American actress Leighton Meester was born on April 9, 1986 in Marco Island, Florida. Inspired after appearing in a local production of The Wizard of Oz when she was just 11 years old, she began working as a model after her family moved to New York City. She most notably appeared in a campaign for Ralph Lauren, where she worked with then-photographer Sofia Coppola. She made her screen debut in 1999, when she played a guest role in Law & Order.
Her first regular television role was in the drama Tarzan. The series, which aired in 2003, was a modern adaptation of Edgar Rice Burrough’s series of books; Meester played the role of Nicki Porter. The series was cancelled after eight episodes, after which she made her first two films: the short drama The Jackalope, and the horror flick Hangman’s Curse. She also played guest roles in programs such as 7th Heaven, Entourage, 24 and Veronica Mars.
Meester then appeared in the science fiction series Surface, where she played the role of Savannah Barnett, the sister of protagonist Miles Barnett (Carter Jenkins). Despite average ratings, the program was cancelled at the end of its first season. She then starred in movies including Drive Thru, The Beautiful Ordinary and Flourish, and also had guest stints in House, Numb3rs and Shark.
Meester is most recognized, however, as the lead Blair Waldorf in the CW series Gossip Girl. Inspired by the successful book series, her character is the daughter of high-end designer Eleanor and Harold Waldorf. Wealthy and snobby, but lovable, she earned Queen Bee status after her friend Serena van der Woodsen ((Blake Lively) left school. She is involved with another character, Nate Archibald (Chace Crawford), although their relationship is generally a tumultuous one. She is also a bulimic, albeit a recovering one, although she relapses sometimes.
-Her surname "Meester" is Dutch for "master" or "teacher".
-She is naturally blonde but dyed her hair brown for the role of Blair Waldorf for TV show "Gossip Girl".
-She enjoys singing, and even sang in the movie "Drive Thru".
-Ranked #48 on the Maxim magazine Hot 100 of 2008 list.
-Leightons favorite song is "Out On The Weekend" by Neil Young.
"Gossip Girl" .... Blair Waldorf (19 episodes, 2007-2008-2009 )
Killer Movie (2008) .... Jaynie Hansen
... aka I'm Gonna Kill You (UK)
The Haunting of Sorority Row (2007) (TV) .... Samantha Willows
... aka The Deadly Pledge (UK)
The Beautiful Ordinary (2007) .... Tori
... aka Remember the Daze (USA: new title)
"Shark" .... Megan (3 episodes, 2007)
Drive Thru (2007) .... Mackenzie Carpenter
"CSI: Miami" .... Heather Crowley (1 episode, 2007)
"Numb3rs" .... Karen Camden (1 episode, 2006)
... aka Num3ers (USA: promotional title)
Inside (2006) .... Josie
Flourish (2006) .... Lucy Covner
"Surface" .... Savannah Barnett (12 episodes, 2005-2006)
"Secrets of a Small Town" .... Kayla Rhodes (1 episode, 2006)
"Veronica Mars" .... Carrie Bishop (2 episodes, 2005)
--"I think the biggest thing to know is things aren't as bad as they seem. Your boyfriend seems like the last one you'll ever have and the love of your life, your friends and their drama seems so important - but it's not."
--"I dyed it every color. I dyed it fire engine red and that didn't work out. It also had it black and red streaks."