

Her unique, throaty voice was instantly recognizable to viewers, as well as casting agents, who began frequently casting her in animated programs. Summer's acting career began in 1983 when she was cast as Penny in the first season of the original version of Inspector Gadget. Her brother, Rainbow Sun Francks, is an actor and a former MuchMusic VJ. She and her family also traveled and lived around British Columbia during her childhood, and she started public school at the age of nine in Toronto. She is the daughter of Don Francks, a Canadian actor and musician, and Lili Clark from North Richmond, California, an African-American adopted member of the Plains Cree First Nations.

Summer was born in Los Angeles, California, on July 7, 1969, and grew up on the Red Pheasant Reserve in Saskatchewan.
