Taylor Momsen is well known for her role as Cindy Lou Who in How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Jenny Humphrey on Gossip Girl, but did you know she grew up in Potomac? Momsen attended Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School in Bethesda for elementary school and then Hoover Middle School.
She was cast in her first national commercial as a four year old and later her first major motion picture– The Prophet’s Game with Dennis Hopper. In 2002, she played Gretel in Hansel and Gretel and Alexandra, the President’s daughter, in Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams. After a three year stall, she landed the lead in a WB series titled Misconceptions that never made it to the air.
Momsen was in the final three for the title role of Hanna Montana, a role that ultimately went to Miley Cyrus, and then starred in the Disney movie Underdog and the film Paranoid Park, all while enrolled as a student at Hoover Middle School. She spent four seasons on Gossip Girl before leaving acting behind to focus on her music career. Momsen started the band, and is currently the lead singer of, the Pretty Reckless. Her band has charted on Billboard and continues to be the focus of Momsen’s career.
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