Jenna Elfman's Real Name: Jennifer Mary Butala

Quick answer: She is known as Jenna Elfman, and her birth name is Jennifer Mary Butala. TV Guide's biography lists that birth name and a Los Angeles birthplace, and a Library of Congress name record notes "Jenna Elfman, b. Jennifer Mary Butala, Sept. 30, 1971." Elfman is her married surname; her official site names her husband as Bodhi Elfman.

Real name and early life

TV Guide's celebrity page gives her birth name as Jennifer Mary Butala and her birthplace as Los Angeles. The Library of Congress authority file, which catalogs her as Elfman, Jenna, 1971-, records Butala, Jennifer Mary as a variant and gives a birth date of September 30, 1971. Her official biography says she was born and raised in Los Angeles, where she lives with her husband, Bodhi Elfman, and their two sons.

TV Guide says she originally trained as a classical ballerina but gave up ballet after an ankle injury, and later studied acting at the Beverly Hills Playhouse under drama coach Milton Katselas. Her official site calls her a classically trained ballerina.

Career highlights

Her official biography says she began as a professional dancer, appearing in music videos by Depeche Mode and Anthrax, and danced on the 1991 Academy Awards broadcast, choreographed by Debbie Allen.

She became best known as Dharma in the sitcom Dharma & Greg. The Golden Globes database lists three nominations for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Musical or Comedy, for the role, with nominations in 1998 and 2000 and a win in 1999. The Television Academy's page lists three Emmy nominations as Dharma Montgomery, and TV Guide lists a 1998 Primetime Emmy nomination for lead actress in a comedy series. Her official site adds two TV Guide Awards.

Her official site lists film credits including Can't Hardly Wait, Ron Howard's Edtv, Keeping the Faith opposite Ben Stiller and Edward Norton, Friends with Benefits, and Big Stone Gap. On television, it lists the lead in ABC's Imaginary Mary, plus Growing Up Fisher, 1600 Penn, and guest roles on Shameless, the final season of Damages, The Mindy Project, Two and a Half Men, My Name Is Earl, and Royal Pains.

The site says she has twice been a guest judge on So You Think You Can Dance and serves on the board of the Dizzy Feet Foundation, which supports dance education. TV Guide says she received a Goodwill Ambassador Award from the Women Ambassadors Foundation in 2007.

Name notes for searchers

People looking up Jenna Elfman, Jennifer Butala, or Jennifer Mary Butala are looking for the same actress. Elfman is her married surname. Dharma Montgomery is her character, not her name.