Deborah Gregory is the author of the book series ''
The Cheetah Girls''. She was co-producer of the
Disney Channel Original Movies
Many television films have been produced for Disney Channel, an American family-oriented basic cable channel and former premium television channel since its launch on April 18, 1983. Until October 1997, films were released under the banner name ...
''
The Cheetah Girls'' and ''
The Cheetah Girls 2
''The Cheetah Girls 2'' (also known as ''The Cheetah Girls: When In Spain'' in the working title) is a 2006 American film and the sequel to the Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM), ''The Cheetah Girls.'' Directed by Kenny Ortega, the ...
'' and an executive producer for ''
The Cheetah Girls: One World''.
Early life
Deborah Gregory was born in
Brooklyn, New York
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
. When she was only three years old, her mother was
institutionalized, and young Deborah was put into foster care until she outgrew the system at the age of 18. As a teenager, she started designing her own clothes and fantasized about a singing career. At the age of eighteen, she attended the
Fashion Institute of Technology
The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) is a public college in New York City. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) and focuses on art, business, design, mass communication, and technology connected to the fashion industry. ...
(FIT) and received her A.A.S.
She graduated in 1986 with a BS in Cultural Studies from
Empire State College
Empire State College (SUNY Empire or ESC) is a public university headquartered in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Empire State College is a multi-site institution offering associate, ...
(Metropolitan Center, NYC).
Deborah was featured in Lise Funderburgs documentary book ''Black White Other: Biracial Americans Talk About Race and Identity'' (1995).
The Cheetah Girls
The book series is about five ambitious girls who form a singing group and achieve their dreams in the fictional "Jiggy Jungle." These girls have their own set of ethics as well as their own language, which Gregory provides a glossary for in her books. The girls pictured on the cover of the books are made up of an actual three girl singing group called
Before Dark
Before Dark was an American R&B girl group that originated in the late 1990s. The group consisted of sisters Arike Rice and Jeni Rice Genzuk (AKA Jeni G.), and their friend Mia Wright (née Lee), all from South Central Los Angeles.Huey, SteveBef ...
, an aspiring ballerina and a performer who was starring in "The Lion King." Gregory's inspiration for the musical group was the R&B group
Destiny's Child and her own childhood aspirations of musical stardom.
The original Disney movie starred Raven-Symoné. It also starred
Sabrina Bryan
Reba Sabrina Hinojos (born September 16, 1984), known professionally as Sabrina Bryan, is an American dancer, choreographer, actress and singer. She was best known as a member of the girl group The Cheetah Girls, and starred in the Disney Channe ...
,
Kiely Williams
Kiely Alexis Williams (born July 9, 1986) is an American singer, dancer and actress. She is known for her membership in the girl groups 3LW, the Cheetah Girls and BluPrint.
Career 1999–2002: Career beginnings and 3LW
In 1999, Williams along ...
, and
Adrienne Bailon
Adrienne Eliza Bailon-Houghton (née Bailon () ; born October 24, 1983) is an American television personality, singer, and actress. She is a former member of the girl groups 3LW and The Cheetah Girls. From 2013 to 2022, Bailon was a co-host of ...
of
3LW
3LW (initialism of "3 Lil Women") was an American girl group formed in 1999 by Adrienne Bailon, Kiely Williams, and Naturi Naughton. Jessica Benson later replaced Naughton after she left the group in 2002. 3LW was signed to the label Epic Reco ...
. Two music albums were produced as a result of the two Disney Channel movies. There are 22 books in the Cheetah Girls series, six of which are books that tie directly to the films. In 2001, the series became the Blackboard Children's Book of the Year.
Fashion
After graduating from FIT, Gregory went from designing and making clothes, to traveling to Europe and spending time as a runway model. Later in her career, specializing in cheetah print and plus sizes, Gregory opened the boutiques Toto and Fun in Larger Sizes, both located in New York.
Writing
Gregory has written for various magazines including ''Grace'', ''More'', ''US'', and ''Entertainment Weekly''. She has also won awards, acknowledging her contributions to "Essence Magazine" since 1992. In 1999, she penned the book series ''
The Cheetah Girls''. The books were adapted into a series of original movies by Disney Channel, starting in 2003. She also wrote the Catwalk trilogy including "Catwalk", "Catwalk: Strike a Pose", and "Catwalk: Rip the Runaway."
Comedy
Having written humor pieces in a variety of magazines, Gregory created "Working Girlz," an alternative-comedy one woman show. It debuted in 1996 at the New York International Fringe Festival and won the award for Best Comedy in 2001. It was also featured at Caroline's Comedy Club and Dixon Place in New York.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gregory, Deborah
American women writers
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
People from Brooklyn
Film producers from New York (state)
American women film producers
21st-century American women