Blank’s Canvas
Mixed-media artist Law Blank explores the human experience while paying homage to some familiar faces in pop culture. Early into his life, Law Blank whittled his future down to three distinct career choices: astronaut, baseball player, and artist. The first two didn’t quite pan out, but next year he will celebrate 40 years since he started making art. Blank considers himself... Read More
Spreading Cheer
A frequent star of Christmas movies, Lacey Chabert was the natural choice to lead the first-ever collaboration between Hallmark and Disney. Lacey Chabert firmly believes you can never have too much Christmas. In fact, her family now starts celebrating months before the holiday—and keeps the decorations up well into the New Year. In 2025, they didn’t bother waiting at all. “Every... Read More
What’s Good For Business
The business minds behind Shark Tank share their keys to success, motivating others and more. For 17 seasons, a group of self-made entrepreneurs has been holding court on an extremely popular reality TV show that has changed the business landscape. With millions of viewers watching, Shark Tank quickly became a TV hit, inspiring countless inventors, entrepreneurs and dreamers who... Read More
Year in Review 2025
Since most of our daily lives revolve around rushing from one responsibility to the next, it’s often difficult to pause and reflect. The arrival of a new year presents the perfect opportunity to do so, which is why we here at Orlando Family Magazine like to kick off every January by looking back on the previous year. As usual, the past 12 months brought plenty of excitement to... Read More
Father Figure
On his hit series Tulsa King, Sylvester Stallone is captivating viewers while acting as a mentor to his fellow actors, including his own daughter. At this point in his life, Sylvester Stallone could easily rest on his past accomplishments in show business and relax at his home in Beverly Hills. Instead, Tulsa King, his popular streaming series, takes him to the badlands of Tulsa,... Read More
A Familiar Face
Genuine as ever, David James Elliott returns to the spotlight. Photo Credit: Kailey Schwerman / Hallmark No matter if David James Elliott is travelling in Tuscany, Paris, Vancouver or stateside, he is routinely recognized by fans who are eager to share fond memories watching him command the screen as the star of the TV drama JAG. “People who come up to me, more often than not,... Read More
Lessons Learned
Central Florida professionals share their experiences and advice for future generations. Central Florida is known for its variety of successful industries: health care, entertainment, education, connectivity and more. That success is rooted in the diverse experiences that amalgamate in The Sunshine State to form communities that thrive with innumerable vocations. Orlando Family... Read More
The Age of Elegance
Iconic actress Michelle Pfeiffer continues to turn heads with her graceful style, her brave movie roles and her clean fragrance line. Photo by Albert L. Ortega/Shutterstock Michelle Pfeiffer has always had that rare combination: timeless glamour with a quiet strength. From her breakout performance in Scarface to her luminous turn in The Fabulous Baker Boys, her ability to disappear... Read More
Education for the Future
Area colleges and universities sound off about how they’re supporting a modern student body’s social, academic and career goals. Ask any college what their most in-demand majors are today, and you’ll get answers as varied as the niches that Florida’s many four-year colleges fill to launch the individual trajectories of not only in-state students but also those drawn in from... Read More
In a League of Their Own
Meet some of Central Florida’s standout student-athletes who promise to make this winter sports season a memorable one thanks to their talent and determination. Joe Philon, Montverde Academy boys basketball A 6-foot-8 senior forward, Philon is ranked 38th in the nation by ESPN among 2026 prospects and is being recruited by the likes of Florida State, Minnesota and Texas A&M.... Read More
Strange Days Indeed
As her hit series Stranger Things nears its end, young star Millie Bobby Brown reflects on growing up in the public eye and how staying true to herself has helped her prepare for the next phase of her career. Photo by Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock Few young actors have made as indelible a mark on the industry as Millie Bobby Brown. Rising to international fame as Eleven in Netflix’s... Read More
Better With Age
After more than 50 years together, The Doobie Brothers show no signs of slowing down as they celebrate 2025 with a new album, a world tour and another Hall of Fame induction. Credit: Clay Patrick McBride It’s hard to believe that a band with a history dating back more than half a century could be enjoying one of its greatest years yet, but 2025 just might qualify as such for The... Read More
Winning Mentality
These seven student-athletes from Central Florida are looking forward to both individual and team success during the fall sports season. Rylee Erisman, Windermere Girls Swimming One of the premier swimmers in the country in her age group, Erisman nearly qualified for the U.S. Olympic team in the summer of 2024 before even beginning her sophomore year. She went on to set Florida... Read More
Shifting Gears
From Schindler’s List and the Star Wars universe to his recent run as an action hero, Liam Neeson has done just about everything in his acting career. Now he’s trying his hand at comedy in a reboot of The Naked Gun. If you were to describe Liam Neeson to someone who has been under a rock for the past 35 years, you could probably use three words: actor, Irishman, revenge. Since... Read More
Star Power
With her unquestionable charisma and a commitment to roles that push the envelope, Sydney Sweeney has established herself as one of Hollywood’s most intriguing young artists. Photo by Linnea Stephan /BFA.com/Shutterstock Sydney Sweeney has swiftly emerged as one of the most compelling young actresses of her generation. From her Pacific Northwest roots of Spokane, Washington,... Read More
A Marvel to Behold
Gideon Glick, star of Étoile and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, is one of a kind. Photo by Philippe Antonello/Prime Video As a performer, Gideon Glick is a true original. From portraying a neurotic illusionist in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel to playing a high-strung choreographer in Étoile, he has put his stamp on a multilayered career that includes television, film, and Broadway. The... Read More
Hitting All the Right Notes
Jennifer Weiner’s latest novel explores the grit and glamor of pop music in the 1990s Photo by Andrea Cipriani Mecchi When Jennifer Weiner was starting her career as a fiction writer, she noticed that so many novels about young women were set in either New York, Los Angeles, or London. Her hometown of Philadelphia, however, was largely relegated to the sidelines. Weiner, who has... Read More
True to Herself
Through the ups and downs of a career in show business, Jennifer Coolidge has always managed to remain sincere and grounded, which makes her recent stardom all the more rewarding. When it comes to Hollywood stars, many are adept at presenting as the self-deprecating, earnest and reticent artiste whose own success has come somewhat as a surprise, even to them. It’s a well-trodden... Read More
Destiny Fulfilled
From the Virgin Islands to Orlando to Hollywood, Mekia Cox’s journey and rise to stardom is the result of years of dedication and determination. Long before she was a star on a hit primetime television show on a major network, Mekia Cox was a wide-eyed 2-year-old living in Saint Croix getting ready to perform her first solo song-and-dance routine. While many in the audience... Read More
Sweet Success
Orlando’s own Brooklyn Barrett has recently made her TV debut as an up-and-coming culinary wunderkind baking her way through the newest season of Kids Baking Championship. Moving halfway across the country is a lot to juggle and navigate, but Brooklyn Barrett still decided to go for her dreams amid her family’s relocation from the Midwest to Orlando. That’s when she took... Read More
Never Give Up
Oscar winner William Goldenberg aims to inspire with his directorial debut, Unstoppable. When William Goldenberg was growing up, he learned how to multitask while working at his dad’s deli. He didn’t know it at the time, but it turns out the deli was an ideal training ground for making movies. “It was good training for multitasking when I was an assistant film editor, where... Read More
