Soleil Moon Frye (/soʊˈleɪ/; born August 6, 1976^[1]) is an American actress, director, producer, and screenwriter. She began her career as a child actress at the age of two. When she was seven, Frye won the role of Penelope "Punky" Brewster in theNBC sitcomPunky Brewster. The series debuted in September 1984 and earned consistently low ratings, but the Punky character was a hit with young children. After NBC cancelled the series, it was picked up for the syndication market where it aired for an additional two seasons before ending in 1988. Frye reprised the role in a2021 revival of the series, which was cancelled after one season.

Soleil Moon Frye
Frye at the 2010Consumer Electronics Show
Born	(1976-08-06)August 6, 1976 (age 48) Glendora, California, U.S.
Education	San Fernando Valley Professional School
Alma mater	The New School
Occupations	Actress director producer screenwriter
Years active	1982–present
Spouse	Jason Goldberg ​ ​ (m. 1998;div. 2022)​
Children	4
Father	Virgil Frye
Relatives	Sean Frye (half-brother) Meeno Peluce (half-brother)

After the original Punky Brewster series ended, Frye continued her career in guest spots on television and supporting roles in films. She attendedThe New School during the late 1990s and directed her first film,Wild Horses, in 1998. In 2000, she joined the cast inThe WB sitcomSabrina the Teenage Witch as Roxie King,Sabrina Spellman's roommate and close friend. Frye remained with the series until its end in April 2003. She has since continued her acting career working mainly as avoice actor where she is best known for voicing Zoey Howzer in theProud Family franchise.

In 1998, Frye married producerJason Goldberg with whom she has four children. She has since opened an eco-friendly specialty clothing boutique for children, The Little Seed, in Los Angeles. She also hosts a blog and web series that focus on child rearing and women's issues. In 2011, Frye released her first book,Happy Chaos: From Punky to Parenting and My Perfectly Imperfect Adventures in Between.Frye was host of theHome Made Simple show on theOprah Winfrey Network from 2013 to 2014.^[2]

Frye was born inGlendora, California. Her father was actorVirgil Frye (1930–2012), and her mother is talent agent and caterer Sondra Peluce (née Londy). She has two half-brothers,Sean Frye andMeeno Peluce, both former child actors.^[3] Frye's parents divorced when she was two.^[4] She was raised in her mother'sJewish faith.^[5]

Frye was educated at a private school in Los Feliz and attended San Fernando Valley Professional School in Burbank.^[4]

Frye made her acting debut in the 1982 television movieMissing Children: A Mother's Story. In 1983, she had a supporting role inWho Will Love My Children?, another television movie starringAnn-Margret. The following year, she portrayed Elizabeth (Bette) Kovacs in the biographical television movieErnie Kovacs: Between the Laughter, and appeared in another television movie,Invitation to Hell, directed byWes Craven.

At an audition in 1984, Frye beat out over 3,000 girls (including her futureSabrina, the Teenage Witch co-starMelissa Joan Hart) to win the titular role on theNBC sitcomPunky Brewster. The series, which was conceived by NBC's then-head of programmingBrandon Tartikoff, premiered in September 1984. Scheduled oppositeCBS's highly rated60 Minutes, the series struggled in the ratings, but the character of Punky was popular among children. Frye routinely appeared at parades, participated in an anti-drug walks with then-First LadyNancy Reagan, and was the honorary chairman for theNational Institute on Drug Abuse. Frye also voiced and reprised the role in the animated seriesIt's Punky Brewster, which began airing during Punky Brewster's first season. Despite the series' low ratings, Brandon Tartikoff decided to renew the show for a second season because it was the highest rated show watched by children 2 to 11 years old.^[6][7]Punky Brewster's second season, which dealt with more serious subject matters such asCPR and first-aid training, drug use and theJust Say No campaign, and theSpace ShuttleChallenger disaster,^[8] did not improve ratings, and NBC cancelled the series in April 1986.^[9] The series was quickly picked up byColumbia Pictures Television and began airing infirst-run syndication.Punky Brewster aired for an additional two seasons, ending on May 27, 1988.^[10]

Immediately uponPunky Brewster's end, Frye landed the lead role in the ABC sitcom pilotCadets, which aired as a summer special on September 25, 1988. The pilot, however, was not picked up.^[11] In 1989, Frye hosted the syndicated weekly talk/variety showGirl Talk. Based on theboard game of the same name, Frye shared hosting duties withSarah Michelle Gellar and Rod Brogan.^[12][13] The series was cancelled after one season. In 1990, she appeared in theRodney Dangerfield sitcom pilot...Where's Rodney?, but this was not picked up as a series, either.

During the 1990s, Frye guest-starred on several television series, includingThe Wonder Years,Saved by the Bell, andFriends, and voiced characters for the animated seriesTiny Toon Adventures,The Ren & Stimpy Show, andThe Cartoon Cartoon Show (namely, theJohnny Bravo pilot episode). In addition to her television work, Frye has appeared in the filmsThe Liars' Club (1993) andPumpkinhead II: Blood Wings (1995) and in stage productions ofOrestes, I Murdered My Mother andThe Housekeeper.

From 2000 to 2003, Frye played the character of Roxie King in the last few seasons ofSabrina, the Teenage Witch, with her longtime friend and series producer Melissa Joan Hart.^[14] During the run ofSabrina, she voiced Zoey Howzer in theDisney Channel seriesThe Proud Family and the series' 2005television movie. She reprised the role in the revival seriesThe Proud Family: Louder and Prouder.^[15]

In 2005, she voiced Jade, aBratz character in the direct-to-video releaseBratz Rock Angelz. She also voiced the character for thetelevision series, and the video gamesBratz Rock Angelz (2005),Bratz: Forever Diamondz (2006), and Bratz: The Movie (2007) and the follow-up movies untilBratz: Fashion 4 Passion - Diamondz. From 2010 to February 2013, Frye voiced Aseefa in the animated seriesPlanet Sheen.

She appears in thePunky Brewster reboot that began airing onPeacock on February 25, 2021.

In 1996, Frye moved to New York to attend The New School and later directed her first film,Wild Horses (1998).^[16]

Frye directed her second film,Sonny Boy, in 2004. The documentary chronicles a two-week trip Frye took with her father, Virgil, who hadAlzheimer's disease.Sonny Boy was an official selection at the27th Starz Denver International Film Festival^[17] and won Best Documentary at theSan Diego Film Festival.^[18]

In 2021, Frye directedKid 90, a documentary film using an archive of footage she shot in the 1990s, for whichLeonardo DiCaprio was executive producer.^[19] The film was released on March 12, 2021, byHulu.^[20]

In 2007, Frye, along with two friends, opened The Little Seed, an eco-friendly children's specialty boutique in Los Angeles.^[21] The boutique closed in August 2012, and is now an Internet-based business.^[22]

In March 2010, Frye and her friend and former co-star Melissa Joan Hart launched the "Better Together" campaign forGain.^[23]

In September 2011, Frye released her first book,Happy Chaos: From Punky to Parenting and My Perfectly Imperfect Adventures in Between.^[24] In October 2013, she released a party-planning book,Let's Get This Party Started. She also hosted a web series,Her Say, from 2011 to 2012, and currently hosts a blog on her official website, moonfrye.com, both of which deal with women's issues and parenting.^[25]

In 2014, Frye co-founded P.S. XO, a company that sells party decoration kits.^[26] The name was then changed to MoonFrye, and expanded to include DIY kits for families and an app of the same name. They later merged with the company Seedling, which specializes in "activity kits".

As a teen, Frye suffered fromgigantomastia. She underwent abreast reduction three months before her 16th birthday.^[4]

In the 1990s, Frye was romantically involved with hip-hop artistDanny Boy O'Connor, with whom she remains friends.^[27]

On October 25, 1998, Frye married television producer Jason Goldberg in aJewish ceremony (Frye's mother is Jewish, as is Goldberg).^[28] Frye and Goldberg have four children: daughters born in August 2005^[29] and March 2008^[30] and sons born in February 2014^[31] and May 2016.^[32] Goldberg and Frye renewed their marriage vows in a ceremony in 2008. However, in 2020, after 22 years of marriage, the couple separated.^[33] In December 2020, Frye filed for divorce. The divorce was finalized in April 2022.^[34]

In 2022, Frye was dating childhood friendShifty Shellshock ofCrazy Town.^[35]

• Soleil Moon Frye atIMDb