Salenger began her career as a young girl in stage productions of "South Pacific" and "Camelot" which led to her screen debut as an orphan in John Huston's screen adaptation of the Broadway musical "Annie" (1982). She won her first leading role as the title character in "The Journey of Natty Gann" (1984) based on the children's classic. The feature was the first American film to win the top prize at the Moscow Film Festival. She also appeared as Lisa, the young woman who scorns River Phoenix in "A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon" and as Amy, the girl struggling to escape sinister forces in
