Early Life
Eleniak was born September 29, 1969 in Glendale, California. She is the eldest daughter in her family of four girls and one boy whose parents divorced. Her father, who was born in Edmonton, Alberta, is of Ukrainian descent and her mother is of Estonian and German ancestry. Her first acting role was in the 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial as the girl kissed by Elliott in the classroom scene.
Eleniak attended Robert Fulton Junior High in Van Nuys, Los Angeles and graduated from Van Nuys High School. During her teenage years, Eleniak became a regular on the San Fernando Valley party circuit and she began to use alcohol and drugs regularly. After meeting Steve Ferguson by chance on a Santa Monica beach, he signed up the 18-year-old Eleniak to Alcoholics Anonymous and assisted in her detoxification. Their relationship was complicated when Ferguson's father Robert married Eleniak's mother.
Read more about this topic: Erika Eleniak
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