Date of Birth

25 December 1986, Los Angeles, California, USA

Birth Name

Katherine Evelyn Anita Cassidy

Nickname

Bug
K

Height

5' 7½" (1.71 m)

Mini Biography

Katie Cassidy was born Katherine Evelyn Anita Cassidy on November 25, 1986, in Los Angeles, California. Her father, David Cassidy, was a pop star in the 1970s. Her famous relatives include uncles Shaun Cassidy, Patrick Cassidy and Ryan Cassidy, the sons by her grandfather Jack Cassidy's marriage to Shirley Jones; Katie's grandmother was Evelyn Ward. As a child, Katie took gymnastics, studied piano, guitar and singing, then took dancing and acting lessons and eventually became a cheerleader for the California Flyers. She attended Calabasas High School in her neighborhood. For years prior to graduation in 2005, Katie was modeling and studying acting in community theater. Katie had just been accepted to 'Tisch' at NYU when she was offered her first role as "Dee Dee", which was one month before graduating. Katie has not stopped working since. Katie's early exposure to show business, the cosmopolitan culture of Los Angeles, her family upbringing, and her comprehensive education altogether produced a remarkable result. She grew up as a multifaceted person showing her many talents in a variety of professions such as recording her father's 1970s hit "I Think I Love You" and singing in VH1's TV special Bubblegum Babylon (2002), writing her own songs, modeling for Abercrombie and Fitch and Guess?'s Rock and Republic clothing lines in 2004, and acting. She met her ex-boyfriend, Jesse McCartney, there and later appeared as his love interest in his video hit "She's No You". A story on Jesse and Katie appeared in the January 2006 issue of Teen People magazine. Jesse wrote the song "Bleeding Love" performed by Leona Lewis, about Cassidy and their relationship. At that time she was busy working on five feature film productions going on almost simultaneously. Katie made several appearances in TV series, such as 7th Heaven (1996) and Sex, Love & Secrets (2005), among others. She appeared as Samantha, the grown-up daughter of Adam Sandler and Kate Beckinsale in the comedy Click (2006). After the release of a teen horror film, When a Stranger Calls (2006),in which she co-starred as Tiffany, Cassidy went to Vancouver to work on her second horror film, Black Christmas (2006), in which she stars as a sorority girl. Katie recently beat out the likes of Jessica Simpson and Kristin Cavallari for the leading role opposite John Travolta as his daughter and the heir to the most powerful energy company in the world in Dallas, the big-screen remake of the cult TV series.

Trivia

• Started off her career modeling with Abercrombie and Fitch.
• Daughter of David Cassidy and Sherry Williams. Granddaughter of Jack Cassidy and Evelyn Ward. Half-sister of Beau Cassidy. Former stepdaughter of Sue Shifrin.
• Did a cover of her father's song, "I Think I Love You".
• Due to her recurring roles in horror films she is regarded as a modern day "scream queen".
• Jesse McCartney wrote his songs "Tell Her", "She's No You", and "Bleeding Love" (last one sung by Leona Lewis) for Katie.
• Was going to appear in a 2007 remake of Revenge of the Nerds (1984) starring Adam Brody but after three weeks of filming the project was canceled.
• She has English, German, and Irish ancestry on both sides of her family; along with Swiss on her father's side.
• Has remained close with her Supernatural (2005) co-stars, Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles.
• She is a skilled guitarist and pianist.
• She was a cheerleader in high school.
• Katie is named after Katharine Hepburn; also, one of her two middle names is taken from Evelyn Ward - Katie's paternal grandmother.
• She is a fan of the Seattle Seahawks NFL team.
• Bradley Hargreaves, drummer for Third Eye Blind, is Katie's brother-in-law.
• Co-created a fashion blog called Tomboy KC and co-designed an eyewear line for Glasses.com.
• She lost a significant amount of weight during the production of Arrow Season 2, to better convey Laurel's addictions to painkillers and alcohol. The following season, she bulked up in the gym as Laurel suited up as Black Canary.
• Has starred in three horror movie remakes When a Stranger Calls (2006), Black Christmas (2006), and A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010).
• She has played the same character (Laurel Lance / Black Canary) in three different series: Arrow (2012), The Flash (2014) and DC's Legends of Tomorrow (2016).
• Cousin of Caitlin Cassidy John Cassidy, and Jack Cassidy.
• Is roommates with, former Arrow cast-mate, Caity Lotz.
• Though Laurel is meant to be a couple of years older than Sara on Arrow (2012), Katie is only about a month older than Caity Lotz.
• Participated in the creation of Laurel Lance's Black Canary costume seen on Arrow (2012).
• Stars as DC Comics icon Dinah Laurel Lance/Black Canary/Black Siren on Arrow (2012). In real life, she went to prom with Tyler Hoechlin who portrayed Clark Kent/Superman in Supergirl (2015).
• Reportedly cried when she first put on Sara Lance/the Canary's black jacket in early production of Arrow (2012), before her character of Laurel Lance took the Black Canary mantle.
• On June 5, 2017, Cassidy announced her engagement to Matthew Rodgers. They have been in a relationship for a year.
• Half-Niece of Shaun Cassidy, Patrick Cassidy, and Ryan Cassidy, the sons of her grandfather's marriage to Shirley Jones.
• One of three Supernatural (2005) guest stars linked to the role of the iconic DC heroine Black Canary. Alaina Huffman portrayed Dinah Lance on Smallville (2001), while Alona Tal has been strongly rumored for the role in the DC Extended Universe.
• She does her own singing in the movie, Cover Versions (2018).
• She stands an inch taller than her father, David Cassidy, who died four days before Katie's 31st birthday.
• Did not meet her biological father David Cassidy until she was in the fourth grade.
• (January 8, 2020) Filed for divorce from her husband of 13 months Matthew Rodgers.

Quotes

• I try mainly to just focus on character and what my character's point of view is, with each person, and try to figure out story.
• I loved being on stage. I was in elementary school when I started, so I couldn't say that it was about the building of characters.
• To me, giving back is so important. It makes others feel good which then in return makes me feel good.
• I love heels... whoever created heels is amazing!
• Attending ComicCon for 'Arrow' was so much fun! Seeing the fans excited gets me excited and feels really good.
• There is definitely something that has to be said for me liking the action, Lara Croft type stuff. I really want to explore that side of me.
• My hair's been every color. My hair's been all over the map.
• It's nice when your dad can be your friend.
• I'd like to think I'm actually a nice person in real life.
• I wanted to make a name for myself.
• I was a freshman and auditioned for the school play. Freshmen usually never got cast. I was the first freshman to be actually given a legitimate part and it was that feeling of 'Wow! I broke the system!'
• I try to keep myself in what I'm doing and focused on character stuff, as opposed to getting wrapped up in worrying or being nervous. It won't benefit me, in any way, to focus on that.
• I ended up meeting my manager because my sister was a receptionist at a management company. My manager is actually my same manager that I have today. That's how it started. I worked my way.
• Greg Berlanti, David Nutter, Andrew Kreisberg and Marc Guggenheim are the people I wanted to work with. They're smart, they're funny, they're cool, they're edgy.
• When I was younger, playing piano and guitar were all things that I wanted to do for a short period of time, like any kid.
• My style during the day is very casual - boyfriend jeans, T-shirts, Converse, Uggs, whatever. At night, I love heels and thigh-highs, I like something fresh and new, and I'm not afraid to push the envelope.
• I went to New York for Fashion Week and girls showed up waiting to see me. It's funny because there's a group of girls who I actually recognize because they always show up. It's nice and I'm like, 'Hi girls! I recognize your faces!' It's just like a feel-good experience.
• I was in theater when I was in elementary, middle school and high school. I didn't know it would be an actual profession for me. I didn't think of it as a reality.
• My first few jobs, people were like, "Oh, she only got hired because she's so-and-so's daughter." But, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter who your parents are. Sure, it does help you get into a room, but at the end of the day, you have to be able to deliver and you have to be talented because they're not going to hire me because my dad is David Cassidy, who was famous in the 70's. I have to go into those rooms and give it my best and work really hard. It's not that I have to work extra hard, but sometimes it's held against me because I feel like I have something to live up to. I just want to make my family proud, and I want to be known for me. I feel like I have to go the extra mile to do that, but I'm willing to do it and it's fine. It's nothing that I will complain about. It's just another challenge that I will overcome.
• [on Juliana Harkavy] I think that's awesome, another girl that gets to kick ass is amazing. And Juliana Harkavy is so sweet and so kind. And she's such a hard worker and she's such an amazing person that, I haven't obviously spent as much time with her but in the short amount of time I did spend with her, I was more than happy that she gets to sort of fulfill those shoes.
• [on suiting up as Black Canary] I can't tell you how happy it made me. I remember at the end of season 2, they needed to fit Sara's [Caity Lotz] jacket on me and I started to cry when I put it on. I've been waiting for this for so long. I'm so happy and honored. From Day 1, I knew that eventually that's where they were planning to go with the character, but I didn't know when and it's television, anything can happen. Honestly, there's no words that can even explain how lucky, excited, grateful, thrilled I am. For the Black Canary fans, I hope they're happy with my performance and my take on the character. I hope people are happy.
• [on the new Black Canary] I'm very supportive especially, you know, of strong women, and Laurel said she wanted the Black Canary to live on, to pass the mantle, to pass it on. And I fully support that. I think we live in a world now where women are becoming stronger and I think that Laurel would be very supportive of that. And for me personally as well.
• On her father David Cassidy's death, "My father's last words were 'So much wasted time.' This will be a daily reminder for me to share my gratitude with those I love as to never waste another minute...