Born on April 20, 1972, Tara Leigh Patrick was raised near Cincinnati, Ohio, the youngest of five children. Originally planning on a career in the music industry, Patrick got her big break when a scout for Prince spotted her as she was performing with a rap group in L.A. in the early 1990s.
At Prince's suggestion, the young singer changed her name to Carmen Electra, and released a self-titled debut album on his Paisley Park label in 1993. While her single "Go-Go Dancer" met with some initial success, Electra's musical career tanked without ever really taking off. Still, she was able to parlay her limited popularity into a few stints posing naked in Playboy, which in turn led to some small film roles.
As an actress, Carmen's first big break came when she was offered Jenny McCarthy's old job as the co-host of MTV's Singled Out. Later that year, Electra also won herself the role of Lani McKensie on Baywatch alongside series mainstays Pamela Anderson and Yasmine Bleeth. After a relatively short stint on Baywatch, Electra decided to concentrate on her underachieving film career. While the movie roles were low-grade and far between, Electra's fame nonetheless reached its peak around this time, as a result of her marriage to NBA nutcase Dennis Rodman in November of 1998.
Soon after it revealed that Rodman had been drunk at the wedding ceremony and that an annulment would soon be obtained. Until that happened (in April of 1999), the couple existed more-or-less happily together (anyone remember the incident where Electra reportedly frightened Rodman so much during a fight that the police found him cowering behind the bathroom door?), although rumors abounded regarding both of their suspected extra-marital activities.
Since her split from Rodman, Electra has been linked to rock stars Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit and Dave Navarro of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Her resume has also increased substantially, after successful turns in comedic roles, such as in the films The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human and Scary Movie, as well as Battlebots, a comedy central TV series.
Selected Filmography
condensed from www.imdb.com
Baywatch: Hawaiian Wedding (2003) (TV) .... Lani McKensie
BattleBots TV Series .... Feature Reporter (2002)
Naked Movie (2002) .... Herself
Rent Control (2002) .... Audrey
Whacked! (2002) .... Laura
Get Over It (2001) .... Mistress Moira
Perfume (2001) .... Simone
Welcome to Hollywood (2000) .... Herself
2000 MTV Movie Awards (2000) (TV) .... Herself
Scary Movie (2000) .... Drew Decker
Hyperion Bay (1998) TV Series .... Sarah Hicks (1999)
Playboy's Cheerleaders (1999).... Cheerleader
Playboy's Celebrities (1999).... Herself
The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human (1999) .... The Female
Chosen One: The Legend of the Raven (1998) .... McKenna Ray/The Raven
Starstruck (1998) .... Iona Shirley
Baywatch TV Series .... Lani McKensie (1997-1998)
Loveline TV Series .... Co-Host (1997)
Singled Out TV Series .... Co-Host (1997)
An American Vampire Story (1997) .... Sulka
Good Burger (1997)(uncredited) .... Roxanne