Biography Actress Rose McGowan was born on September 5, 1973 in Florence, Italy. Born to American parents, she began her career as a child model, appearing in several Italian magazines thanks to her father’s art contacts in the country. She moved to the United States when she was ten years old, and settled in Seattle, Washington, with her father. At age 15, she legally emancipated herself from her parents, and pursued an acting career, while studying in a beauty school as a second option. McGowan began her career as a bit player in Hollywood, debuting in the 1992 comedy Encino Man. Most of her early work was spent in independent films, beginning with the 1995 comedy The Doom Generation, which brought her to the attention of film critics, and led to a nomination in the Independent Spirit Awards in 1996. She also features in other independent released such as Lewis & Clark & George, Southie, Going All the Way and Seed. She also had roles in some mainstream films, including Phantoms, Jawbreaker and Scream. McGowan earned wider recognition when she joined the cast of the hit television series Charmed. She entered in 2001, upon the sudden departure of Shannen Doherty. As Doherty’s character Prue Halliwell was killed off, the other Charmed ones (Holly Marie Combs and Alyssa Milano) discover the existence of a fourth sister, Paige Matthews (McGowan). Like Prue, she also has the power of telekinesis, although because of her different origins, it manifests differently. McGowan was part of the series until its finale in 2006. Her other projects include a major role in the television miniseries Elvis, which aired in 2005; roles in both parts of the Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez double-bill Grindhouse; and a brief role in the Oscar-nominated film The Black Dahlia. Most recently, she became host of TCM’s film series Essentials, joining Robert Osborne and taking over from Carrie Fisher.