Jennifer Love Hewitt (born February 21, 1979) is an American actress and singer. She has appeared on the Fox television series Party of Five and starred in the I Know What You Did Last Summer films. Hewitt can currently be seen on the CBS television series Ghost Whisperer. As a singer, her single "How Do I Deal" reached twenty-six on the American charts.
Biography
Early life and career
Hewitt was born in Waco, Texas to Herbert Daniel Hewitt and Patricia Mae Shipp (who are of mostly English descent). Her father is a technician and her mother worked as a speech pathologist. Hewitt grew up in Killeen, Texas. Her first name was given to her by her brother, after a girl of whom he was fond as a youngster, while her middle name, "Love", was given to her by her mother after her best friend in college. After the divorce of her parents, Hewitt was brought up by her mother. Along with her mother, she lived with her only sibling, Todd Hewitt.
As a young girl, Hewitt was attracted to music which led to her first encounters with the entertainment industry. At the age of three, she sang "The Greatest Love of All" by Whitney Houston at a livestock show. Just a year after that, at a restaurant-dance hall, she entertained an audience with her version of "Help Me Make It Through the Night". By the time she was five, Hewitt already had tap dancing and ballet in her portfolio. At nine, she became a member of the Texas Show Team (which also toured in the Soviet Union). At the age of ten, at the suggestion of talent scouts, she moved to Los Angeles, California, with her mother to pursue a career in both acting and singing.
After moving to Los Angeles, Hewitt appeared in more than twenty television commercials. Her first break came as a child actor on the Disney Channel variety show Kids Incorporated (1989–1991). She later played on television in several short-lived series, such as Fox's Shaky Ground (1992–1993), ABC's Byrds of Paradise (1994), and McKenna (1994–1995). Finally, Hewitt became a young star after landing the role of Sarah Reeves on the popular Fox Television show Party of Five (1995–1999), joining the cast during its second season. She continued the same role in the short-lived Party of Five spinoff, Time of Your Life (1999). Hewitt was also one of the producers, but the show was cancelled after only half a season.
Film and music career
She made her film debut in the independent film Munchie (1992). Hewitt became a film star after a lead role in the horror film I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997). The film had great box-office appeal (125,000,000 U.S. dollars worldwide), and Hewitt became one of the most popular young stars in the USA (together with her co-stars: Freddie Prinze Jr., Ryan Phillippe, and Sarah Michelle Gellar). She also played in the sequel I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998). Other notable film roles included the high-school comedy Can't Hardly Wait (1998). She starred with Sigourney Weaver in the romantic comedy Heartbreakers (2001), which also featured Gene Hackman, Jason Lee, and Ray Liotta.
In 2000, Hewitt appeared in The Audrey Hepburn Story. That same year, she was the "most popular actress on television" due to her Q-rating (a measurement of a celebrity's popularity) of thirty-seven. For that reason, Nokia chose her to become its spokesperson, because of her "fresh image", and her being "a symbol of youthfulness and wholesomeness". In 2002, she was paired with Jackie Chan in the action comedy The Tuxedo.
Since September 2005, Hewitt has starred in the television series Ghost Whisperer. In Australia, Ghost Whisperer has been popular since its introduction; in the United States, it is the highest rated show on Friday nights.
To date, she has released four albums with some success, most notably outside the United States in regions such as Europe and Japan. In Japan, as a result of her success in music there, she is widely considered a pop star. Japan is also where Hewitt's first album was released. Her explanation for her success in Japan is that the Japanese "love perky music. The poppier the music, the better."[1]
In March 2005, Hewitt was featured in Maxim magazine and their Girls of Maxim gallery. In May 2006, the magazine named her #29 in their Hot 100 list.
Awards
Blockbuster Entertainment Award — Favorite Female Newcomer (I Know What You Did Last Summer) (1998)
Blockbuster Entertainment Award — Favorite Actress (I Know What You Did Last Summer) (1998)
People's Choice Award — Favorite Female Television Performer in a New Series (Time of Your Life) (2000)
Filmography
Streetlight (2007)... Mena
Delgo (2006)... voice of princess Kyla
Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties (2006)... Liz
The Truth About Love (2004)... Alice Holbrook
Garfield: The Movie (2004)... Liz
If Only (2004)... Samantha Andrews
The Tuxedo (2002)... Del Blaine
The Hunchback of Notre Dame II (2001)... voice of Madelaine
The Adventures of Tom Thumb & Thumbelina (2001)... voice of Thumbelina
The Devil and Daniel Webster (2001)... The Devil
Heartbreakers (2001)... Page Conners/Jane Helstrom
The Suburbans (1999)... Cate
Zoomates (1998)... voice of Helen
Can't Hardly Wait (1998)... Amanda Beckett
I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998)... Julie James
Telling You (1998)... Deb Freidman
I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)... Julie James
Trojan War (1997)... Leah Jones
House Arrest (1996)... Brooke Figler
Sister Act 2 (1993)... Margaret
Little Miss Millions (1993)... .... Heather Lofton
Munchie (1992)... Andrea Kurtz
Television
Ghost Whisperer (2005– )
Tuxedo (2004– )
Confessions of a Sociopathic Social Climber (2005)
Family Guy (2001) (voice)
The Audrey Hepburn Story (2000)
Time of Your Life (1999)
Party of Five (1995–1999)
McKenna (1994–1995)
Byrds of Paradise (1994)
Shaky Ground (1992–1993)
Kids Incorporated (1989–1991)
Production credits
Ghost Whisperer (2005)
Bunny (2000)
Audrey Hepburn Story (2000)
Time of Your Life (1999)
Albums
Love Songs (1992) — released in Japan only
Let's Go Bang (1995)
Jennifer Love Hewitt (1996)
BareNaked (2002) – 37 U.S., 31 AUS
Singles
From I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (soundtrack)
1999: "How Do I Deal" — 26 U.S.
From BareNaked
2002: "Barenaked" — 6 AUS (gold)
2003: "Can I Go Now" — 12 AUS (gold)
