Penn Badgley was born in Baltimore, Maryland on 1 November 1986. She grew up to become not only a talented American actor but also a musician. He has become a household name due to top notch movies such as Gossip Girl that she did from 2007 to 2012, in which he plays the role of Dan Humphrey. He has taken lead roles in great movies such as Margin Call, The Stepfather, Easy A and Greetings from Tim Buckley.
He was brought up by his father Duff Badgley and mother Lynn Murphy. His father was a carpenter. In 2008 he gave it a shot for the Washington gubernatorial seat.
When he was 12 years old, Badgley had to contend with what he describes as his saddest moment in life – his parents divorced. The divorce had an impact on his childhood which shifted from Washington, Seattle, Virginia and Woodlake. He attended the Wooldridge Elementary school – his mother was a PTA president here – after which he proceeded to St. Christopher’s School. He also had time to play in the soccer team, coached by his dad.
Badgley’s venture into acting was largely supported by his stay at Seattle where he got opportunities to attend the Seattle Children’s Theatre for children’s radio stations.
Just at a tender age, Penn walked into Hollywood so that he could live up his acting dreams. But he did not just concentrate on acting but also worked on his singing passion. In 1998 he released a pop single.
He graduated from high school after completing the California High School Proficiency Exam at the age of 14. He went on to join Santa Monica College. He turned down an admission chance to the University of Southern California so that he could fulfill the terms of his acting contracts. He later on joined The Lewis & Clark College in Portland where he studied for two years.
His personal life has also been in the limelight, with reports first emerging in 2007 linking him to a possible relationship with Gossip Girl co-star Blake Lively.
Role in Gossip Girl 2007
Penn Badgley’s ultimate breakout role came in 2007 through the Gossip Girl. Badgley takes on the character of Dan Humphrey, the son of Rufus Humphrey (1990’s rock star). His brother is Jenny Humphrey (Taylor Momsen). The show exploits the socialite love life of young adults raised on the Upper East Side of New York City.