS in Dec. '99. Basically, Alyson is the second of two of Becky's friends (hence the role name). She shows up with Becky at the Rodbell department store restaurant where Roseanne started working. Alyson has one speaking line: "Like, duh, Becky." If you are an Alyson fan, watch for this third season episode in syndication.

Switched At Birth (1991)
(TV Miniseries, NBC)
Role: Gina Twigg, age 13-16

George (1993)
(TV Series, ABC)
Role: ???? (most likely guest star)
Commentary: This was George Foreman's stab at a sitcom. I remember the show, but not Alyson.

Almost Home (aka The Torkelsons, 1993)
(TV Series, NBC)
Role: Samantha
Episodes: "The Dance" (Episode #1.10; 4/17/93) and "Hot Ticket" (Episode #1.12; 6/5/93)
Commentary: In this show, Alyson played the tomboyish girlfriend of one of the characters (the name escapes me).

Mylanta commercial (1993)
Commentary: No memory of this at all. I never knew it existed until I went to The Clergyman's excellent The Wonderful Alyson Hannigan site. I have included it here for the sake of completeness.

Touched By An Angel (1994)
(TV Series, CBS)
Role: Cassie Peters (Guest Star)
Episode: "Cassie's Choice" (Episode #1.5; 10/26/94)
Commentary: This is the only episode of Touched... I have ever seen. If this episode had not featured Alyson, I still would have never seen an episode. I got my friend Sam to tape this for me from her cable system since the Bloomington, IN, PAX affiliate does not have a stong enough signal to reach me. Anyway, Alyson is pregnant teen Cassie Peters. Cassie makes the tough decision to give the baby up for adoption. After seeing her baby, however, Cassie second-guesses the decision and takes off with the baby. Angel Monica (Roma Downey) poses as a member of the hospital OB/GYN staff and guides Cassie along the way. Very formulaic stuff here, but Alyson puts in a great performance (I still say she is one of Hollywood's best criers--take that Demi Moore!). Two bits of unintentional foreshadowing here. Cassie plays the flute (American Pie) and the baby is eventually named Faith (Buffy The Vampire Slayer). Alyson fans should definitely seek this out on your local PAX affiliate.

The Stranger Beside Me (1995)
(TV Movie, NBC)
Role: Dana

Picket Fences (1996)
(TV Series, CBS)
Role: Peggy Patterson (Guest Star)
Episode: "To Forgive Is Divine" (Episode #4.21; 6/19/96)
Commentary: I only saw a handful of episodes of Picket Fences and this is not one of them. Reruns currently air on Fox's FX network.

Indecent Seduction (1996)
(TV Movie)
Role: Kelly

For My Daughter's Honor (1996)
(TV Movie)


(Picture ©1998 Twentieth Century Fox Televison and The WB Television Network.)
Buffy The Vampire Slayer (1997-present)
(TV Series, The WB)
Role: Willow Rosenberg (Series Regular)
Commentary: THE role. This is the role that has put Alyson Hannigan in the homes of television viewers on a weekly basis. Alyson plays Willow, the girl who befriends Buffy Summers on her first day at Sunnydale (CA) High School. As Buffy's true nature as the Slayer (fighter of demons, vampires, and all things evil) becomes known, Willow becomes Buffy's best friend and a vital member of the Slayerettes--a term coined by Willow herself. The Slayerettes--which have included at various times Willow, Xander, Cordelia, Oz, and Jenny Calendar--along with Buffy's Watcher Rupert Giles assist Buffy in her destined fight against the evil forces. Willow's computer hacking skills and internet prowess have been essential in this battle. Willow has evolved from the shy, backward bookworm to . . . well, a lesser version of that who is now a practicing Wiccan. Throughout it all, she has been one of the favorites from the show. Willow and Alyson have a VERY strong and loyal following on the Internet, as evidenced by the many tribute websites.


(Picture ©1998 Paramount/MTV Films.)
Dead Man On Campus (1998)
(Motion picture, Paramount/MTV Films)
Role: Lucy
Commentary: There are several classic college movies. Dead Man On Campus is not among them. In fact, Alyson herself is not a fan of the movie. She offers her opinion of the film in the October 2000 issue of the British magazine Dreamwatch: "I won't sit here and tell you to see [it] either, because it is a piece of sh*t. I did that film after Season One, when I didn't know if we were even coming back for another season, so you have to take a job if it's offered." It is very predictable, but it does feature Alyson, though. This film stars Mark-Paul Gosselaar (Saved By The Bell) and Tom Everett Scott (That Thing You Do) as college freshmen who, after blowing off their classes for the semester, seek out a suicidal roommate in hopes of achieving a perfect 4.0 GPA after said roomie offs himself. Alyson's screentime is very small, but her charm shines through the mediocre (at best) material. There are some funny scenes (like Lucy's hit off a bong), but this one is best left to the die-hard Alyson fans (like myself!).

Dead Man On Campus: Cram Session (1998)
(TV Special, MTV)
Commentary: Alyson appears in this MTV promo for the film. It must not have helped much as the movie tanked at the box office.

Loveline (1998)
(TV advice show, MTV)
Air Date: 10/30/98
Commentary: Alyson was a celebrity guest along with her Buffy co-star Seth Green. This call-in show offers advice on love and sex issues.

Videos That Don't Suck (1998)
(TV special, MTV)
Air Date: 10/31/98
Commentary: Alyson and the rest of the Buffy cast appear to promote the show and to count down videos that . . . don't suck.

The Howie Mandel Show (1998)
(TV talk show, syndicated)
Air Date: 12/8/98
Commentary: Alyson was a guest on this now-defunct gabfest.

Donny & Marie (1999)
(TV talk show, syndicated)
Air Date: 2/2/99
Commentary: Alyson was a guest on this show hosted by Utah's most famous brother-sister team.

Hayley Wagner, Star (1999)
(TV movie, Showtime[?])
Role: Jenna Jakes

MTV Movie Awards (1999)
(TV special, MTV)
Roles: Various
Commentary: Take out the actual awards dreck and you have the best parts. Alyson is featured in the Movie Awards traditional movie spoofs. The funniest and (depending upon your view) most intriguing is the introduction to "Best Kiss" which features Alyson and Jamie Pressley skewering Sarah Michelle Gellar's girl-girl kiss in Cruel Intentions.


(Picture ©1999 Universal Pictures.)
American Pie (1999)
(Motion picture, Universal)
Role: Michelle
Commentary: "This one time, at band camp . . . " Just when you think you've seen all (and enough of) the teen sex comedies and "sons-of-Porky's", along comes American Pie. The raunch factor is very high (it had to be trimmed for theatrical release to avoid the kiss-of-death NC-17 rating). But it is also touching at times. And it is also very funny. The basic premise centers around the pact four high school seniors make to lose their virginity by the end of prom night. After much humiliation after trying to score with a gorgeous Czech exchange student, Jim (Jason Biggs) settles for Michelle, a band geek (how I hate to use that description about Aly) with endless stories of band camp. Alyson literally steals the movie at the end when we find out this hidden other side of Michelle, with two of the most classic lines in recent movie history (which I cannot put here, unfortunately--rent or buy the movie!). This is where I first saw Alyson and I was IMMEDIATELY awestruck by her. If you can tolerate a lot of bathroom-style humor, I recommend this movie highly.

1999 Women's World Cup Final Draw (1999)
(TV special, ESPN2)
Air Date: Summer 1999
Commentary: Once a soccer player in her teens, Alyson was on hand to draw the host country for the 1999 Women's World Cup.

Late Night With Conan O'Brien (1999)
(TV talk show, NBC)
Air Date: 7/8/99
Commentary: Alyson appeared on Conan's program during publicity for American Pie.


(Picture ©1999 WABC-TV.)
Live With Regis and Kathie Lee (1999)
(TV talk show, syndicated)
Air Date: 7/9/99
Commentary: More publicity for American Pie. According to a transcript of the interview I read, Alyson was wearing a paper dress.


(Picture ©1999 ABC.)
Politically Incorrect With Bill Maher (1999)
(TV talk show, ABC)
Air Date: 7/12/99
Commentary: Upon the release of American Pie, Alyson appeared with co-stars Jason Biggs, Tara Reid, and Shannon Elizabeth. In keeping with the theme of AP, much of the discussion focused on the attitudes toward sex in America.

100 Deeds for Eddie McDowd (1999)
(Children's TV series, Nickelodeon)
Role: Gigi
Episode: "Dog Day Out" (Episode #1.4; 11/6/99)
Commentary: Alyson provided the voice of Gigi in this Nickelodeon children's show.

Beyond The City Limits (2000)
(Motion picture, Big Picture Entertainment)
Role: ?????
Commentary: Although this independent film is reportedly in the can, no release date has been announced as of this writing. The most I gather from this film is that it somehow involves a casino heist and a lot of double-crossing. Alyson's character is reportedly a lesbian, heroin addict with a child . . . a departure for her. I'll see it for sure. It is like I once posted in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer; I could watch Alyson in a big floppy straw hat dancing to jug band music and be enthralled.


(Picture ©2000 ABC.)
Politically Incorrect With Bill Maher (2000)
(TV talk show, ABC)
Air Date: 2/14/00
Commentary: Unfortunately, Alyson really did not get to say too much on her second PI appearance. Actress/comedienne Caroline Rhea and author What's-her-name (it escapes me) dominated the Valentine's Day-themed discussion. Aly did, however, get a couple of zingers in at Bill's expense as he assumed his role of antagonist/male chauvanist. I really would have liked to hear more out of her, though.


(Picture ©2000 ESPN Networks.)
The 24th Annual Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race (2000)
(Auto racing, ESPN)
Air Date: 4/30/00 (Air date 5/11/00 on ESPN2)
Commentary: Alyson was a participant in this annual event, held in Long Beach, CA, on April 15, 2000. This is a charity event. Alyson was joined by such actors as Josh Brolin, Ashley Judd, Melissa Joan Hart, Joshua Morrow; football great John Elway; film genius George Lucas; and racing pros Derek Daly and Lyn St. James. The course was 10 laps on a 1.97 mile course winding through the streets of Long Beach. Alyson finished 14th in a field of 17 participants (beating out car enthusiast Lucas). The celebrity (and overall) winner was Brolin and Daly took the top finish among the pros. Way to go, Alyson! Even though Melissa beat you, we know that Willow could kick Sabrina's ass! :-)

Boys and Girls (2000)
(Motion picture, Miramax)
Role: ?????
Commentary: Alyson's latest film project is this romantic comedy. Starring Freddie Prinze, Jr. and Meet Joe Black's Claire Forlani, Alyson joins American Pie co-star Jason Biggs and Heather Donahue (The Blair Witch Project) in the supporting cast. You can bet I will be seeing this. I will post a review here after I see the movie. SCHEDULED TO PREMIERE JUNE 16, 2000.

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Last updated September 24, 2000

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