Background, age, career, net worth of veteran American Model and Actress, Linda Blair
While it might take some actresses a long while to be noticed in the movie industry, Linda Blair was already getting media attention and popularity at a very young age.
In as much as it is very debatable that it is not the case that opportunity comes but once, when Linda Blair’s opportunity came, she took it by both hands and it catapulted her to stardom at a very age such that she won a Golden Globe Award.
As of today, Linda Blair is known for quite a handful of things but she is best known for playing the role of Regan MacNeil, the possessed child in William Friedkin’s 1973 horror movie, The Exorcist.
This piece takes a deep dive into the life of Linda Blair and it also provides answers to the following questions; How old is Linda Blair, What is Linda Blair’s net worth? Is Linda Blair married among other questions you might have.
Background and Education
Linda Denise Blair didn’t grow up alone. She enjoyed the guidance of her parents as well as the support of her two older siblings: Jimmy and Debbie. She was born to James, a Navy test pilot-turned talent recruiter, and Elinore, a real estate agent on the 22nd of January 1959 in St Louis Missouri.
How old is Linda Blair? She is 62 years old as of today. Her zodiac sign is Aquarius and her body measurements are 37-26-38 inches (94-66-97 centimeters).
There are no records as regards her educational records but she is obviously intelligent given that she began her career as early as the age of 5.
Linda Blair Career
She began her modeling career aged 5 where she appeared in a handful of catalogs such as Sears, Macey, Penney among others. She also featured in over 70 commercials for Welch’s grape jams among other organizations. At age 6, she signed a contract for some print advertisements in The New York Times. She also became an equestrian at the age of 6 as well.
Her role in The Exorcist without an iota of doubt shot her into the limelight early in her career but Linda Blair has been acting in a couple of movies before that time. She played a role in the short-lived 1968 soap opera, Hidden Faces before she made her first theatrical appearance in The Way We Live Now (1970). She also appeared briefly in The Sporting Club, a comedy movie in 1971.
Linda Blair’s exceptional talent was evidently noticeable in 1972 as she was selected out of 600 applicants for the role of Regan McNeil in The Exorcist in 1973.
In the subsequent years, she went on to take up lead roles as her career advanced. She played the role of Sarah.T in Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic (1975), Sweet Hostage (1975) where she featured as a kidnap victim as well as Victory at Entebbe (1976).
She also played the lead role in Kim Hunter’s 1974 controversial movie, Born Innocent where she played the role of a teenage girl who ran away from home as a result of sexual abuse. The movie received criticisms from various quarters in the United States for depicting “female on female” sexual abuse.
Linda Blair has acted in many television shows and movies over the years. The television shows and the roles she played include:
Hidden Faces (1968): She was Allyn Jaffe.
Fantasy Island (1982): She was Sara Jean Rawlins in one episode.
AdvertisementMurder, She Wrote (1985): She was Jane Pascal in one episode.
MacGyver (1990): She played the role of Jenny Larson in one episode.
Married… with Children (1992): She was Ida Mae in a single episode.
AdvertisementRobin’s Hoods (1994): She was Carla Patelle.
Renegade (1996): She was Teddy Ray Thompson.
Extreme Ghostbusters (1997): She was Selene.
AdvertisementPSI Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal (1998): She was Rebecca Royce in an episode.
Godzilla: The Series (1999): She acted as Alexandra Springer.
S Club 7 in L.A. (2000): She features as Joni Witherspoon in nine episodes.
AdvertisementChicken Soup for the Soul (2000): She acted as Ms. Hooper.
Supernatural (2006): She appeared as Det. Diana
Ballard. JJ Villard’s Fairy Tales (2020): She acted as Grandma/ Mama Bear/ Goldilock’s Mom in two episodes.
AdvertisementCursed Films (2020)
She played the following rules in the movies below:
The Way We Live Now (1970): She was Sara Aldridge.
The Exorcist (1973): She was Regan. This film catapulted her to prestige.
AdvertisementSarah T. – Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic (1975): She was Sarah Travis.
Ruckus (1980): She was Jenny Bellows.
Fatal Bond (1991): She portrayed the character of Leonie Stevens.
AdvertisementPerry Mason: The Case of the Heartbroken Bride (1992): She depicted the character of Hannah Hawkes.
Calendar Girl, Cop, Killer? The Bambi Bembenek Story (1992): She acted as Jane Mader.
Skins (1994): She acted as Maggie Joiner.
AdvertisementSorceress (1995): She acted as Amelia.
S Club 7: Artistic Differences (2000): She featured as Joni
Monster Makers (2003): She was Shelly Stoker.
AdvertisementHitters Anonymous (2005): She was Brenda Swan
Whoa! (2013): She played the role of Deborah Blackburn.
Surge of Power: Revenge of the Sequel (2016): She acted as Helen Harris.
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Linda Blair Awards and Nominations
She was nominated for the 1974 Academy Awards Best Supporting Actress
AdvertisementShe won the 1974 Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress Motion Picture for her role in The Exorcist. She was also nominated for the New Star Actress of the Year
Linda Blair was nominated in the Golden Globe Awards’ Worst Actress of the Year category for roles in Hell Night (1982) and Chained Heat (1984)
She won Golden Raspberry Awards’ Worst Actress for her roles in the following 1986 movies: Savage Streets, Savage Nights, Night Patrol.
AdvertisementShe also won the 1985 Golden Raspberry Award Screen Queen category.
Linda Blair
Linda Blair’s net worth as of 2021 is estimated to be in the region of 16 million dollars.
Relationship
Is Linda Blair married?/The answer is no, she is not married.
However, she has dated a couple of men in her life. She dated dating at the age of 15. She dated Australian singer, Rick Springfield. The duo met at a concert, Whisky a Go-Go.
Linda also dated American singer, Rick James for two years before they split in 1984. Linda later opened up that the relationship crashes because of his addiction to drugs.
Risk James who wrote a song, Cold Blooded for her wrote in his book; The Autobiography of Rick James, that he wished their relationship lasted for long:
“Linda was incredible. A free spirit. A beautiful mind. A mind-blowing body. She liked getting high and getting down as much as I did. We posed topless for a photograph that showed up everywhere. We didn’t care. We were doing our own thing our own way. It was a love affair that I hoped would last. It didn’t.” James revealed that he found out Blair had been pregnant by him and had an abortion without his knowledge.”
What does Linda Blair do now?
After spending many years in the movie industry, Linda Blair is now an Animal rights activist. She rescues abandoned animals in the Los Angeles neighborhood as well as other areas.
Linda Blair runs WorldHeart Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating abused and abandoned animals.
She also works with children’s charities in the United States as well.