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Born Carol Annette Sydes, the delicate, brown-eyed 1960s actress best known as the third Gidget, was one of four children of high-school English teacher Thomas Sydes and his wife Ruth (née Meadows). In her mid-teens, Carol appeared in various TV commercials for products such as Frisky Cat Foods, Noxzema skin cleanser, and Fritos Corn Chips. Despite her father's disapproval of her acting ambitions, she persisted and unexpectedly secured a guest role on the TV series Medic (1954), for which her older brother Anthony Sydes had auditioned. During her first two years in the industry, she took on small roles, including several appearances on the sitcom Leave It to Beaver (1957), still credited as Carol Sydes. She then became a regular on The New Loretta Young Show (1962), playing one of the lead character's seven children. Although the series was canceled after 26 episodes, Carol was chosen by producer Jerry Bresler from 500 applicants to play the petite surfing enthusiast Gidget in the film Gidget Goes to Rome (1963), replacing Deborah Walley, who was unavailable due to marriage and starting a family. Columbia signed her to a seven-year contract with a starting salary of $300 per week, and she underwent the typical studio publicity makeover, changing her hair to blonde and adopting the stage name Cindy Carol.
Her most notable film role was as Pandora Leaf, the clever 18-year-old daughter of a college professor (James Stewart), in the family comedy Dear Brigitte (1965). However, most praise for juvenile acting went to Bill Mumy, who played Pandora's mathematically gifted brother. Carol's final acting role was a recurring part on the teenage-targeted daytime soap Never Too Young (1965). She retired from acting in 1966 and, as Carol Annette Connelly, focused on raising a family. Her second husband, actor Christopher Connelly, passed away from lung cancer in December 1988 at the age of 47.
