Kaylee DeFer is a retired American actress. She was best known for her portrayals of Hillary Gold in The War at Home, and of Ivy Dickens in Gossip Girl.

Kaylee DeFer
DeFer at the Denim Habit grand opening in New York City, October 2011
Born
OccupationFormer Actress
Years active2003–2013
Spouse
(m. 2015)
Children3

Early life

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DeFer was born in Tucson, Arizona. In 2003, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting.[citation needed]

Career

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DeFer made her acting debut in a March 2004 episode of the Nickelodeon sitcom Drake & Josh. She has since made a number of guest appearances on television shows such as Quintuplets, Ghost Whisperer, CSI: Miami, and How I Met Your Mother. DeFer appears on the cover of Reeve Oliver's second album, Touchtone Inferno (2007).[1]

In May 2004, DeFer was cast as Scarlett on The WB's drama series The Mountain. The series follows the personal lives of the staff and friends at a remote ski resort. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, but was cancelled after four months.

In April 2005, DeFer landed a role on the Fox sitcom The War at Home. The series centers on the day-to-day life of Gold family who reside on Long Island, New York. DeFer portrayed teenager Hillary Gold, the eldest child who frequently misbehaves. The series premiered on September 11, 2005, to 7.2 million viewers, but received generally negative reviews from critics.[citation needed] The series ran for two seasons.

DeFer starred in her theatrical film debut Flicka, released in October 2006. DeFer portrayed the film's antagonist, Miranda Koop. In 2011, DeFer starred in the low-budget Western film Mattie, which was released on DVD under the title Renegade.

In April 2011, The CW announced DeFer would have a major recurring arc in both the fourth and fifth seasons of Gossip Girl. DeFer had previously auditioned for the role of Raina Thorpe, but she did not receive the part. DeFer portrayed the role of Ivy Dickens, a con artist who pretends to be Charlotte "Charlie" Rhodes in order to get access to the latter's trust fund. DeFer was reunited with The Mountain castmate Penn Badgley. She reprised her role of Ivy in the series' sixth and final season and was listed as a main cast member. In May 2013, DeFer announced plans to take a break from acting after the birth of her first son.[2]

Personal life

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In January 2012, DeFer called off her engagement to jewelry designer Michael Raymond Pereira, whom she had been dating on and off since 2002.[3][4]

DeFer subsequently began dating Michael Fitzpatrick, lead vocalist for the band Fitz and the Tantrums, and in May 2013, she announced that they were expecting a child together.[4] Their first son, Theodore "Theo" Ignatius, was born on September 20, 2013.[5][6] The couple got married on July 25, 2015.[7] On April 11, 2017, they welcomed their second son, Sebastian "Bash" Danger,[8][9] followed by their third son, Rémy Lincoln, on May 26, 2019.[10]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
2005 Underclassman Des
2006 The Powder Puff Principle Young school board president Short film
Flicka Miranda Koop
2011 In My Pocket Molly
Renegade Mattie Springer
Red State Dana
2013 Darkroom Michelle

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2004 Drake & Josh Cute girl Episode: "Guitar"
North Shore Emily Episode: "Secret Service"
Quintuplets Stephanie 2 episodes
2004–2005 The Mountain Scarlett 6 episodes
2005 Listen Up Brooke Episode: "Inky Dinky Don't"
2005–2007 The War at Home Hillary Gold Main role; 44 episodes
2007 Shark Katie Dobbs Episode: "Shaun of the Dead"
2008 Family Guy Dakota (voice) Episode: "Tales of a Third Grade Nothing"
2009 Ghost Whisperer Angie Halsenback Episode: "This Joint's Haunted"
Bones Tory Payne Episode: "The Gamer in the Grease"
2010 CSI: Miami Valerie Metcalf Episode: "Getting Axed"
2010, 2013 How I Met Your Mother Casey 2 episodes
2011–2012 Gossip Girl Ivy Dickens/Charlotte "Charlie" Rhodes Guest role (season 4); main role (seasons 5–6); 30 episodes
2011 Friends with Benefits Mary Webber Episode: "The Benefit of Mentors"
2012 Layover Rebecca White Television film

References

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  1. ^ Michael (September 20, 2011). "Spotlight On...Kaylee DeFer!". MuchMusic. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 4, 2014.
  2. ^ Eggenberger, Nicole (May 8, 2013). "Kaylee DeFer Pregnant: Gossip Girl Actress, 26, Expecting First Child With Boyfriend Michael Fitzpatrick, 42". Us Weekly. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
  3. ^ Johnson, Zach (January 26, 2012). "Gossip Girl Star Kaylee DeFer Ends Engagement!". Us Weekly. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  4. ^ a b Eggenberger, Nicole (May 8, 2013). "Kaylee DeFer Pregnant: Gossip Girl Actress, 26, Expecting First Child With Boyfriend Michael Fitzpatrick, 42". Us Weekly. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  5. ^ Takeda, Allison (September 21, 2013). "Kaylee DeFer Gives Birth to Baby Boy With Boyfriend Michael Fitzpatrick!". Us Weekly. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  6. ^ "'Gossip Girl' actress Kaylee DeFer has first child". USA TODAY. September 24, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  7. ^ Fitzpatrick, Michael [@fitz] (July 25, 2016). "One year ago today I got to marry this incredible woman. I love you @kayleedefer I'm the luckiest guy in the world" – via Instagram.
  8. ^ Fitzpatrick, Michael [@fitz] (April 11, 2017). "Sebastian Danger Fitzpatrick Born April 11th at 2:27pm. 7pounds 15 ounces. Mama @kayleedefer and her boy squad!" – via Instagram.
  9. ^ DeFer, Kaylee [@kayleedefer] (September 7, 2022). "First day back! Theos is 3rd. Bash is in kindergarten. Remy is in preschool. Literally too cool for school over here. This crew trouble with a capital T." – via Instagram.
  10. ^ DeFer, Kaylee [@kayleedefer] (May 27, 2019). "We did it! He came in like a wild fire. Welcome Rémy Lincoln Fitzpatrick. Born May 26th" – via Instagram.
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