|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Shannon Marie Kahololani Sossamon (born October 3, 1978), better known as Shannyn Sossamon, is an American actress, musician and dancer. A striking brunette who got her big break after being spotted DJing at a Gwyneth Paltrow birthday bash, Shannyn Sossamon made her feature debut in the modernized period piece "A Knight's Tale" (2001), playing a medieval princess who catches the eye of Heath Ledger's battling squire. With the talk of her seemingly celebratory beginnings almost stealing the thunder away from her solid acting turn, her true story wasn't as glamorous as it at first seemed. Hailing from Reno, Nevada, Sossamon moved to California in pursuit of a career in dance, but soon started working as a disc jockey. When a friend landed the Paltrow gig and needed to borrow her turntables, she came along to spin during the DJ's breaks and her effortless charisma caught the eye of a casting director. Following her fairy tale-like discovery and subsequent female lead role, the exotically beautiful but girl-next-door unaffected Sossamon was featured in many a magazine, but was careful to avoid the media saturation trap that has ruined the careers of many a starlet. Sossamon was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, the daughter of Sherry Sossamon, a nurse, and Todd Lindberg; her mother later re-married to Randy Goldstein. Sossamon grew up in Reno, Nevada, and attended Galena High School there. Sossamon is of Dutch, English, Filipino, French, German, Hawaiian, and Irish descent. Sossamon's maternal grandfather was Anglo-German, and maternal grandmother was Filipino Hawaiian. Her paternal grandfather was Dutch-American, and her paternal grandmother was French/Irish-American. The y in her first name was an adolescent alteration in 1995. The day after her high school graduation, Sossamon moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in dance. Sossamon appeared in television commercials like Fruit Gushers where her head morphed into a gigantic raspberry and had DJ gigs in local clubs. In 1999, Sossamon was discovered by casting director Francine Maisler, while assisting a friend DJ at Gwyneth Paltrow's birthday party. In 2002, "Forty Days and Forty Nights" was released, pairing the up and comer with fellow young Hollywood hotshot Josh Hartnett in a role that the actress hoped would prove her success in "A Knight's Tale" wasn't a fluke. Later that year, she co-starred with James Van Der Beek in the feature adaptation of "Rules of Attraction", a 1980s-set adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis' best-selling novel. She rejoined her "A Knight's Tale" director Helgeland and co-stars Ledger and Mark Addy for the secret sect thriller "The Order" (2003), playing Mara, a troubled artist with a turbulent past who tests a priest's (Ledger) devotion to his vows. She then appeared in “Undiscovered” (2005) co-starring Pell James, Ashlee Simpson and Kip Pardue. Graham Coxon's 5th solo album Happiness in Magazines features a song called "Spectacular", reportedly about Sossamon after seeing her picture on the internet. Sossamon has three tattoos, including an S with a flower on her right back shoulder, and an "S" backward on her left shoulder. With Dallas Clayton, she has a son, Audio Science Clayton. Sossamon continues to study acting, music and dance. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Celebrities Guide 
| WhoABC
Home : Disclaimer
: Terms
: Privacy
Policy : Contact
Us : Links All original content Copyright Celebrities Guide, WhoABC.com © 2004 - 2008. All Rights Reserved |