Good genes! Jenny McCarthy took it way back on Thursday, July 30, celebrating Throwback Thursday with an adorable photo of herself and her famous cousin Melissa McCarthy as kids.
The two future comediennes pose with one of Jenny’s three sisters in the vintage shot, sporting perfectly ’70s retro garb.
“Me, my sis and my cousin Melissa,” Jenny, 42, captioned the image. “102 degrees at the zoo, not happy campers. #tbt.”
Jenny and Melissa, 44, grew up in Illinois and made it to Hollywood in their twenties. Jenny helped Melissa get her first job when she was leading the sitcom Jenny, which ran from 1997 to 1998. Since then, both actresses have become famous and successful in their own rights.
The two cousins, who spent their childhood years together with their expansive family, remain on good terms but are rarely seen in public together. Melissa didn’t even attend Jenny’s small wedding to Donnie Wahlberg last year. She told Howard Stern that she and her cousin are in “opposite worlds” these days.
Jenny has shifted her focus a bit in recent years, acting less and making more appearances as herself on shows like The View, Donnie Loves Jenny, and Wahlburgers. For her part, Melissa has become a celebrated force in the comedy world, leading flicks like Spy, Tammy, and The Heat. She’ll also star alongside Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones in the upcoming Ghostbusters reboot.
The stars both have families of their own now, too. Jenny has a 13-year-old son named Evan from her first marriage to John Mallory Asher, while Melissa and her husband Ben Falcone are the parents to daughters Vivian, 8, and Georgette, 5.
