Linda Blair turns 50!

Linda Denise Blair (born January 22, 1959) is an American actress most famous for her role as the possessed child, Regan,the 1973 film The Exorcist, and its sequel, Exorcist II: The Heretic.

Blair was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the daughter of Elinore (née Leitch), a real estate agent, and James Frederick Blair, an executive recruiter.[1] She moved with her parents to Westport, Connecticut when she was two years old. As a young child, Blair began her career by modeling, then acting in commercials, including a long-running one for Gulden's Mustard. Blair had originally planned to become a veterinarian, but instead accepted a role in The Exorcist because the money would allow her to pursue horsemanship. She was chosen over the very similar-looking Pamelyn Ferdin since the director wanted an unknown, and Ferdin had already gained notoriety after appearing in Star Trek, The Odd Couple and Night Gallery.

Based on William Peter Blatty's best-selling novel, The Exorcist was directed by William Friedkin, who had recently won an Oscar for directing The French Connection. The cast included Ellen Burstyn, Jason Miller, Max Von Sydow and Kitty Winn. Blatty produced the film and wrote the screenplay.

Blair gave a strong, credible performance as a young girl possessed by a demon, and was an integral part of the film's phenomenal success soon after opening in December 1973. Lines at theaters extended around blocks, with people standing in line for hours. The film was nominated for ten Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and Blair received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress, as well as Golden Globe and People's Choice Award wins. Blair received a Golden Globe nomination for the now defunct "most promising female star" category.

Despite the film's several nominations, the Best Picture Oscar went to George Roy Hill's film The Sting. The Exorcist won for Blatty's screenplay and for Best Sound. Blair's chances for an Oscar were undeniably hurt when Mercedes McCambridge revealed to the press that she had provided the (initially) uncredited demonic voice, though Linda's voice was underlaid in the track, and another woman claimed to have body-doubled for Blair in several scenes, though the director dismissed the contributions of the double as insignificant. The Best Supporting Actress Oscar instead went to 10-year old Tatum O'Neal for her performance in Peter Bogdanovich's Paper Moon.

Following the success of The Exorcist, Blair appeared in several controversial television films, including Born Innocent and Sarah T...Portrait Of a Teenage Alcoholic, which were the highest rated in their respective years. She was also featured in Airport 1975. Soon afterward, her role in the failed Exorcist sequel, Exorcist II: The Heretic with Richard Burton, nearly killed her career, though she received a Saturn Award Best Actress nomination for her performance in the film.

According to an interview with John McLaughlin on McLaughlin's One On One, Blair experienced an uncontrollable weight gain over the next few years after Exorcist II.

Adding to her troubles, Blair was arrested in December 1977 for conspiring to purchase and distribute cocaine and for possessing amphetamines. It was revealed that Blair's cohorts happened to be dog breeders; phone taps indicated that the word "dog" was a code word for "cocaine". Though there was an actual dog discussed in the phone tap recordings, Linda's legal team preferred to enter a guilty plea rather than challenge the charge. She was fined for possession, sentenced to three years probation, instructed to appear in several anti-drug commercials, and ordered to enter a nine-month drug rehabilitation program. Blair mentioned the legal woes on a October 1999 episode of E! True Hollywood Story, claiming that the 1977 arrest ruined her Hollywood career.