Wendy Kaufman

Kaufman was born to a homemaking mother and a father who owned a steel manufacturing company. She graduated from Syracuse University in 1980 with degress in film and sociology. Shen then worked for ten years in the shipping and billing department of her father's company until 1990 when she began working for Snapple corporation.

When it was discovered that Kaufman had been answering Snapple fan-mail in her free time, their advertising department based a campaign around her energetic personality. She appeared in television and print ads between 1993 and 1997 wherein she answered letters written to snapple with witty responses. She was unexpectedly let go by the company in 1997 but public outcry was so strong that she was eventually brought back.

After becoming known as "The Snapple Lady," Kaufman's identity was so closely associated with Snapple that she found it hard to break through to legitimate acting roles. She played herself in "Vegas Vacation" in 1997, and she played a Bridal Clerk in the 1998 film "Enough Already".

In 2002 Kaufman began taking classes at John Jay College of Criminal Justice beginning their master's program in criminal justice. She appeared on the American reality show Celebrity Fit Club in 2005, and finally got a featured role in the film "Funny Valentine" playing Linda.