Jennifer Love Hewitt



Jennifer Love Hewitt (born February 21, 1979) is an American actress, producer, author, television director and singer-songwriter. Hewitt began her acting career as a child by appearing in television commercials and the Disney Channel series Kids Incorporated. She rose to fame in teenage popular culture in her roles in the Fox series Party of Five as Sarah Reeves Merrin, and films I Know What You Did Last Summer and its sequel as Julie James.

Hewitt starred on the hit CBS television program Ghost Whisperer as Melinda Gordon, for which she won a Saturn Award in 2007 and 2008 for Best Actress on Television.[1]  She was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award for her television movie The Client List. In addition to acting, she has served as a producer on some of her film and television projects. As a singer, Hewitt has been signed by Atlantic Records and Jive Records, and is primarily known for her recordings in the pop genre. Her most successful single on theBillboard Hot 100 is the 1999 release "How Do I Deal", which peaked at No. 59.[2]  She has also contributed music to the promotion or soundtracks of acting projects. She was identified as the "#1 reader choice" on the November 1999 and May 2009 covers ofMaxim.[3]  TV Guide named her the sexiest woman on television in 2008.[4]

As of 2012 she is a recurring star on Hot in Cleveland[5]  and leads the Lifetime television series The Client List.[6]





Early life
Hewitt was born in and Waco, Texas,[7]  to Patricia Mae (née Shipp), a speech-language pathologist, and Herbert Daniel Hewitt, a medical technician.[8]  Hewitt grew up in Nolanville in Central Texas.[9]  Hewitt's has close kinship ties in parts of Arkansas. Hewitt received her middle name after her mother promised her college friend (named "Love") that if she had a daughter, she would name her after her.[10]  Her older brother, Todd Hewitt, chose the name "Jennifer" as a homage to a crush he had at the time she was born.[9]  After the divorce of her parents, Hewitt and her brother were raised by her mother.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Biography4_11-0" style="line-height:1em;">[11]  Patricia Mae Hewitt died on June 12, 2012, aged 67, following a battle with cancer.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-12" style="line-height:1em;">[12]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">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" at a livestock show.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-13" style="line-height:1em;">[13]  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".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Biography1_14-0" style="line-height:1em;">[14]  By age five, she had tap dancing and ballet in her portfolio.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-15" style="line-height:1em;">[15]  At nine, she became a member of the Texas Show Team (which also toured in the Soviet Union).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-16" style="line-height:1em;">[16]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">At age ten, at the suggestion of talent scouts and after gaining the title of "Texas Our Little Miss Talent Winner",<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-17" style="line-height:1em;">[17]  she moved to Los Angeles with her mother to pursue a career in both acting and singing.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Biography4_11-1" style="line-height:1em;">[11]  In Los Angeles, she attended Lincoln High School where her classmates included Jonathan Neville, who became a talent scout and recommended Hewitt for her role in Party of Five.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Biography1_14-1" style="line-height:1em;">[14]

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[edit] Acting
After moving to Los Angeles, Hewitt appeared in more than twenty television commercials, including some for Mattel toys.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-18" style="line-height:1em;">[18]  Her first break came as a child actor on the Disney Channel variety show Kids Incorporated (1989–1991),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-19" style="line-height:1em;">[19]  where she was credited as "Love Hewitt". She later appeared in the live action video short ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dance!_Workout_with_Barbie Dance! Workout with Barbie]'' (1992), released by Buena Vista.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-20" style="line-height:1em;">[20] Hewitt at the premiere of 27 Dresses, January 7, 2008She played Pierce Brosnan's daughter in a pilot for NBC called Running Wilde (1993),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-21" style="line-height:1em;">[21]  which featured Brosnan as a reporter for Auto World magazine whose stories cover his own wild auto adventures. However, the series was not picked up and the pilot never aired.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22" style="line-height:1em;">[22]  Hewitt later had roles in several short-lived television series, such as Fox's Shaky Ground (1992–1993),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-23" style="line-height:1em;">[23]  ABC's The Byrds of Paradise (1994),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-24" style="line-height:1em;">[24]  and McKenna (1994–1995),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-25" style="line-height:1em;">[25]  and finally became a young star after landing the role of Sarah Reeves Merrin on the popular Fox show Party of Five (1995–1999).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-26" style="line-height:1em;">[26]  She assumed the role of Sarah after joining that show during its second season and continued it on the short-lived Party of Five spin-off, Time of Your Life (1999), which she also co-produced.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-27" style="line-height:1em;">[27]  The show was cancelled after half a season.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-28" style="line-height:1em;">[28]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">Hewitt's first feature film role was in the independent film Munchie (1992).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-29" style="line-height:1em;">[29]  A year later, she achieved her first starring film role in Little Miss Millions (1993).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-30" style="line-height:1em;">[30]  She appeared as a choir member in Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit (1993).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-31" style="line-height:1em;">[31]  Hewitt became a film star after a lead role in the horror film I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-32" style="line-height:1em;">[32]  which enjoyed great box office success ($125,000,000 USD).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-33" style="line-height:1em;">[33]  Hewitt and her co-stars gained popular exposure from the film. She appeared in the sequel I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998), which, though not as successful as the first film, took in more money on its opening weekend.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-34" style="line-height:1em;">[34]  She starred in the high-school comedy Can't Hardly Wait (1998).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-35" style="line-height:1em;">[35]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">Hewitt starred in The Audrey Hepburn Story (2000).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-36" style="line-height:1em;">[36]  That same year, she was the "most popular actress on television" due to her Q-rating (a measurement of a celebrity's popularity) of 37.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-37" style="line-height:1em;">[37]  Noting her "Q-rating", Nokia chose her to become its spokesperson.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-38" style="line-height:1em;">[38]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">She starred alongside Sigourney Weaver in the romantic comedy Heartbreakers (2001).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-39" style="line-height:1em;">[39]  She did voice work in the animated film The Hunchback of Notre Dame II (2002) as Madellaine, the main protagonist's love interest.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-40" style="line-height:1em;">[40]  Hewitt wrote and performed "I'm Gonna Love You" for the film; the song won "Best Original Song" at the DVD Premiere Awards.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-41" style="line-height:1em;">[41]  She starred alongside Jackie Chan in The Tuxedo (2002),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-42" style="line-height:1em;">[42]  which received negative reviews from critics but was a box office success.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-43" style="line-height:1em;">[43]  Hewitt appeared in If Only (2004) and co-wrote and performed "Love Will Show You Everything" and "Take My Heart Back" for the film's soundtrack.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-44" style="line-height:1em;">[44]  She starred inGarfield (2004),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-45" style="line-height:1em;">[45]  which became her highest-grossing film to date ($200,804,534 USD).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-46" style="line-height:1em;">[46]  She reprised her role for the sequel,Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties (2006),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-47" style="line-height:1em;">[47]  which, though not performing as well as its predecessor, achieved a strong box office gross.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-48" style="line-height:1em;">[48]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">Hewitt starred in the television series Ghost Whisperer (2005–2010),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-49" style="line-height:1em;">[49]  which ran on CBS for five seasons before being canceled by the network in May, 2010.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-50" style="line-height:1em;">[50]  She reunited with her I Know What You Did Last Summer co-star, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freddie_Prinze_Jr. Freddie Prinze Jr.], in Delgo (2008).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-51" style="line-height:1em;">[51]  The film was a massive box office bomb ($694,782 USD domestically).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-52" style="line-height:1em;">[52]  After a two-year absence from feature films, Hewitt led the independent drama Café (2010) with her then-boyfriend Jamie Kennedy.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-53" style="line-height:1em;">[53]  She starred in the Lifetime film The Client List (2010),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-54" style="line-height:1em;">[54]  for which she received a Golden Globe nomination.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-55" style="line-height:1em;">[55]  The next year, Hewitt starred in the Hallmark Hall of Fame film The Lost Valentine(2011).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-56" style="line-height:1em;">[56]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">Hewitt was announced to direct the film Wait Till Helen Comes (based on the novel by Mary Downing Hahn.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-57" style="line-height:1em;">[57]  This will be Hewitt's feature film directorial debut (she previously directed three episodes of Ghost Whisperer).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-58" style="line-height:1em;">[58]  Production on the film was slated to begin in the summer of 2011, but no further announcements about the film have been made. She also starred alongside Ivan Sergei and Joel David Moore in the independent comedy Jewtopia (2012).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-59" style="line-height:1em;">[59]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">As of 2012, she stars in the television series The Client List (2012).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-60" style="line-height:1em;">[60]

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Music
Hewitt was one of the back-up singers in Martika's number-one single, "Toy Soldiers" (1989). Jennifer Love Hewitt in 2012At the age of 12, Meldac funded the recording of Hewitt's first album, Love Songs (1992).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Album1_61-0" style="line-height:1em;">[61]  The album was released exclusively in Japan, where Hewitt became a pop star.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated1_62-0" style="line-height:1em;">[62]  Her explanation for her success in Japan is that the Japanese "love perky music. The poppier the music, the better."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-63" style="line-height:1em;">[63]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">After she joined the cast of Party of Five, she signed to Atlantic Records, who rushed her second album, Let's Go Bang (1995), out in October.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Album1_61-1" style="line-height:1em;">[61]  The album and its three singles failed to chart.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Album1_61-2" style="line-height:1em;">[61]  Juggling her music career with her acting career, she recorded and released her follow-up album, Jennifer Love Hewitt (1996).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-64" style="line-height:1em;">[64]  The album, along with its four singles, failed to chart and Atlantic dropped Hewitt, who did not return to the music scene for three years.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Album1_61-3" style="line-height:1em;">[61]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">She recorded the single "How Do I Deal" (1999) for the I Still Know What You Did Last Summersoundtrack.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-65" style="line-height:1em;">[65]  The song became Hewitt's first charting single, climbing to No. 59 on the Hot 100 and No. 36 on the Top 40 Mainstream.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Album2_1-1" style="line-height:1em;">[1]  It reached No. 8 in Australia.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-66" style="line-height:1em;">[66]  Hewitt also recorded a cover of the Gloria Gaynor song "I Will Survive", which features briefly in the film.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-67" style="line-height:1em;">[67]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">She appeared in the LFO video for "Girl on TV" (1999),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-68" style="line-height:1em;">[68]  a song which was written for her by a member of the band.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-69" style="line-height:1em;">[69]  She also appeared in the music video for the Enrique Iglesias song, "Hero" (2001), as the singer's love interest.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-70" style="line-height:1em;">[70]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">In 2002, Hewitt signed to Jive Records<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-71" style="line-height:1em;">[71]  and recorded her fourth album with singer, songwriter and producer Meredith Brooks.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-72" style="line-height:1em;">[72]  The first single, "BareNaked" (2002), became her biggest radio hit to date when it peaked at No. 24 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart, No. 31 on the Adult Top 40 and No. 25 on the Top 40 Mainstream.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Album3_73-0" style="line-height:1em;">[73]  It climbed to No. 6 in Australia, remaining there for two weeks,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-74" style="line-height:1em;">[74]  and reached No. 33 in the Netherlands.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-75" style="line-height:1em;">[75]  The song later featured in two episodes ofGhost Whisperer: "The Vanishing" (Season 1, episode 20)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-76" style="line-height:1em;">[76]  and "The Collector" (Season 2, episode 20).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-77" style="line-height:1em;">[77]  The moderate success of the single propelled the album to peak at No. 37 on the Billboard 200<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-78" style="line-height:1em;">[78]  and No. 31 in Australia.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-79" style="line-height:1em;">[79]  However, it only remained on the chart for three weeks.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Album3_73-1" style="line-height:1em;">[73]  The second single, "Can I Go Now" (2003), failed to chart in the US, while managing to peak at No. 8 in the Netherlands<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-80" style="line-height:1em;">[80]  and No. 12 in Australia.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-81" style="line-height:1em;">[81]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">Since 2004, Hewitt has remained inactive in the music industry, but the compilation album Cool with You: The Platinum Collection(2006) was released in Asia.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-82" style="line-height:1em;">[82]  Another compilation, Hey Everybody (2007), was released in Brazil.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-83" style="line-height:1em;">[83]  In 2009, reports surfaced that Hewitt was planning on making a country album and was in the process of writing material for it.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-84" style="line-height:1em;">[84]  Jamie Kennedy, Hewitt's boyfriend at the time, said: "I really want to make her a new demo for her music, because I think she should do singing again. She's so good."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated1_62-1" style="line-height:1em;">[62] However, nothing has of yet come of the reports. Hewitt has remained mostly absent from the music scene, but in 2013, she recorded a cover of "I'm a Woman" to promote the second season of The Client List. She even shot a music video for the song, which reached the top ten in the iTunes Music Video chart. <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-85" style="line-height:1em;">[85]

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Writing
In November 2009, Hewitt made a foray into comic books. Writer Scott Lobdell scripted the 5-issue anthology, Jennifer Love Hewitt's Music Box (2009–2010), based on Hewitt's ideas.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-86" style="line-height:1em;">[86]  The series was published by IDW Publishing, and was collected in a trade paperback.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-87" style="line-height:1em;">[87]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">She wrote a book titled The Day I Shot Cupid (2010), in which she speaks of her experiences with love and dating.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-88" style="line-height:1em;">[88]  During a January 2010 interview on Lopez Tonight, Hewitt said that there was a chapter in the book about "vajazzling" her "vajayjay" (decorating her vulva with Swarovski crystals).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-89" style="line-height:1em;">[89] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-90" style="line-height:1em;">[90]  Hewitt is said to have contributed to the popularization of this trend.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-91" style="line-height:1em;">[91]  The book became a New York Times Bestseller the week of its release.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-92" style="line-height:1em;">[92]  She announced via her Twitter page in June 2011 that she was penning a follow-up.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-93" style="line-height:1em;">[93] There is an audiobook version Love reads herself.

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Personal life
Hewitt and Jamie Kennedy at the 2009 Primetime Emmy Awards.Hewitt began a relationship with Scottish actor Ross McCall, whom she met when he made an appearance on Ghost Whisperer in late 2005.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-94" style="line-height:1em;">[94]  After two years of dating, they became engaged in November 2007, while vacationing in Hawaii.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-95" style="line-height:1em;">[95]  People magazine reported that Hewitt called off their engagement in late 2008.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-96" style="line-height:1em;">[96]  She dated her Ghost Whisperer co-star Jamie Kennedy from March 2009 to March 2010.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-97" style="line-height:1em;">[97]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">In 2002, a conspiracy theorist and former social worker, Diana Napolis, was arrested for stalking and uttering death threats against Hewitt and Steven Spielberg after "verbally confronting" the actress at the 2002 Grammy Awards, and the subsequent day attempting to pose as one of Hewitt's friends to enter the premiere of The Tuxedo.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-98" style="line-height:1em;">[98]  Napolis admitted to being involved in a shoving match with Hewitt's mother while confronting the actress.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Mirror_99-0" style="line-height:1em;">[99]  Napolis accused Hewitt, along with director Spielberg, of controlling her thoughts through "cybertronic" technology and being part of a Satanic conspiracy against her.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Sauer2002_100-0" style="line-height:1em;">[100]  Napolis was charged with six felonies related to the incidents.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-DeYoung_101-0" style="line-height:1em;">[101]  After a year of involuntary commitment, Napolis pleaded guilty and was released on bail with a condition that she was barred from contact with both Spielberg and Hewitt.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-102" style="line-height:1em;">[102]

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Filmography
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==Discography==

Compilation albums
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Singles
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Soundtracks
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Awards and nominations
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