Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Fuller Olsen (born June 13, 1986) are American actresses, best known for playing the role of Michelle Tanner on the sitcom Full House. Both have appeared in television and films since infancy. Since then, they have continued their celebrity through numerous television programs, films, interviews, as well as commercial endorsements.

Early life

The girls were born in Sherman Oaks, California to David Olsen (b. 1953) and Jarnette (Jarnie) Fuller (b. 1954) in 1986. Mary-Kate and Ashley Fuller Olsen started their acting careers on the television series Full House in 1987. They were hired at the age of six months and filming began when they were nine months old. The show was widely popular during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Both sisters played the same character, Michelle Tanner, taking turns during the tapings to do so, in order to comply with strict child labor laws regarding child actors. For the first year, Ashley would cry when she was brought on set to do a scene, so Mary-Kate had more screen time in the first season.

Because the producers did not want viewers to know that Michelle was played by twins, the sisters were originally credited as "Mary Kate Ashley Olsen", but in the last season and most of season one, they were credited as separate people. During the eight year run, Mary-Kate and Ashley made several direct-to-video movies, in addition to Full House, such as To Grandmother's House We Go (1992).

Career

Shortly after the end of Full House, they began heavily merchandising their image. They established a company called Dualstar in 1993 and their brand has been sold in more than 3,000 stores in America and over 5,300 stores worldwide. Because of this, they have been on the Forbes' "The Celebrity 100 list" since 2002, and in 2007, Forbes ranked them, collectively, as the eleventh-richest women in entertainment, with an estimated net worth of $100 million.

Mary-Kate and Ashley were popular figures in the preteen market during the late '90s and early 2000s. Their names became a cottage industry, with their likeness seen in clothes, books, fragrances, magazines, movies and posters. There were even Mary-Kate and Ashley fashion dolls made by Mattel from 2000 – 2005.

They starred in the video series The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley and You're Invited To Mary-Kate and Ashley's..., the ABC show Two of a Kind, and ABC Family's So Little Time. However, So Little Time was panned by critics and disappointed fans. Despite this, they were ranked number three on the VH1 program 100 Greatest Child Stars