July 8: Actress & “singer” – Sophie Bush, "One Tree Hill" – is 31-years-old today.

 

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Sophia Anna Bush was born July 8, 1982 in Pasadena, California. At Westridge School for Girls she was required to participate in the theatre arts program. “I was really irritated because I wanted to play volleyball and I had to go and do this play,” Bush once told an interviewer. “But there was a moment after the performance when I realized I had gone and been somebody else. I thought, 'If I could do this for the rest of my life, I am set.' It was like love at first sight."

At the age of 17, Bush was named the Tournament of Roses Parade Queen. She attended the University of Southern California (USC) as a journalism major. 

In 2003, Bush was cast to play the role of Brooke Davis on One Tree Hill. Subsequently, she stopped attending USC. Bush made her first big screen appearance in the comedy feature film Van Wilder. Following this, she made appearances in several television shows, such as Nip/Tuck, Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, and Punk'd.

She was cast as Kate Brewster in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, but was replaced by Claire Danes because the director thought she was too young for the role. In 2003, she landed the role of Brooke Davis in the CW television series One Tree Hill.

She soon became a spokesperson for high-profile brands & posed on the cover of several magazines such as Entertainment Weekly, Lucky, Maxim, Glamour, InStyle and Zooey Magazine.
 

In July 2006, Bush starred in the 20th Century Fox feature film John Tucker Must Die alongside Jesse Metcalfe and Brittany Snow. The same year, she also starred in the thriller film, Stay Alive, which opened at number 3 in the U.S. box office. In 2008, Bush starred in François Velle's independent film The Narrows, based on Tim McLoughlin's novel Heart of the Old Country. Her most recent role was in the 2011 film Chalet Girl.

In February 2012, it was reported Bush had joined the cast of CBS's comedy Partners. The series was cancelled in November 2012.

In April 2007, she ranked No. 90 in the British popular men's magazine FHM, and ranked No. 89 in the US edition of the same magazine. In May 2007, Bush ranked high at No. 24 in the Maxim Hot 100 List of 2007. She has also appeared on the cover of the November 2006 edition of Maxim with One Tree Hill co-stars Hilarie Burton and Danneel Harris. In previous years, Bush has ranked No. 3 on Femme Fatales: The 50 Sexiest Women of 2004 and named No. 15 on MuchMusic's 20 Hottest Women of 2004.

Bush has endorsed and participated in many political and social causes. In April 2009, Bush appeared in a video on Funny or Die called "A Gaythering Storm," which parodied a video objecting to same-sex marriage. She also sang in a video supporting gay rights.

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