Shannon Elizabeth
Shannon Elizabeth is an American Actress, former fashion model and an ardent poker fan. She was born Shannon Elizabeth Fadal to a Lebanese/ Syrian father and an English, Irish and German mother. Shannon and her family moved to Waco, Texas when she was in 3rd grade. She grew up in a low income family. As a young girl, Shannon Elizabeth took up dance lessons including ballet, Jazz and tap.
In high school, she was very much interested in tennis and even contemplated a professional tennis carrier. In high School, she was also active in cheerleading, the student council and dance team. As a senior, she got involved in a music shot for local artists named “Hi-5″.
Shannon Elizabeth moved to New York after her graduation, taking up modeling. She then moved to various parts of the world including France, Italy, Australia and Japan with her newfound career. She got an acting agent and in 1999, landed the role of “Nadia” in the highly popular movie “American Pie.” She went on to feature of numerous films including “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back,” “Night of the Demons” and “Scary Movie.”
Shannon Elizabeth considers poker as her “second career” and she is arguably one of the leading celebrity poker players. In 2005, Shannon Elizabeth played in the main event of the World Series of Poker with the guidance of Daniel Negreanu. She won $55,000 on a special poker tournament in January 2006 celebrating the opening of a new poker room at Caesars Palace, beating out 83 poker professionals and celebrities.
Shannon Elizabeth cashed several times in the World Series of Poker in 2006 and 2007, although she busted out of the main event. She advanced in the semi finals of the 2007 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship before losing to the eventual champion Paul Wasicka. In 2010, Shannon Elizabeth chose to play for Team Lebanon at the World Poker Team event that was hosted in Las Vegas. To date, Shannon Elizabeth visits Las Vegas three times each month to play poker games with top US players.
