Mini Biography

Daughter of Steven Tyler of the band Aerosmith and Bebe Buell, former model (and Playboy Playmate of the Month) and stalwart of the backstage rock scene of the 1970s, Liv grew up thinking that rock star Todd Rundgren was her father.

But as she was growing up Tyler began dropping by to visit, and Liv noticed that his daughter Mia looked enough like her to be her twin. She confronted her mother, and was told the truth; by the time she was 12 she had taken her father's name. At 14 she and her mother left Portland, Maine for New York, where she got her start as a model.

A year was enough of the modeling grind, and she decided to become an actress. She was offered the part of Callie in Heavy (1995) after a single reading, and only three weeks later was cast in Silent Fall (1994) - James Mangold, director of Heavy (1995), decided to delay shooting until Liv was available. With seven films in the 1993-96 period her career took off.

Trivia

• Liv's mother named her after Liv Ullmann because she was on the cover of TV Guide the week Liv was born.
• Chosen by "People" magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World. [1997]
• A cameo role in Everyone Says I Love You (1996), a musical directed by Woody Allen was cut; Allen was impressed enough by her performance to write a personal letter explaining that her part was cut in editing.
• Her half-sister, Mia Tyler, is a fashion model for Lane Bryant.
• Armageddon (1998) opened on her 21st Birthday
• Is dyslexic.
• Aerosmith's video for "Crazy", in which Liv co-starred with Alicia Silverstone, was voted #23 in VH1's top 100 music videos of all time.
• Is a vegetarian.
• Godmother to Keith Richards son, Marlon Richards
• During filming for 'Lord of the Rings', Liv left her pair of prosthetic ears on the dashboard of her car. When she returned, they had melted.
• Wears a size 10 shoe.
• Hates piercings and tattoos.
• Quit smoking after starting at age 14 [2002]
• Voted the 6th Sexiest Female Movie Star in the Australian Empire Magazine September 2002.
• Measurements: 34B-25-38 (Source: Celebrity Sleuth magazine)
• Didn't meet her father until 1988.
• Her name Liv means 'life' in Norwegian, Swedish and Danish.
• Learned swordfighting for her role as Arwen in the Lord of the Rings. But the script was changed and she never got to use her skills.
• Was nicknamed 'Liv Taylor' by film critics and the media when she first began acting because her dark hair and striking blue eyes reminded them of Elizabeth Taylor.
• The decision to cast her in the video for "Crazy" was based on seeing her Pantene commercial, with absolutely no knowledge her father was in the band.

Personal Quotes

"I have these slumber parties with my father and when we can't sleep we stay up all night trading beauty tips. He knows all about the good creams and masks."

{About her favorite smell] "Those smells that remind me of home. I can smell my dad [Steven Tyler] from a mile away. I can smell it whenever he's worn my clothes. He has this ambery smell that just melts into him."

[on playing Arwen in Lord of the Rings:] "It wasn't until I came back home after such a long time away that I realized how much hype there was about this. I get to play someone 3,000 years old. I'm 23, so that's quite an acting challenge."

"I've been told that if I'd lose weight I'd have more work, but I refuse to submit myself to those standards. To the rest of the world, I'm slim, and I like the way I am."