Rose McGowan was born on September 5, 1973 to Irish-American parents. She grew up in Europe and appeared in Italian magazines as a child. In 1979, her family moved to the United States and her parents divorced. She was educated at Roosevelt High School and Nova Alternative High School and at an early age, really wanted to be an actress. Her first film appearance was in Encino Man and The Doom Generation where she got the attention of film critics. In 1996 she was cast for a role in the hit horror film Scream. In 2001 she was cast as Paige Matthews in the popular WB television series Charmed, as a replacement of a lead character after Shannen Doherty's departure from the show. She lives in Los Angeles with her two pet dogs Bug and Fester.
Paige Matthews is played by Rose McGowan in Charmed, the youngest daughter of Patty Halliwell with Whitelighter Sam Wilder. Paige was not known to Victor or his three daughters with Patty because she was left with Sister Agnes as a baby at a local church, fearing repercussions if the forbidden affair between a witch and a Whitelighter was ever discovered. Patty asked that her name started with P, just like all the women in her family. The baby was then named Paige and was adopted by the Matthews family. However, her foster parents died in a car crash that originally involved her. She, on the other hand, had orbed herself out of the car as she unknowingly had magical powers much like her father's. When Prue, the eldest Halliwell sister died, she was drawn to the funeral, thus linking her with the Charmed Ones. Later on, they are reconstituted, as they discover that Paige is their half-sister.
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