TheTVObserver Penn Badgley

TheTVObserver’s StarSpread presents Penn Badgley. Watching talent such as Penn on television is just one of the reasons we simply love TheCW and their casting eye, as well as the networks branding approach to television.

Gossip Girl is one of our favorite television programs and while it has some of the hottest stars, this side of the teen zone, we always rest assured that TheCW will always cast the hottest and sexiest stars to entertaining us visually. Penn Badgley is one such star, from TheCW’s Gossip Girl.

"I get a lot of guys coming up to me who are like, 'Oh man, my wife loves the show," Badgley told Details magazine in 2008. "Couple of drinks later they come up and they're like, 'You know what, I love Dan.' And they probably watch the show more than their wives."

Born in Baltimore, Maryland, and raised between Richmond, Virginia, and Seattle, Washington, Badgley moved with his mother to Hollywood at age 11 to pursue an acting career, after putting in some time with the Seattle Children’s Theatre.

Penn Badgley’s first major role came in 2000, as Phillip Chancellor IV on The Young and the Restless. Other WB-related projects followed, like The Mountain and The Bedford Diaries, but nothing that stuck.

"It definitely felt like, 'What can we put Penn in this year because we want to keep him working for us?'" Badgley told the New York Post in 2007. "There was a time when I felt a little cheesy, doing WB show after WB show -- like it was repetitive."

Badgley's first credit was voice work for the video game Mario Golf 64 in 1999 although he claims to have never played it himself. He followed this in 2000 with voice work on Mario Tennis 64. His first screen acting credit was on an episode of Will & Grace. He followed this up with appearances on shows such as Daddio, The Brothers Garcia and What I Like About You, among others.

In 2007, Penn Badgley was cast as Dan Humphrey on CW’s Gossip Girl. He portrays Dan Humphrey, the son of 1990's former rock star Rufus Humphrey (Matthew Settle). He plays the love interest of Upper East Side's "it" girl, Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively). The show revolves around the lives of socialite young adults growing up on New York's Upper East Side who attend elite academic institutions while dealing with sex, drugs, and other teenage issues.

The show catapulted Badgley, along with castmates Blake Lively, Leighton Meester, Ed Westwick, and Chase Crawford into the realm of teen starlets in a matter of one episode. Like Sex and the City for a younger generation, the show is shot in New York City and the wardrobes are completely over-the-top, making this the favorite show for 12 year olds and 20-somethings alike.

Penn Badgely and costar Blake Lively been dating since 2007, but they only made their relationship public in 2008. In May 2008, People magazine published photos of Lively and Badgley kissing while on vacation in Mexico. He also likes soccer, and his favorite team is Arsenal F.C.

Penn was involved in the Pine Nut Players community theater in Monroe and the Seattle Children's Theater while growing up in Washington. He also passed his high-school proficiency test at age 13.

His most embarrassing moment, he told TV GUIDE in 2002, was forgetting the words to "The Star-Spangled Banner" while singing at a minor-league baseball game.

Do you prefer Penn with or without a beard? Just wondering....

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