Mischa Barton 3

Mischa Anne Barton was born in London, England, on January 24th, 1986, to an English father and Irish mother. By the time she was 4 years old, the family moved to New York City, where her father continued to work in the world of finance.

This allowed Mischa to have a privileged upbringing, which consisted of traveling across the globe and sampling the best things in life. She grew up with American values that often made her clash with her parents; they hadn't yet adjusted to the culture shock. Nevertheless, the Bartons were always a tight family.

At the age of 8, Mischa and one of her two sisters were sent to summer camp. One of the activities involved the children writing their own monologues and performing them for their parents. Mischa wrote a piece about turtles and her delivery was so impressive that an agent who was scouting for talent told her parents they had a star on their hands.

Her parents were thrilled of course, but at the same time wondered if it was an appropriate path for their daughter. When she was 9 and in the fifth grade, Mischa decided that it was something she definitely wanted to try.

She got her start after auditioning for the lead role in Tony Kushner's play, Slavs!. Since the part required her to have a Russian accent, she got herself an acting coach to master it. Not only did she get the role but she also got to share the stage with future Oscar winner Marisa Tomei.

Mischa's rave reviews led to other theatrical productions such as James Lapine's Twelve Dreams, which was produced at the celebrated Lincoln Center, and Where the Truth Lies and One Flea Spare, which were both part of the New York Shakespeare Festival.

Doing theater was rewarding but Barton was hungry for more. In 1994, she became a recurring character on the long-running ABC soap opera All My Children, a job she held for a year. But in the meantime, her beauty was also attracting interest.

Before she had entered her teens, Barton was signed to the Ford Modeling Agency. In that capacity, she modeled in a Calvin Klein campaign and worked for the likes of Gitano and Vogue. Mischa admits that the work is difficult but very rewarding, since "it's every teenager's dream."

But it was Barton's acting skills that gave her the most recognition. One of her first feature film roles was in 1997's Lawn Dogs, opposite Sam Rockwell. In 1999, she appeared in Pups, a modern take on Bonnie & Clyde; the summer hit Notting Hill, with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant; and the international Bruce Willis blockbuster The Sixth Sense, in which she played a young ghost seeking reparation.

For the next couple of years, Barton appeared with Jennifer Jason Leigh and Drew Barrymore in Skipped Parts (2000), co-starred with Jessica Alba in Paranoid (2000), starred alongside Melanie Griffith and Dominique Swain in Tart (2001), appeared with Courtney Love and Lili Taylor in Julie Johnson (2001), and starred in Lost and Delirious (2001), a film that explored lesbianism at a private boarding school.

Barton demonstrated her talents once more as she returned to television with a recurring role in the critically-acclaimed ABC show Once and Again during its 2001-2002 season. In 2003, she acted with Madeleine Stowe in the horror thriller, Octane.

But what is sure to make her popular to millions for years to come, is her role in the new FOX television show, The O.C. In this primetime melodrama geared toward young adults -- a Beverly Hills, 90210 clone as some have branded it -- Mischa portrays a wealthy and popular Orange County high school student who has difficulty adjusting to her surroundings.

Although she still attends Manhattan's Professional Children's School, the extraordinary popularity of her new TV show guarantees that we haven't seen the last of Mischa Barton. In addition to being the subject of magazine pictorials, she's currently appearing in Neutrogena print ads and the new Enrique Iglesias video "Addicted," which sure helps us get our fix.

Overall Rating

Hollywood is like a successful strip club; there's always a huge turnover rate in the talent department. The advantage of this is that the bottom feeders are weeded out and the genuinely gifted artists are selected for prosperous careers.

Luckily for us red-blooded males lusting for fresh faces, Mischa Barton is among the cream of the crop. One of the most sought-after actresses of her generation, Entertainment Weekly has labeled her one of 2003's "It" girls, designating her among the most creative people in the entertainment industry.

A charismatic young lady, she has made waves in films like Pups (1999), Skipped Parts (2000) and Julie Johnson (2001), and proved she could also handle television roles, on shows such as All My Children and now The O.C. But it's when she's modeling that the guys need a cold shower; she's simply too hot to handle! Skeptics are encouraged to check out her pictorials in Maxim and Seventeen.

Personality & Talent

Most of us assume that growing up in show business would turn anyone into a self-centered prima donna, but Mischa Barton is quite the opposite; she has remained close to her roots and always makes time for her New York childhood friends and her family. Despite her down-to-earth outlook, she completely understands what show business is all about and manages to avoid its pratfalls.

With a resume like Mischa's, questioning her talent is uncalled for. She has been modeling and acting for almost a decade and has improved her skills along the way. She makes a point of accepting different roles in different types of projects in order to diversify her career. When she's on a break during a shoot, she enjoys hanging out with the director to better understand the filmmaking and creative process.

Accomplishments & Fame

Being the lead actress in New York City stage plays isn't such a big deal nowadays, but when the actress in question is only 8 years old, people take notice. Before hitting puberty, Mischa Barton had been in the acclaimed plays Slavs!, Twelve Dreams, Where the Truth Lies, and One Flea Spare.

She then started modeling for the Ford Modeling Agency, in campaigns for Calvin Klein, Gitano and Vogue. Not only is she currently a Neutrogena spokesmodel, but she has also appeared on the cover of magazines such as Lucky, Vogue (Italy), Family Life, and Ladies' Home Journal.

When she's not doing photo shoots for the likes of Roadshow, Maxim, Teen People, and Seventeen, Barton is an accomplished film and television actress. She has appeared in Lawn Dogs (1997), Notting Hill (1999) and the blockbuster The Sixth Sense (1999), among others. However, her starring role on FOX's The O.C. will make her a superstar.

Natural Beauty

Could somebody please turn off the alarm? She's so hot that our smoke detector has been going off like crazy. Now 22, she's shedding her girlish features and is becoming quite a stunning woman. Rather tall at 5'8", her body has definitely become a model's dream come true. Okay, our dream come true.

Personal Style

When your fashion idols happen to be Kate Beckinsale, Gwyneth Paltrow and Cameron Diaz, you know the girl is going to know her stuff. She admits her style is constantly evolving, but what she really enjoys is wearing outfits she actually likes. A city girl at heart, Mischa has a thing for SoHo underground fashion although she's been getting into surf culture now that she's living in Los Angeles.