Linda Denise Blair (born January 22, 1959) is an American actress known for her role as the possessed child, Regan, in the 1973 film The Exorcist, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award and two Golden Globes, winning one.
Blair was raised in Westport, Connecticut. She began her career as a six year old child model and started acting with a regular role on the short-lived “Hidden Faces” in 1968. Her first film role was in 1971’s The Sporting Club. Blair was selected from a field of 600 applicants for her most notable role as Regan in The Exorcist. The role earned her a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress and an Academy Award nomination. She reprised her role in the 1977 sequel, Exorcist II: The Heretic.
Blair has since worked in numerous films, including the 1990 Exorcist spoof, Repossessed, and a cameo role in 1996’s Scream. In 1997, she appeared in a Broadway revival of Grease. She was cast as a regular in the BBC television show, LA-7. She hosted Fox Family’s Scariest Places On Earth.
More recently, Blair has become an animal rights activist and humanitarian, working with PETA, Feed The Children, Variety, the Children’s Charity and other organizations. Blair also devotes time to her non-profit organization, the Linda Blair WorldHeart Foundation, which works to rescue abused, neglected and mistreated animals. She is a vegan, and has co-authored the book ‘Going Vegan!’.
In 2008 she turned up at the 18th annual Malaga Fantasy and Horror Film Festival to accept a lifetime achievement award for her work in the horror genre.
She appeared in the 2009 documentary “Confessions of a Teenage Vigilante”, discussing her role as Brenda in 1984’s “Savage Streets”. The doc is included as a bonus feature on the 2009 DVD release of the film.
In July 2010 it was announced that Blair is in talks to return to horror films for the upcoming “The Gathering”. Also in 2010 she appeared as herself on the cable series “Pit Boss”.
Taken from Wikipedia
Related Links:
http://www.cndb.com/actor.html?name=Blair%2C+Linda
http://www.celebritymoviearchive.com/tour/name.php/396
http://www.lindablair.com/index2.html