Melissa Peterman

Growing up in Minneapolis, Melissa Peterman first made a name for herself when she was cast in a local production of Tony and Tina’s Wedding. She has gone on to perform in over 600 shows and become a staple on the comedy and improv scene.

Peterman was Brenda Sparks in the CBS No. 1-rated comedy Young Sheldon. She starred as Bonnie Wheeler in ABC Family’s No. 1-rated comedy series Baby Daddy, which won a People’s Choice Award. Peterman is well-known for her starring role as Barbra Jean on the hit series Reba. She also starred alongside Ed Asner in and was an executive producer of Working Class for CMT. She guest starred in Retired at 35, Surviving Suburbia, Rita Rocks, Just Shoot Me, Cedric, Living in Abandon, The Pitts, and American Dad. She can also be seen on Disney’s Sydney to the Max. She has been a frequent guest co-host on Access Live and Daily POP. Her first televised comedy special, Melissa Peterman: Am I the Only One?, aired on CMT, and she also starred in Dusty Peacock, an online series created for crackle.com.

Peterman has hosted several competition shows, including Fox’s Punchline, four seasons of CMT’s The Singing Bee, ABC Family’s reality comedy-clip show Dancing Fools, and ABC’s prime-time game show Bet on Your Baby. She competed in Food Network’s hit Worst Cooks in America: Celebrity Edition. She created, produced, and co-starred in the pilot Valerie’s Hot Dish for the Food Network with Valerie Bertinelli and Nicole Sullivan. She was a frequent guest on Fox’s syndicated hit 25 Words or Less.

Her feature film debut was as Hooker No. 2 in the Coen Brothers’ Oscar-winning movie Fargo. Other film credits include 40 Is the New Dead, Here Comes the Boom, and Dirty Politics. She has toured with Reba McEntire, Kelly Clarkson, George Strait, and Lee Ann Womack.

A long-standing guest of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, Peterman has hosted The Sound of Music Sing-A-Long at the Hollywood Bowl since 2004. She also hosts the annual Holiday Sing-Along at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Peterman is committed to many charities, including Muhammad Ali’s Celebrity Fight Night, Habitat for Humanity, the Red Cross, and the nonprofit Buzzworks Theater Company.

Follow Melissa Peterman on X at @Followtheblonde and on Instagram at @melissapeterman.