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| Zooey Deschanel |
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"You can't always put it into words, but the main thing is to make sure you're not miscast or typecast. You want to keep your range open."
| Date of Birth: January 17, 1980 |
| Birthplace: Los Angeles, California |
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| This multitalented woman made a name for herself as a cute department store elf in the hit 2003 comedy, Elf. She could've taken a brief hiatus and rested on her laurels, but instead, she scored a role in 2005's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. |
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| Zooey Deschanel is a Jane of all trades. Not only is she an actress, but she is also a talented singer, showing off her fine set of chops in films. Her other musical skills include playing the piano and the ukulele. (On a side note, when was the last time you saw a twentysomething female outside of Hawaii playing the ukulele?) All of that would be enough for most people, but Zooey's also done some screenwriting on the side. Maybe she'll eventually take a shot at directing and modeling. |
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Zooey Claire Deschanel was born on January 17, 1980, in Los Angeles, California. Her name was inspired by the male character in legendary author J.D. Salinger's classic novel, Franny and Zooey. Zooey had the good fortune of being born into a showbiz family; her father Caleb is an Oscar-nominated cinematographer, while her mother Mary Jo is an accomplished actress.
It didn't take long for young Zooey to settle on a career. Even though she could barely speak at the tender age of 2, she proclaimed to her family that she wanted to be an actress. About 10 years later, as a high school student, Zooey started to take her childhood ambition from dream to reality.
Because of her father's job, she spent a great deal of time traveling to different parts of the globe. After graduating from Crossroads School for Arts and Sciences in suburban Los Angeles, she moved on to Northwestern University. She originally planned to get a degree in theater from the well-respected institution, but dropped out during her first year when her film career started going places.
Zooey Deschanel performed in stage productions before making her first TV appearance in 1998, as "Elena" on an episode of Veronica's Closet. In 1999, she made her silver screen debut in Lawrence Kasdan's Mumford, as a client of a small-town psychologist.
The following year, Zooey portrayed the flight attendant sister of lead character William Miller in Almost Famous, working alongside real-life high school classmate Kate Hudson. In 2002, Zooey could be seen in comedies like Big Trouble and The New Guy, as well as the critically acclaimed The Good Girl, starring Jennifer Aniston, and the flop Abandon, starring Katie Holmes. She also made an appearance on NBC's Frasier, as Roz's cousin.
In 2003, she really got noticed for her work in the breakout hit, Elf. Even Zooey said she didn't expect the flick to be as popular as it was, despite her fine performance as a department store elf who is also the apple of Will Ferrell's eye.
Around the time of Elf's release, Zooey heard that a screen test was being held for The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Apparently, she was the only one among the filmmakers and cast who had actually read the book. Zooey says she read it when she was about 10 years old, and consulted the book again to prepare for the screen test.
We'll be seeing a lot more of Zooey Deschanel in the years to come: she's set to star in 2005's Winter Passing and 2006's Failure to Launch, Live Free or Die and Flakes. She will also be lending her voice to "Lani" in 2007's Surf's Up. |
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© Jim Spellman
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