Ian Somerhalder famous for his portrayal of "Damon Salvatore" the vampire in the series "The Vampire Diaries" turns 33 today. Somerhalder was born and raised in Covington, Louisiana, the son of Edna, a massage therapist, and Robert Somerhalder, an independent building contractor. He attended St. Paul's, a private Catholic school in Covington.
About 10 years old, Ian received a 3 year contract with the Ford Modeling Agency in New York. He modeled in New York, Paris, London and Milan. He modeled for some of the best including Guess?, Calvin Klein, Gucci and Dolce & Gabbana.
Ian got bitten by the acting bug and started to do television work in 1997 with The 'Big Easy'. In the years following, he has played various characters in many television shows but the ones that made him an instant heartthrob were best known for playing best known for playing Boone Carlyle in the TV drama 'Lost' and Damon Salvatore in the TV drama 'The Vampire Diaries'.
Not only has Ian been in demand for modeling and television work, he has also had a steady film career. Ian was in his first film titled 'Life as a House' . The following films proceeded Changing Hearts, The Rules of Attraction, In Enemy Hands, The Old Man and the Studio, Recess, National Lampoon’s TV: The Movie, Pulse, The Sensation of Sight, The Lost Samaritan, Wake, The Tournament, How to Make Love to a Woman and Cradlewood.
With his shiny dark hair, it's no wonder this blue eyed boy broke into the biz as a model for brands such as Versace, Gucci and Calvin Klein. Although he began appearing in print ads at age 10, he took a few years off to be a normal kid before returning to the fashion world in his teens. He was the face of Guess? Jeans for two years running in the late '90s.
In 2000, he landed a regular role on the short- lived drama 'Young Americans' as a moody prep school student. After the series' cancellation, he won guest spots, a recurring role as a romantic rival of Clark Kent's on 'Smallville' and big-screen supporting roles, notably his turn as a bisexual college student in 'The Rules of Attraction'. But it wasn't until the series 'Lost' that Somerhalder found stardom wher ehe played the character of a plane-crash survivor .Even though his character was killed off Somerhalder continued to appear in flashbacks.
FridayMoviez wishes Ian Somerhalder a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!