Beth Ostrosky Stern (born July 15, 1972) is an American actress, author, model, and
animal-rights
Animal rights is the philosophy according to which many or all sentient animals have moral worth that is independent of their utility for humans, and that their most basic interests—such as avoiding suffering—should be afforded the sa ...
activist.
Early life
Stern was born in
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...
. Her mother, Judy (), is a former model and her father, Robert Ostrosky, is a
dentist
A dentist, also known as a dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry (the diagnosis, prevention, management, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the oral cavity and other aspects of the craniofacial co ...
. Stern was raised
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
. She has two brothers.Bio /ref>
Stern attended Fox Chapel High School in suburban
Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania
Fox Chapel is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, USA, and is an affluent suburb of Pittsburgh located northeast of downtown. The borough continually garners national prominence and is home to many of the wealthiest and most powerful p ...
, and took classes for three years at the
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the univers ...
before leaving to pursue a modeling career in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
.
Career
Stern received her first noticeable role as one of the daughters of
Ben Stiller
Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is the son of the comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Stiller was a member of a group of comedic actors colloquially known ...
's supposed birth parents in the 1996 film '' Flirting with Disaster''. She played a more prominent role four years later in the film ''
Whipped Whipped or whipping may refer to:
* ''Whipped'' (2000 film), an American independent comedy film
* ''Whipped'' (2020 film), an Indonesian film
* '' Whipped!'', an album by Faster Pussycat
* "Whipped", a song by Axium from '' The Story Thus Far''
...
'', with
Amanda Peet
Amanda Peet (born January 11, 1972) is an American actress. She began her career with small parts on television, and made her feature film debut in '' Animal Room'' (1995). Her portrayal of Jill St. Claire in '' The Whole Nine Yards'' (2000) bro ...
. Stern has also appeared on television, appearing in the final season of G4 show ''
Filter
Filter, filtering or filters may refer to:
Science and technology
Computing
* Filter (higher-order function), in functional programming
* Filter (software), a computer program to process a data stream
* Filter (video), a software component tha ...
'', and the
Spike TV
Paramount Network is an American basic cable television channel owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Media Networks. The network's headquarters are located at the Paramount Pictures studio lot in Los Angeles.
The channel was ...
series ''
Casino Cinema
''Casino Cinema'' is a Spike programming block hosted by Steve Schirripa and Beth Ostrosky. The show, which was played around the commercial breaks of a film, featured the hosts (plus a guest player) teaching the audience how to play a casino game ...
''.
She has appeared in her own line of calendars, as well as on the covers of several magazines, including three times on ''
FHM
''FHM'' (For Him Magazine) is a British multinational men's lifestyle magazine that was published in several countries. Its master edition contained features such as the ''FHM'' 100 Sexiest Women in the World, which has featured models, actres ...
''. Votes from the readers of ''For Him Magazine'' ("''
FHM
''FHM'' (For Him Magazine) is a British multinational men's lifestyle magazine that was published in several countries. Its master edition contained features such as the ''FHM'' 100 Sexiest Women in the World, which has featured models, actres ...
''") placed Stern among ''FHMs ''100 Sexiest Women of the Year'' in 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2007( #76).
AskMen.com
AskMen is a free online men's web portal, with international versions in Australia, Canada, the Middle East, the United Kingdom and the United States. It is owned by Ziff Davis and operates through the IGN Entertainment unit.
History
AskMen was ...
placed Stern 96th in its list of the Most Desirable Women for 2007.
In 2010, Stern authored ''Oh My Dog: How to Choose, Train, Groom, Nurture, Feed, and Care for Your New Best Friend'', which reached #5 on ''
The New York Times Best Seller list
''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States.John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...
'' of paperback advice books. In 2014, she wrote the
children's book
Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader.
Children's ...
''Yoda: The Story of a Cat and his Kittens'', which tells the story of a
Persian cat
The Persian cat (), also known as the Persian longhair, is a long-haired breed of cat characterized by a round face and short muzzle. The first documented ancestors of Persian cats were imported into Italy from Persia around 1620. Widely recog ...
with a heart condition that she and her husband
adopted
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...
. She released a
sequel
A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the sam ...
, ''Yoda Gets a Buddy'', the following year. Proceeds from both books went to support Bianca's Furry Friends, a 14,000-square-foot, cage-free animal shelter at the
North Shore Animal League
North Shore Animal League America, headquartered in Port Washington, New York, is the largest no-kill animal rescue and adoption organization in the world. Marianne H. Sanders founded the League in 1944, and the League's mission has been sav ...
, named after the couple's deceased
bulldog
The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.National Geographic
reality television show
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1 ...
''Spoiled Rotten Pets'' in 2013. Later that year, she was named as the host of the first annual
Kitten Bowl
The Hallmark Channel is an American television channel owned by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., which in turn is owned by Hallmark Cards, Inc. The channel's programming is primarily targeted at families, and features a mix of television movies and ...
, a
Super Bowl counterprogramming
Although it is consistently one of the most watched television programs in the United States annually, broadcasters have sometimes attempted to intentionally counterprogram against the Super Bowl by running new programming against the game as a ...
special on
the Hallmark Channel
The Hallmark Channel is an American television channel owned by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., which in turn is owned by Hallmark Cards, Inc. The channel's programming is primarily targeted at families, and features a mix of television movies and ...
which, , has continued to air annually with Stern as a
cast member
In the performing arts industry such as theatre, film, or television, casting, or a casting call, is a pre-production process for selecting a certain type of actor, dancer, singer, or extra for a particular role or part in a script, screenp ...
.
Personal life
Radio personality
Howard Stern
Howard Allan Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American radio and television personality, comedian, and author. He is best known for his radio show, ''The Howard Stern Show'', which gained popularity when it was nationally syndicated on terre ...
, who is 18 years her senior,
proposed
Proposal(s) or The Proposal may refer to:
* Proposal (business)
* Research proposal
* Proposal (marriage)
* Proposition, a proposal in logic and philosophy
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''The Proposal'' (album)
Films
* ''The Proposal'' ( ...
to Beth on February 13, 2007, after 7 years of dating. The couple married at
Le Cirque
Le Cirque is a French restaurant that has had several locations throughout the New York City borough of Manhattan for more than forty years. It is currently closed, with its future status unknown.
New York City history
Le Cirque was establish ...
restaurant in New York City on October 3, 2008, in a ceremony officiated by actor
Mark Consuelos
Mark Andrew Consuelos (; born March 30, 1971) is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Mateo Santos on the ABC soap opera ''All My Children'' (1995–2001; 2010) and as Hiram Lodge on The CW drama '' Riverdale'' (2017–2021 ...
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...
and in
Palm Beach, Florida
Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from several nearby cities including West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach by the Intraco ...
.
Beth Stern maintains dedicated "foster rooms" in all three of her residences for
cats
The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...
and kittens in need of permanent homes, a project she began in 2013. That same year, she launched a personal
Instagram
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
account which soon became focused on the animals in her care. , it has more than half a million followers and has helped Stern to facilitate roughly adoptions.