Ian Somerhalder was born and raised in the small southern town ofCovington, Louisiana. His mother, Edna (née Israel), is a massagetherapist, and his father, Robert Somerhalder, is a buildingcontractor. He has Cajun (French), English, and Scots-Irish ancestry. Boating,swimming, fishing and training horses filled much of his recreationaltime growing up, as did the school drama club and performing with thelocal theater group. With his mother's encouragement, at age 10, hebegan a modeling career that took him to New York each summer. Byjunior high, he opted to put modeling on the back burner and focus moreon sports and school. A few years later, when the opportunity to modelin Europe arose, Somerhalder grabbed it, embarking on an enriching pathof work, travel and study that took him to cities, including Paris,Milan and London. At 17, he began studying acting in New York and, by19, had committed himself to the craft, working with preeminent actingcoachWilliam Esper. His fate was sealedwhile working as an extra in a club scene in the feature film,Black and White (1999). Atalent manager visiting a client on the set spotted Somerhalder in acrowd scene of 400 and immediately signed him for representation. He was cast later for the dramaChanging Hearts (2002) directed byMartin Guigui. Happy to be anchored in New York, Somerhalder spends much of his time studying acting, writing and practicing yoga. His recreationalinterests include water and snow skiing and horseback riding.