Cordelia Chase, born and raised in Sunnydale, is a classic snob. She's a popular cheerleader, extremely self-centered, and always speaks her mind ("Tact is just not saying true stuff. I'll pass."). When Buffy first came to Sunnydale, Cordelia tried to befriend her, since anyone from Los Angeles must be cool. But after Buffy mistakenly attacked her with a stake, and then began hanging out with "losers" Willow and Xander, Cordelia decided to shun her instead. It was a mutual dislike, but eventually Cordelia needed Buffy's help (when an invisible girl was terrorizing her), and soon after, Cordelia found out that Buffy was the Slayer. She found herself hanging out with the Scooby Gang more and more (though the insults were still exchanged regularly), and eventually she found herself in a relationship (of sorts) with Xander. When her "cool" friends found out and alienated her, she broke up with him, but then changed her mind, deciding she'd date whoever she wanted, "no matter how lame" they were. However, Xander and Willow found themselves kissing one day, and had a bit of trouble trying not to do it again — until Cordelia and Oz caught them. Cordelia and Xander never got back together, but they did recently seem to call a bit of an unofficial truce. She later developed a crush on the new Watcher, Wesley, but upon kissing, they realized they had no chemistry. It was revealed toward the end of the third season that Cordelia's family, who've always had money, are now broke; her father made some "mistakes" on his taxes — twelve years in a row. Cordelia moved to Los Angeles to become an actress, but ended up working with Angel and Wesley to help the helpless. Their dead colleague Doyle gave her his talent for receiving visions of people in trouble, and experiencing all the suffering in LA has had a marked effect on her previously vapid personality.
    (The Watcher's Guide was used as a reference for seasons one and two.)

Charisma Carpenter, 54, is reportedly nothing like her character (that's a relief). Named after an Avon perfume, she was born in Las Vegas and lived there until she was fifteen, when her family moved to Mexico, and then to a San Diego suburb. Throughout the course of all this moving, Charisma attended three high schools: Gorman Catholic High School in Las Vegas, Bonita Vista High School near San Diego, and the Chula Vista High School of the Creative and Performing Arts in San Diego, where she graduated in 1988 with an emphasis in classical dance. Charisma was a fairly average teenager, with her share of bad grades and broken curfews. She wasn't overwhelmingly popular, but she was a cheerleader and a member of the homecoming court, so she wasn't an outcast, either. After high school, she spent some time in Europe and then entered community college in San Diego, working at various points as a waitress, a property manager, a video store clerk, an aerobics instructor, and a San Diego Chargers Cheerleader. Eventually, she moved to Los Angeles, where she was introduced to a commercial agent while working as a waitress. She started taking acting classes for the first time, and discovered that she loved acting and could actually make a living at it. She appeared in numerous commercials, including a Secret antiperspirant commercial that ran for two years, and eventually got a guest spot on "Baywatch." Aaron Spelling saw her and cast her as mega-bitch Ashley Green in his short-lived series, "Malibu Shores." While working on that show, she went to audition for the role of Buffy on "BtVS," but they also had her read for Cordelia, which she was not prepared for. Despite that, she got the role (reportedly after Bianca Lawson, who later appeared as Kendra, turned it down). Charisma enjoys ballet, horseback riding, rollerblading, hiking, and rock-climbing, and has even sky-dived. She currently resides in Los Angeles with her Golden Retriever.
       Thanks to Jennifer Ireland for some of the info about Charisma's high school years.

Charisma was a regular for Seasons 1-3, appearing in every episode during those seasons.