Annette Carol Sydes, a petite, brown-eyed actress, is best known for her role as the third iteration of Gidget. Born to high school English teacher Thomas Sydes and his wife Ruth, Annette was one of four siblings. She began her acting career in her mid-teens, appearing in various TV commercials for products such as Frisky Cat Foods, Noxzema skin cleanser, and Fritos corn chips.
Although her father disapproved of her acting aspirations, Annette persisted and landed a guest spot on the TV series Medic in 1954. She went on to appear in bit parts for the next two years, making several appearances on the sitcom Leave It to Beaver and then becoming a regular on The New Loretta Young Show as one of the lead characters' seven children.
After the series was cancelled, Annette was selected from among 500 applicants to play the role of Gidget in the feature film Gidget Goes to Rome in 1963. She was signed to a seven-year contract with Columbia and underwent a studio publicity campaign, changing her hair color to blonde and her name to Cindy Carol.
Annette's most notable role was as Pandora Leaf, the 18-year-old daughter of a college professor, in the family comedy Dear Brigitte in 1965. She also had a recurring role on the daytime soap Never Too Young, which was aimed at the teenage market. Annette retired from acting in 1966 and devoted herself to raising a family.
She married the actor Christopher Connelly, with whom she had a child, and later changed her name to Carol Annette Connelly. Christopher passed away from lung cancer in December 1988 at the age of 47.
