Sarah Michelle Gellar, a natural brunette, was born on April 14, 1977 in New
York City. After her parents divorced in 1984 Sarah was raised by her mother,
Rosellen. Her biological father, Arthur Gellar was found dead in his Manhattan
apartment on October 9, 2001 due to unconfirmed circumstances. Sarah attended
the Professional Children's School in New York City, and she graduated with a
4.0 GPA. Her high school classmates include: Tara Reid, Jerry O'Connell, and Macaulay Culkin.
Sarah was discovered by an agent when she was 4 years old while eating in a
local restaurant. Soon after she was making her first movie, An Invasion of
Privacy (1983) (TV). Besides a long list of movies, she has also appeared in
many television commercials and on the stage as a child. She even won an Emmy as
a child for portrayal of character Erica Kane's daughter on All My Children.
In fact, Sarah was offered the role of Juliet in Romeo and Juliet
(1996) but was unable to accept due to scheduling conflicts with All My
Children, and the role went to Claire Danes.
Sarah's major breakthrough came when she was cast in the TV-series Swans
Crossing (1992). She then appeared in two films in 1997: I Know What You
Did Last Summer (1997) and Scream 2 (1997). Sarah is most associated
with her title role in the long-running TV series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
(1997), a television series that has a large fan-base, continuous re-runs,
and a cult-like following. In 1999, Sarah starred in Cruel Intentions and
has gone on to work on numerous films and become a major star. Also in 1999,
Sarah was voted by FHM (a leading UK men's magazine) readers the #1 sexiest
woman in the world, and she became the celebrity spokeswoman for Maybelline. On
October 17 2002, her wax model, by Madame Tussaud, was unveiled at the "Trail of
Vampires" exhibition. And, in 2003, she was presented an award at the Glamour
Awards.
Sarah Michelle performed all her own stunts while working on Buffy the
Vampire Slayer. She studied Tae Kwon Do for five years, and now she's taking
kickboxing, boxing, street fighting and gymnastics. Sarah also collects rare
editions of classic children's literature. She has said that if she wasn't an
actress she would want to be author of children's books. During the 2001 Teen
Choice Awards (August 20, 2001), Buffy the Vampire Slayer, co-star
Michelle Trachtenberg presented her with the Extraordinary Achievement Award for
being a good role model and for her charity work, especially that with Habitat
for Humanity.
Sarah Michelle Gellar dated actor Jerry O'Connell from 1998-1999. Later in
1999, she also dated professional tennis player Jan-Michael Gambill. On April
14, 2001, she publicly announced her engagement to actor Freddie Prinze Jr. They
were married on September 1, 2002. Her most frequent collaborator has been her
husband, with whom she has acted in six films to date.
