Biography
Gayheart was raised in Pinetop, KY (pop. 800)
in Knott County. She was born on an August 12, 1972 in Hazard, Perry County.
A mix of Italian, Irish, German and Cherokee,
she has two sisters and a brother, and their mother sells a nationally
known line of cosmetics. She decided to move to New York at age 15 to finish
her high school education after spending a summer there modeling. "I saw
all my cousins and aunts and brothers and sisters get married young, and
I decided I would take a different route and see the world first. My passion
was acting and I had to be in the city where it was all happening."
Actress: Rebecca Gayheart
As a coal miner's daughter, Rebecca Gayheart
only has to look at her native Kentucky to find inspiration for her new
role as - a coal miner's daughter. "When I got the part, I called my daddy
back home, who still works in the mines, and kidded him by saying, 'I knew
you'd come in handy someday!'"
Gayheart was raised in Pinetop, KY, not far from
Hazard, KY, where she was born on an August 12. A mix of Italian, Irish,
German and Cherokee, she has two sisters and a brother, and their mother
sells a nationally known line of cosmetics. She decided to move to New
York at age 15 to finish her high school education after spending a summer
there modeling. "I saw all my cousins and aunts and brothers and sisters
get married young, and I decided I would take a different route and see
the world first. My passion was acting and I had to be in the city where
it was all happening.
A few years later, Gayheart completed high school
at New York's Professional Children's School (a curriculum approved for
young entertainers). She then studied at the Lee Strasberg Institute for
two and a half years. Midway through her term there, she became a cast
regular on the daytime drama "Loving" as Hannah, a sweet young lady who
turned psychotic after developing a fatal attraction for her professor.
Two years later, she left (in August 1993).
Gayheart recently starred in "Vanishing Son,"
a syndicated "Action Pack" TV movie, as a cellist involved in an interracial
affair. She also guest-starred on "The Cosby Show" and "All My Children,"
and she appeared in the film short "Whatever Happened to Mason Reese?"
In addition, she is often recognized for her appearance in a national commercial
for Noxzema face cream.
As Bess, Gayheart plays a woman who accompanies
her shifty husband on an intergalactic trek for a new Earth-like planet.
"Bess is sweet as pie, but you don't want to cross her," she says. "She's
soulful, spiritual, and maternal. She loves her husband with all her heart
and tries to see good in everybody. There are definite similarities between
us."
In her leisure time, Gayheart likes to read,
paint, and rollerblade, and is beginning to collect antiques. She also
is active in the "Big Brother, Big Sister" program and the Make a Wish
Foundation. ("It's fun to see the results of what you're doing. It's very
rewarding.")
Autographs:
Rebecca Gayheart
c/o William Morris Agency
151 El Camino Drive
Beverly Hills, CA 90212
Rebecca Gayheart
853 7th Avenue, Suite 9A
New York, NY 10017
Filmography: Rebecca Gayheart
