Haylie Duff Biography

Birth Name : Haylie Katherine Duff 

Date of Birth : 19 February 1985, Houston, Texas, USA 

Height : 5' 2½" (1.59 m) 

Occupation : Actress, singer, songwriter

Haylie Katherine Duff was born on February 19, 1985, in Houston, Texas, to parents Bob and Susan Duff. Sister Hilary came into the family two and a half years later, in September 1987. The girls took up ballet at a very young age, and toured with the Cechetti Ballet during the mid-'90s. Haylie's outgoing personality led to her interest in acting and music, which she began pursuing around the age of 10. 

Following in her little sister Hilary's sizeable footsteps, actress Haylie Duff began her acting career as an offshoot of her early dance training. Growing up in Texas, Duff began ballet at an early age. By age ten, Duff landed a role in the Houston Metropolitan Dance Company's production of "The Nutcracker". Within a year, Duff had moved on to roles in television. Starting with a small, uncredited part in the 1997 mini-series "True Women", Duff followed up a supporting role in the made-for-TV movie, "Hope", helmed by first-time director Goldie Hawn. Both films were shot in Texas, which allowed Duff to, at least initially, maintain a balance between her home life and early career.

Moving to Los Angeles to pursue acting full-time later that year, Duff promptly landed a role in the direct-to-video sequel "Addams Family Values" directed by Dave Payne. The sub-par film was savaged by the few critics who bothered to see it. Nevertheless, it served as Duff's entry into Hollywood proper. Fortunately, Duff's next two projects were better received by reviewers (albeit, equally ignored by audiences). In the critically lauded "Dreams in the Attic" (2000), Duff played Jessica, the lonely niece of an eccentric costume shop proprietor (portrayed by Shelley Duvall) who discovers a chest full of magical dreams and fantasies hidden away in a dusty old attic. Duff next popped up in the comedy short "The Newman Shower" (2001), a coming-of-age teen escapade set in the late 1980's at a summer camp.