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Hart, who has owned a home in Westport, turns 38 on Friday. The actress, television director, and television producer was born April 18, 1976, in Smithtown, N.Y.
She is best known for her title roles in the television series "Clarissa Explains It All" (1991-94), the live action version of "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch" (1996-2003), and "Melissa & Joey" (2010-present).
Her career began at age 4 when she made a television commercial for a bathtub doll called Splashy. From then on, she appeared regularly in commercials, making 25 of them before the age of 5.
Other early television work included a small role in the miniseries "Kane & Abel" in 1985, a guest-starring role in an episode of "The Equalizer" in 1986, and a starring role alongside Katherine Helmond in the Emmy Award-winning TV movie "Christmas Snow," also in 1986.
In 1989, she became the understudy for a Broadway production of "The Crucible" starring Martin Sheen.
In 1999, Hart made her directorial debut in an episode of Disney Channel's "So Weird" called "Snapshot." She later directed an episode of Nickelodeon's "Taina" in 2001.
In 2010, she starred as Kelley in a horror thriller film entitled "Nine Dead."
She wrote an autobiography, entitled "Melissa Explains it All," which was released in 2013.
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