'Punky Brewster' star all grown up: Life in photos

Punky Brewster is all grown up! One of our favorite child stars of the '80s — Soleil Moon Frye — turned 45 on Aug. 6, 2021. In celebration of her benchmark birthday, Wonderwall.com is taking a look back at her life and career in photos, starting with this promotional pic from the sitcom that made her a pop culture icon… The adorable young actress — who was born in 1976 to actor and talent agent parents Virgil Frye and Sondra Peluce — earned her first acting credit with the 1982 made-for-TV movie "Missing Children: A Mother's Story." She went on to appear in other television films including "Little Shots," "Ernie Kovacs: Between the Laughter" and "Invitation to Hell" before making her debut as the titular foster kid on the NBC sitcom "Punky Brewster" in 1984.

Keep reading to see how little Soleil grew into the woman we know and love today…

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Here's another look at Soleil Moon Frye as the titular foster kid on "Punky Brewster," which debuted on Sept. 16, 1984. The NBC sitcom, which ran for four seasons until May 27, 1988, centers around the smart and sassy Punky, who's taken in by a Chicago photographer after her biological parents abandon her. The comedy, which also starred George Gaynes, Susie Garrett, Cherie Johnson, T.K. Carter and Ami Foster, earned three Emmy nominations during its run — two for outstanding children's program!

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Sibling love! A 9-year-old Soleil Moon Frye got a lift from one of her two older half-brothers, photographer Meeno Peluce, at the 37th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards in 1985. (Her other older half-brother is "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" actor Sean Frye.)

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How adorable was she?! A year after the premiere of "Punky Brewster," Soleil Moon Frye earned her first Young Artist Award nomination for best young actress in a television comedy series. She's seen here at the award show in 1985.

"Punky Brewster" didn't receive the warmest welcome from critics when it first debuted. So NBC canceled the sitcom following the conclusion of its second season. But you can't keep Punky down! The series soon returned in syndication, continuing on with new episodes for two more seasons until its cancellation in 1988. Soleil Moon Frye is pictured here the same year the original "Punky" came to an end.

Punky Brewster and Doogie Howser?! Child stars Soleil Moon Frye and Neil Patrick Harris posed together during the 1989 Hollywood Christmas Parade.

Proud parents! A purple-clad Soleil Moon Frye posed with dad Virgil Frye and mom Sondra Peluce at an event in 1989.

Aw, young love! Soleil Moon Frye dated fellow teen idol Edward Furlong for several years during the early '90s. She even joined him at the premiere of his acting debut — "Terminator 2: Judgement Day" — on July 1, 1991. He wasn't the only young star who won her heart: Soleil also dated Mark Wahlberg and rapper Danny Boy and hooked up with Charlie Sheen, whom she "had a crush on for years."

In 1991, Soleil Moon Frye attended the premiere of "Cool As Ice," a musical rom-com starring rapper Vanilla Ice. She posed during the event with heartthrobs Cuba Gooding Jr. and Jared Leto. Talk about a major '90s throwback!

In 1994 — the same year she turned 18 and relocated from Los Angeles to New York City to study at The New School — Soleil Moon Frye was snapped partying at NYC celebrity hotspot Club USA. She continued to work regularly as an actress throughout the '90s, though none of her projects scored much mainstream recognition.

On Oct. 25, 1998, Soleil Moon Frye married film and television producer Jason Goldberg.

An iconic duo! In the year 2000, Soleil Moon Frye joined the cast of the uber-popular supernatural sitcom "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" in its fifth season. She starred alongside Melissa Joan Hart as Roxie King, Sabrina's college roommate and bestie, until the series came to an end after seven seasons in 2003.

Lovely ladies! Soleil Moon Frye posed alongside her "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" co-stars Melissa Joan Hart and Elisa Donovan at a party celebrating the show's 100th episode in October 2000.

A growing family! Soleil Moon Frye debuted her baby bump while pregnant with her first child at the Hollywood premiere of "Guess Who" — which hubby Jason Goldberg produced — on March 13, 2005. (Their daughter Poet arrived five months later.) Also in 2005, Soleil made her debut as Jade in the animated "Bratz" franchise and returned to the role of Zoey Howzer in "The Proud Family Movie" after previously voicing the character on the Disney Channel series "The Proud Family" from 2001 to 2005. Over the course of the next decade, the former child star worked predominantly in Hollywood as a voice actress.

In 2007, Soleil Moon Frye opened The Little Seed, an eco-friendly children's specialty boutique in Los Angeles. Two years later, the brand launched its own private label. The former child star attended the official launch event in July 2009 with daughters Poet Goldberg and Jagger Goldberg, who arrived a year earlier in 2008. (The brand, which at one point partnered with Target, shuttered its brick-and-mortar operations in 2012 and transitioned to a digital model.)

In August 2011, Soleil Moon Frye released her first book, "Happy Chaos: From Punky to Parenting and My Perfectly Imperfect Adventures In Between." While chatting with The Staten Island Family, Soleil — pictured here signing copies of her book at Barnes & Noble at The Grove in Los Angeles — explained why she wrote it: "This book was truly inspired by wanting to share with others and as a mom who didn't know where to turn, I wanted to create that manual that I never had but desperately needed."

Soleil Moon Frye released her second book, "Let's Get This Party Started," in late 2013. The actress — who was heavily pregnant with her third child at the time — attended a signing event for the party-planning book with her two daughters, Poet Goldberg and Jagger Goldberg, at the Barnes & Noble bookstore at The Grove in Los Angeles on Oct. 20, 2013. (Son Lyric Goldberg arrived four months later in February 2014.) It was quite the busy month for the former child star: Also in October 2013, Soleil made her hosting debut on "Home Made Simple." (She left the home improvement show after just one season in mid-2014.)

Soleil Moon Frye's next business endeavor was the party supply e-commerce company Moonfrye, which became P.S. XO before merging with the Kiwi children's products brand Seedling in 2014. When Seedling unveiled its new headquarters in Los Angeles on May 28, 2015, the former child star's longtime BFF, Demi Moore, turned out to offer support. (The two women became super-close after Demi's third husband, Ashton Kutcher, co-founded the now-defunct production company Katalyst Media with Soleil's husband, Jason Goldberg.)

Soleil Moon Frye debuted her fourth baby bump at the Baby2Baby Gala in Los Angeles on Nov. 14, 2015. Her second son, Story Goldberg, arrived in May 2016.

There he is! Soleil Moon Frye held her older son, Lyric Goldberg, during Baby2Baby's holiday party in Beverly Hills on Dec. 17, 2017. (Her younger son, Story Goldberg, has yet to make his public debut.)

In 2019, Soleil Moon Frye starred in the Lifetime made-for-TV movie "Staging Christmas." It was her first on-camera acting gig (aside from a two-episode stint as a version of herself on the Pop TV improv-comedy series "Hollywood Darlings" in 2017 and 2018) since "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" concluded in 2003. On Nov. 9, 2019, she posed with "Staging Christmas" co-stars George Stults and Jaleel White at an event celebrating Lifetime's holiday movie slate.

On Nov. 1, 2019, Soleil Moon Frye and Jason Goldberg made their final public appearance as a couple at an event in Beverly Hills. The following year, they quietly separated after more than two decades of marriage. On Dec. 28, 2020, they released a joint statement announcing the news. She soon filed for divorce.

In March 2020, Soleil Moon Frye attended the "Meet Me in Australia" benefit to help raise money for Australian wildfire relief efforts with two special guests: her daughters Jagger Goldberg and Poet Goldberg.

"Punky Brewster" returned to the small screen on Feb. 25, 2021. Soleil Moon Frye reunited with original "Punky" co-star Cherie Johnson for the 10-episode Peacock revival, which sees an adult Punky struggling as a single mom while juggling her biological daughter, her two adopted sons, a foster daughter and an ex-husband played by Freddie Prinze Jr. It's not the only reboot occupying Soleil's time: She's set to return to the role of Zoey Howzer on the Disney+ animated series "The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder," which is due in 2022.

Soleil Moon Frye was snapped sharing a hug and some laughs with longtime pal Brian Austin Green on the beach in Malibu on March 22, 2021. Earlier that month, her documentary "Kid 90" debuted on Hulu. She directed and executive produced the doc, which is sourced from her old diary entries, voicemails and home videos she shot during her teen years in the '90s. She interviewed many of her friends from the time — including the "Beverly Hills, 90210" actor — for the film, which was produced by another childhood pal, Leonardo DiCaprio, through his production company.