Mayim Bialik already made her mark on television history by the time of the series wrap of ’90s sitcom Blossom, in which the actress played the titular, floppy-hatted lead. Her character’s iconic look — paired with Bialik’s acting chops — earned Blossom Russo a place in the annals of 20th-century pop culture. References to the show and its protagonist pop up everywhere from Saturday Night Live skits to Simpsons episodes to Blossom-themed easter eggs on The Big Bang Theory, the latter of which harkened Bialik’s return to acting full-time (and finally wrapped its 12-season run in 2019).
Despite the name recognition and reputation as a comic actor that Blossom afforded Bialik, it seemed that, for a time, she had no plans to continue with her thespian aspirations. With the exception of a few TV guest stints from the mid-’90s to the late aughts, Bialik traded in the arts for sciences post-Blossom, earning a degree in neuroscience from UCLA in 2000 and a doctorate from the same institution in 2007.
Bialik’s life as an academic and researcher in matters of the mind seemed to be set in stone. So, what made her decide that returning to acting, as a matter of the heart, was more important than what she originally intended for her future?
Mayim Bialik returned to acting for two very important people
For Mayim Bialik, the choice to resume her acting career boiled down to a simple equation: Compared to the overwhelming workload of a neuroscientist, working in the entertainment industry would let her spend more time with her children. “I figured actors never work, so it’s the perfect job to have,” Bialik joked to Yahoo News in 2012.
Speaking more candidly, the four-time-Emmy nominee confessed that despite being proud of her scholastic achievements, the life of a researcher would’ve left her little time to spend with her two sons, the oldest of whom was barely out of pre-school when she made her Big Bang debut as Dr. Amy Farrah Fowler.
“I’m very proud of [my Ph.D.], but the life of a research professor would not have suited my needs in terms of what kind of parenting I wanted to do,” said Bialik, a noted proponent of attachment parenting and author of Beyond the Sling, which she penned on the subject.
The fact that Bialik, an actual neuroscientist, was able to play one on TV was a sort of kismet she found deeply meaningful — especially to young audiences with STEM aspirations. “I’m really proud that I’m working a show that highlights women in this way,” Bialik told the Observer in 2016. “I know a lot of female scientists from my time in college and grad school who were respected for their brain… and I like that a lot in this character.”
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