Hilary Duff

Hilary Erhard Duff (born September 28, 1987) is an American actress, pop singer/songwriter and entrepreneur. She has an elder sister, Haylie Duff, who is also an actress/singer.

After gaining fame for playing the title role in the television show Lizzie McGuire, Duff went on to have a film career; her most commercially successful movies include Cheaper by the Dozen (2003), The Lizzie McGuire Movie (2003), and A Cinderella Story (2004). She reportedly earned $15 million in 2005. Duff has expanded her repertoire into pop music, with three RIAA certified-platinum albums and over thirteen million albums sold worldwide. She has also launched a clothing line, Stuff by Hilary Duff, and an exclusive perfume with Elizabeth Arden. Duff and her mother were listed as producers for the movie Material Girls, and she will soon produce her sister's debut album.

Her upcoming films include the 2007 action thriller War, Inc., animated comedy Foodfight! and independent films Greta and Safety Glass. Duff's latest studio album, Dignity, was released in April 2007 and has sold 870,000 since then.

Duff was born in Houston, Texas on September 28, 1987. She was the second child of Bob Erhard Duff, owner of a chain of convenience stores, and Susan Colleen (nee Cobb), a homemaker. After Duff's mother encouraged her to take an acting class alongside her elder sister, Haylie Duff, both girls won parts in various local theater productions. At the ages of eight and six, respectively, the Duff sisters participated in the ballet, The Nutcracker Suite with Columbus Ballet Met in San Antonio. The siblings became more enthusiastic about the idea of acting professionally, and eventually relocated to California with their mother. Bob Erhard Duff stayed at the family home in Houston to take care of their business. After several years of auditions and meetings, the Duff sisters were cast in various television commercials.

Duff began dating singer Aaron Carter in 2002. They met on the sets of Lizzie McGuire, when Carter had a cameo role in a Christmas episode. The relationship lasted a year and a half. It was reported that Carter left Duff for Lindsay Lohan, but soon broke up with Lohan and resumed dating Duff. Carter later stated that he also cheated on Duff with her best friend, and that Duff "got her heart broken" and he was "sorry" for his actions. Claymation facsimiles of Duff and Lohan appeared on the celebrity wrestling series Celebrity Death Match on March 23, 2007. Duff and Lindsay Lohan were later reported to have been involved in a "feud" with each other over their relationship with Carter. As of 2007, Duff and Lohan had reconciled. Lohan attended the release party for Duff's album Dignity and Duff told People magazine that she thought Lohan was "fun" and "a nice girl".

Duff began dating Good Charlotte singer Joel Madden in 2004. After a long period of tabloid speculation, Duff's mother Susan announced their relationship in a June 2005 interview for Seventeen magazine. In a June 2006 interview with ELLE magazine, Duff stated "...(virginity) is definitely something I like about myself. It doesn't mean I haven't thought about sex, because everyone I know has had it and you want to fit in". Duff later told MuchMusic that she didn't say the quotes attributed to her in the article and that the subject was "definitely not something that I would talk about..." Duff and Madden broke up in November 2006.

In 2007, Duff was photographed many times with NHL player Mike Comrie. Although Duff never really confirmed the relationship, the couple was seen hugging and kissing and Duff even attended some of Comrie's games. For Duff's 20th birthday, Comrie bought her a brand new car.

Duff is also involved with various charities, is an animal rights enthusiast and a member of Kids with a Cause. She also donated US$250,000 to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina.[50] In 2005, she donated over 2.5 million meals to Hurricane Katrina victims in the south. In August 2006, Duff traveled to a New Orleans elementary school and worked with USA Harvest to distribute meals.