Bindi Irwin | |
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Bindi in September 2007 |
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Born | Bindi Sue Irwin 24 July 1998 Nambour, Queensland, Australia |
Occupation | Actress Television presenter |
Years active | 2006–present |
Parents | Steve Irwin Terri Irwin |
Awards | Silver Logie Daytime Emmy |
Bindi Sue Irwin (born 24 July 1998 in Nambour,[1] Queensland, Australia) is the daughter of The Crocodile Hunter star Steve Irwin. Bindi is a child celebrity who has tried her hand at acting, singing, songwriting, dancing, and rapping. She espouses the same conservationist philosophy as her parents.
Her first name comes from the name of her father's favourite female crocodile at the Australia Zoo, and her middle name is from the family's dog Sui, Sue. According to her father, Bindi is an Australian Aboriginal word that means "young girl."[2]
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Bindi began appearing on television shows as early as age two.[3] She appeared regularly in her father's television shows, including The Crocodile Hunter Diaries, and also appeared in the 2002 film The Wiggles: Wiggly Safari in a credited cast role.[4]
Irwin was the presenter of a 26-part wildlife documentary kids show called Bindi the Jungle Girl, a production of the Discovery Kids television network.[5][6][7] Her father was filmed in many of the early shows before his death in 2006, when production was temporarily put on hold.[8] The series premiered in June 2007 on Discovery Kids.
She hosted a special about her father called My Daddy the Crocodile Hunter.[9] She also starred in a child fitness DVD in which she sang and danced with a group called Bindi Kidfitness. She made a hip-hop album called Trouble In The Jungle. Bindi and The Crocmen sang "Trouble In The Jungle" on The Today Show in November 2007. Bindi is currently learning how to play the piano.[10][11]
In September 2006, at age 8, Bindi Irwin appeared on the cover of the Australian magazine New Idea, the youngest person to have done so in the magazine's 104-year history.[12]
In early January 2007, she appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. At that time, she was also scheduled for appearances on the Late Show with David Letterman and in attendance with Russell Crowe at a major dinner. She was promoting her new video, Bindi Kidfitness, and fulfilling her role as a newly-appointed "tourism ambassador" for Australia.[13]
Irwin appeared on Larry King Live on 11 January 2007. She said that creative writing was her favourite subject and math is her least favourite. She also said that she enjoys being homeschooled because she and her teachers were such good friends.
At the 2007 Kids' Choice Awards, Irwin presented the award for "Favorite Male Singer", with help from George Lopez and Tyler James Williams, which was won by Justin Timberlake. She also presented at the TV Week Logies Awards 2007, with help from Glenn Robbins for 'Most Outstanding Children's Show', which was won by The Upside Down Show.[14]
On 22 November 2007, Bindi appeared with her mother Terri in the 81st Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and performed songs from her album Trouble in the Jungle with The Crocmen on their jungle animal float.[15][16][17]
In 2008, Irwin won a Daytime Emmy Award as Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series. At age nine, she became the youngest performer ever to win a Daytime Emmy, beating the previous record held by Camryn Grimes, who won a Daytime Emmy as Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series at age ten for The Young and the Restless.
On 26 December 2009 Bindi appeared live on stage at Australia Zoo with new backup singers/dancers The Jungle Girls.
Bindi commits 10% of her wage to Wildlife Warriors, the charity founded by her family in 2002.[18]
She starred as Kirra in Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove, which was released on 23 March 2010.[19]
In 2012, Bindi will be hosting a 26 part wildlife-themed game show called Bindi's Bootcamp. The contestants will be put through "adventure challenges" that will educate and test their wildlife knowledge.[20]
Bindi's father, Steve Irwin, was killed by stingray on 4 September 2006 while setting up to shoot ocean reef footage for a show that would include segments with Bindi, because weather prevented him from filming footage for a different show.[21][22] Bindi and her mother announced that Bindi would continue her late father's conservation and television work.[23] Steve Irwin had always said he supported Bindi's rise to fame, claiming "I just want to be co-star to my daughter".[24]
On 20 September 2006, Bindi eulogized her father by delivering a speech in front of a crowd of 5,000 and a worldwide television audience of more than 300 million viewers, which received a standing ovation and was voted the television moment of the year by readers of the Australia TV Week Reader Poll 2006. Bindi's speech received 43 percent of the votes from the poll. Her mother stated that Bindi had written the speech herself, apart from some assistance with typing.[25][26][27][11]