While Kari Byron was studying film and sculpture at San Francisco State University, her parents were wondering what kind of job she'd actually end up with in the real world. She’d be writing, directing and starring in B-level schlock-horror films one day; the next she'd be sculpting intricate model dragons for Dungeons & Dragons fans.
Luckily for us that all turned out to be perfect training for the world of MythBusters.
After graduating, Kari began her career as an artist, working in sculpture and painting and holding successful exhibitions at some of San Francisco's leading galleries.
Her sculpting skills then led her into the world of model-making and toy-prototyping: a job with Jamie Hyneman at M5 Industries. It was here that Kari got her first big break with the Mythbusters team. During the "vacuum toilet" segment of one of the first episodes (which examined whether a person could get suctioned into an airline toilet), Jamie needed a 3-D scan of a person's backside, and Kari had the right ... well, you know. Basically, she was in the right place at the right time.
The rest is history (although we'd be remiss if we overlooked Kari's former job experience working in a kosher bagel store and posing as a store mannequin to foil shoplifters).
An erratic fencer and knife thrower, Kari has been chased by machine-gun-toting Egyptian police for painting a mural in Dahab, has trekked in the Himalayas, and has scuba-dived in most of the world oceans.
BTW, she's a vegan.
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