Katherine Heigl biography

Synopsis

Early Life

Katherine Marie Heigl was born in Washington D.C. on November 24, 1978 to Paul and Nancy Heigl as the youngest of their four children. Heigl and her family settled in New Canaan, Connecticut when she was five. "I had a wonderful childhood," Heigl recalls. "Things were very simple. Everyone else went to beer parties; we played sardines and charades and Scrabble and went to Baskin-Robbins. It was innocent, and it was lovely—because life gets complicated soon enough. Life gets hard soon enough." Indeed, life got hard when Heigl was just seven, and her older brother Jason was killed in a car accident. Shortly afterward, her family converted to Mormonism. "It's hard work to grow and change and be honest with yourself about your mistakes, and I think the Mormons handle that beautifully. The faith I grew up with has influenced every decision I've made in my life—well, except for the bad ones!"

Katherine Heigl's life changed again at age nine, when an aunt sent pictures of Heigl to modeling agencies. Heigl signed with the internationally renowned Wilhelmina agency, and began modeling, starring in commercials, and auditioning for more and greater roles. She appeared in her first feature film, That Night, at age eleven, and took her first lead role at age 14 in the 1994 film My Father the Hero. While still attending her local public school, she accepted a wide variety of acting and modeling jobs, and appeared on the cover of Seventeen Magazine in August of 1994.

In 1996, Katherine Heigl's parents separated, and her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. After her mother's successful recovery, Heigl and her mother moved to Los Angeles to try to break into Hollywood. Her mother served as Heigl's manager. "I can't think of a single incidence in my life or career where my mother didn't put me first," Heigl explains. "I know all the old clichés and that there is a stigma attached to it. But people who rush to judge don't understand our relationship."

Big Break

Katherine Heigl's first break came in 1999, when she was cast as a one of the stars of the teen science-fiction show Roswell, which gave her wide exposure in Hollywood. The show ran for three seasons, and Heigl filmed a variety of smaller projects during the hiatuses. After Roswell was cancelled in 2002, Heigl appeared in several made-for-TV movies, including a prequel to Romy and Michele's High School Reunion and two Lifetime movies based on the novels of Janet Oke, Love's Enduring Promise and Love Comes Softly. In between roles in independent and low-budget films (including Zyzzyx Road, which holds the record for the lowest grossing film of all time), Heigl also filmed a pilot about medicals interns at a Seattle Hospital, which was eventually titled Grey's Anatomy.

Breakout Role

As soon as Grey's Anatomy went on the air in March 2005, it was a smash hit, elevating Heigl and her costars' profiles in Hollywood. Heigl used the increased media attention to discuss organ donation. Her brother Jason's organs had been donated, so the issue is an important one for her. Heigl and her mother were joint recipients of the Dr. James S. Wolf Courage Award for their roles in promoting organ donation. Heigl starred in a music video for singer-songwriter Josh Kelley in the summer of 2005, and she and Kelley started dating almost immediately. "I had never dated a musician, and he was really sexy to me. His manager was playing Cupid; he said, 'You've got to come up to his room and hear this really sexy song!' Then his manager made some excuse and left." Heigl pursued Kelley over the next few weeks until they started dating. "I [had] spent a lot of time not being clear about who I was and what was important to me. I decided I was sick of trying to figure out what everybody else wanted, and I should just decide what I want, and be honest, and not spend all my time guessing. Josh is the first serious relationship I've ever had where I was like, This is me. From the moment I met him, I said, This is what I want and what I need." The two announced their engagement in June of 2006.

In 2006 and 2007, Heigl met with more success: she was nominated first for a Golden Globe and then won an Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Dr. Isobel "Izzie" Stevens on Grey's Anatomy. She also starred in the smash comedy hit Knocked Up alongside Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, and Leslie Mann, and finished the year by marrying fiancé Kelley in Park City, Utah. Flush with these successes, Heigl started her own production company along with her mother. She named it Abishag Productions, after the figure in the Robert Frost poem "Provide, Provide": "The picture pride of Hollywood/Too many fall from great and good/For you to doubt the likelihood." "I just thought it would help to