By Annabella Ramirez
FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS
Katherine Dee Strickland (born December 14, 1975) is an American actress. From 2007 to 2013, she played Dr. Charlotte King on the ABC drama Private Practice.
Strickland began acting during high school. She studied acting in Philadelphia and New York City, where she obtained mostly small roles in film, television, and stage projects, among them The Sixth Sense (1999). Her participation in the 2003 Hollywood films Anything Else and Something’s Gotta Give led to her receiving significant parts in the 2004 horror films Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid and The Grudge. She was then referred to as “the pride of Patterson“ and the horror genre’s “newest scream queen“, though her performances in both films received mixed critical reviews. In 2005, she garnered positive critical reviews for the romantic comedy Fever Pitch, and she was a regular on the television show The Wedding Bells in 2007. She was subsequently added to the cast of Private Practice.
Strickland has spoken against the emphasis placed on beauty in the Los Angeles acting community, in which she says her Southern U.S. background has helped to distinguish herself from other blonde actresses. She has spoken of an affinity for her strong female characters and a desire to avoid sexualizing or sensationalizing her self-presentation as a woman. She has also worked closely with RAINN after participating in a storyline in which her Private Practice character was raped.
Katherine Dee Strickland was born in Blackshear, Georgia, on December 14, 1975, to Susan, a nurse, and Dee Strickland, a high school football coach, principal, and superintendent. Her nickname comes from her parents combining the “K” in her first name with her father’s name (and also her middle name) to make “KaDee”. She was raised in Patterson, Georgia, which she referred to as a “one-stoplight town”, and she had a job picking tobacco on a local farm for eight years. When she was a child, Strickland watched the Woody Allen film Annie Hall (1977) and was “wanting to be in that place, and being completely taken with the energy of those people […] [she] wanted to be in it”. During her childhood, she was well known locally as a member of the Strickland family and for her extracurricular activities and achievements; she was the Homecoming Queen in elementary, middle, and high school, as well as the student council president and a cheerleader. She never considered a career in the arts until her participation in a one-act play performed by students of her high school: “The minute I set foot on stage, that was it. Destiny took over. There were no other options. I felt like I fit my skin, I knew what I was here to do.”
TODAY’S ALMANAC
Halcyon Days, which have come to mean any time of happiness and contentment, are actually the 14 days around the winter solstice. According to Greek legend, the halcyon, or kingfisher, built its floating nest around the 14th of December, during which time the gods calmed the seas for the nesting and hatching time.
Where did “Halcyon Days” come from? The bird’s name derives from a myth recorded by Ovid. According to the story, Aeolus, the ruler of the winds, had a daughter named Alcyone, who was married to Ceyx, the king of Thessaly. It’s a longer story but let’s just say that it ends tragically with Ceyx drowning at sea. Grieving Alcyone was about to throw herself into the sea to join her beloved husband. But the gods took pity on the pair, transforming them into halcyons, with the power to still the stormy seas for 14 days near the time of the winter solstice while they hatched their young. (For this reason, mariners credit the kingfisher, or “alcyon bird,” with the power to calm storms and raging seas.)
The “Halcyon Days” usually end by early January. Today, the phrase “Halcyon Days” has come to mean a sense of peace or tranquility. People often use the phrase halcyon days to refer idyllically to a calmer, more peaceful time in their past. It’s also a fitting phrase for the peaceful, joyful spirit of the Christmas holidays today.
Question of the Day
Advice of the Day
Home Hint of the Day
Word of the Day
Puzzle of the Day
Died
- George Washington (1st U.S. president) –
- Prince Albert (husband and Prince Consort of Queen Victoria) –
- Roger Maris (baseball player) –
- Peter O’Toole (actor) –
- Alan Thicke (actor) –
Born
- Frances Bavier (actress) –
- Spike Jones (comedian & musician) –
- Mel Bartholomew (construction engineer and gardener known for his Square Foot Gardening method) –
- Charlie Rich (musician) –
- Patty Duke (actress) –
- KaDee Strickland (actress) –
- Vanessa Hudgens (actress) –
Events
- First recorded meteorite in the New World fell in Weston, Connecticut –
- Alabama is admitted to the Union as the 22nd state –
- First expedition reached the South Pole, led by Roald Amundsen –
- Tilt-a-Whirl trademark registered –
- Diplogen suggested for isotope name –
- National Velvet, a film featuring a young Elizabeth Taylor, premiered in New York –
- Captain Sue Dauser, Navy Nurse Corps, received the Distinguished Service Medal –
- Scotchguard carpet treatment patented –
- The film Saturday Night Fever, starring John Travolta, premiered in New York City. This film is credited with accelerating the disco craze –
- Charles Schulz, creator of the comic strip Peanuts, announced he would retire –
- The Millau Viaduct, the highest bridge in the world, was formally opened in France –
- 5.6-lb. avocado grown in Kahului, Hawaii, set world record for heaviest –
Weather
- A major cold wave across the country marked the beginning of one of the most severe winters in U.S. history –
- The temperature at Helena, Montana, fell 79 degrees in 24 hours –
COURTESY www.almanac.com
