'''Zachary David Alexander Efron''' (born October 18, 1987) is an American actor and singer.Speaking to Newsweek, director Adam Shankman described Efron as "arguably the biggest teen star in America right now".
Biography
Early life
Zac Efron was born in San Luis Obispo, California to David Efron and Starla Baskett, of Jewish descent.http://www.tv.com/zac-efron/person/167967/trivia.html He has a brother, Dylan, and owns two Australian Shepherds named Dreamer and Puppy, as well as a Siamese cat named Simon. At age eleven, his singing talent was discovered and encouraged, and he was cast in the musical ''Gypsy'' for 90 performances. He went on to have roles in stage productions of ''Peter Pan'', ''Little Shop of Horrors'', ''The Music Man'', and ''Mame''.Career
In 2002, Efron began to have guest roles on television series, including ''Firefly'', ''ER'', and ''The Guardian''.Efron is best known for portraying Cameron Bale on the now-cancelled WB series ''Summerland''. Originally introduced as a guest star, Efron became a regular cast member on the show in the second season in 2004. Since appearing in ''Summerland'', he has also had guest roles on the shows ''CSI: Miami'', ''NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service'', and ''The Suite Life of Zack and Cody''.
In 2003, Zac starred in the Lifetime original TV movie ''Miracle Run''. He played Steven Morgan, one of two autistic twins. Overcoming incredible odds, with his mother's support, he achieved the unimaginable, winning a cross country competition. For his performance, he was nominated for a Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special - Supporting Young Actor.
In 2005, Zac was a main character in Hope Partlow's music video for "Sick Inside"
In 2006, At age 18, Efron starred in the Disney Channel original movie ''High School Musical'' as Troy Bolton alongside actresses Vanessa Anne Hudgens and Ashley Tisdale and actor Lucas Grabeel. This role helped Efron gain recognition among teenage audiences as both an actor and a successful singer. Combined with his simultaneous appearances on ''The Suite Life of Zack and Cody'' and ''NCIS'', Efron placed as high as #4 on the IMDBPro's STARMeter for the week of January 29, 2006. Efron's singing talents were disputed when it was revealed that Andrew Seeley's voice was blended with Efron's voice on the soundtrack of ''High School Musical''.Billboard.com
Efron became the first artist to debut with two charted songs in the same week on the February 4, 2006 Billboard Hot 100, with the songs, ''Get'cha Head In the Game'' (feat. Basketball team) and ''Breaking Free'', a duet with Vanessa Anne Hudgens from ''High School Musical''. On the following week, Efron had five simultaneous song credits, all from ''High School Musical'', including, once more, ''Get'cha Head in the Game'', ''Breaking Free'' (which made the fastest climb in the history of the Billboard charts, from #86 to #4 between the two weeks), ''Start of Something New'' and ''What I've Been Looking For: Reprise'', as well as ''We're all in this Together'', which was credited to the ''High School Musical'' cast. Zac is also in the first ever ''Disney Channel Games'' as captain of the Red Team. On his team are Kay Panabaker, Anneliese van der Pol, Moises Arias, Dylan Sprouse, and Shin Koyamada.
In June of 2006, Efron was cast as Link Larkin in the upcoming film version of ''Hairspray'', also starring Amanda Bynes, Queen Latifah and John Travolta. Efron will perform all of his own vocals in the film. Filming will take place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada from September 5 to December 8, 2006. Zac will be dying his hair black and gaining about 15lbs for the role in Hairspray.
Television and film roles
| Year |
| Film/Television |
| Role |
| 2007 |
| ''Hairspray'' |
| Link Larkin |
| 2007 |
| ''High School Musical 2'' |
| Troy Bolton |
| 2006 |
| ''If You Lived Here, You'd Be Home Now'' |
| Cody |
| 2006 |
| ''The Suite Life of Zack and Cody'' |
| Trevor |
| 2006 |
| ''High School Musical'' |
| Troy Bolton |
| 2005 |
| ''The Derby Stallion'' |
| Patrick McCardle |
| 2004 |
| ''Miracle Run'' |
| Steven Morgan |
| 2004 |
| ''Summerland'' |
| Cameron Bale |
| 2003 |
| ''The Big Wide World of Carl Laemke'' |
| Pete Laemke |
Guest appearances
* ''TRL '' April 26, 2006 - As himself alongside with Ashley Tisdale* ''The Suite Life of Zack and Cody '' (2006) - Trevor
* ''Navy NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service '' (2006) - Danny
* ''Heist (TV series)'' (2006) - Pizza Delivery Guy
* ''CSI: Miami '' (2005) - Seth Dawson
* ''The Guardian '' (2004) - Luke Tomello
* ''ER'' (2003) - Bobby Neville
* ''The Big Wide World of Carl Laemke'' (2003) - Pete Laemke
* ''Firefly'' (2002) - Young Simon
* ''Sick Inside '' (2005) - Hope Partlow- Cheating Guy
* ''Room Raiders
Discography
Albums
*2006: High School Musical: The Soundtrack — #1 US '''(2x Platinum)''' (US Sales: 2,008,000)*2007: High School Musical 2: The Soundtrack — early 2007
Singles
*2006: Breaking Free with Vanessa Anne Hudgens & Andrew Seeley #4 US*2006: Start of Something New with Vanessa Anne Hudgens #28 US
*2006: We're All In This Together with High School Musical Cast #34 US
*2006: I Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You with Vanessa Anne Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, and Lucas Grabeel
*2006: What I've Been Looking For (Reprise) with Vanessa Anne Hudgens
References
Footnotes
<div class="references-small"></div>External links
*Fan site*Zac Efron Forums
For more information about Zac Efron, please visit: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zac_Efron
Biography courtesy of the brilliant Wikipedia!
