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Catya Sassoon

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Catya Sassoon
Born(1968-09-03)September 3, 1968
New York City, U.S.
DiedJanuary 1, 2002(2002-01-01) (aged 33)
Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting placeEden Memorial Park Cemetery
Other names
  • Cat Sasoon
  • Cat Sassoon
Occupations
  • Model
  • actress
Years active1982–1995
Spouses
Luca Scalisi
​
​
(m. 1984; div. 1985)​
Joe Meyers
​
(before 2002)​
Children3
Parents
RelativesEden Sassoon (sister)
Modeling information
Height5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[1]
Hair colorAuburn[1]
Eye colorBrown
AgencyPrestige[1]

Catya "Cat" Sassoon (September 3, 1968 – January 1, 2002) was an American actress, singer and model. She was the eldest daughter of Vidal Sassoon and Beverly Adams.

Early life

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The eldest of four children, Sassoon was born at the Klingenstein Pavilion of Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City to British hairstylist Vidal Sassoon, and his wife, Canadian-born actress Beverly Adams.[2][3] She had three younger siblings: sister Eden and brothers Elan and David.[4] Her father was born in Shepherd's Bush and was of Greek and Jewish descent. Sassoon's parents divorced in 1980.[5]

Raised in Beverly Hills, Sassoon began modeling as child with her mother Beverly and appeared on several talk shows. By the age of 13, Sassoon began rebelling and piercing her nose and styled her hair in a purple-and-white mohawk.[6]

Career

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Against her parents' wishes, Sassoon dropped out of Beverly Hills High School at the age of 14 to pursue a modeling career. She moved to New York City where she signed with the Prestige Agency and enrolled at Professional Children's School. Her modeling career quickly took off and she became one of New York's top teen models.[7] Sassoon later appeared on the covers of Seventeen, Brides and Cosmopolitan.[6][8] It was around this time that Sassoon began taking drugs. In his autobiography, Vidal Sasson recalled that he realized his daughter was having drug issues when the two appeared on a morning talk show and Sassoon appeared to be high. Vidal Sassoon demanded that Catya return to Los Angeles where she was admitted to the Betty Ford Center. It would be the first of several rehab stays. After a month, Sassoon was released and resumed her career.[9]

Shortly before she was set to leave for a lucrative modeling assignment in Japan, Sassoon met 18-year old Luca Scalisi, the son of an Italian film producer.[6] Scalisi proposed to the then 15-year old Sassoon at a Los Angeles dinner party her father was attending. Vidal Sassoon consented to marriage on the condition that the two were married in a Jewish ceremony at his home. The two were married at Vidal's home in August 1984.[7] Shortly after the wedding, Sassoon landed her first film role. She made her film debut in the role of "Feather", a "somewhat trashy teen-ager" in the 1985 drama, Tuff Turf.[3] Sassoon's marriage to Luca Scalisi ended shortly after the release of Tuff Turf.[8] By age 21, Sassoon was battling a serious addiction to drugs and eventually entered a drug rehabilitation facility.[10] Sassoon later revealed in an interview with Joan Rivers that she had suffered a drug induced heart attack while undergoing treatment for her addiction.[11]

By 1990, Sassoon was sober again and began traveling around the country with her mother to promote the latter's romance novel, Fantasies. Both women openly discussed how they overcame addiction problems. Beverly Sassoon spoke about her addiction to alcohol and stated that she was three years sober. Catya, then 22, was about to celebrate one year of sobriety. Later that year, Sassoon began acting again and appeared in an episode of Hardball. She also appeared in Bloodfist IV: Die Trying, Secret Games and Dance with Death. In 1993, Sassoon landed the lead role in the Roger Corman-produced martial arts film Angelfist, directed by Cirio H. Santiago. Sassoon made her last screen appearance in the 1995 action film, Bloodfist VI: Ground Zero. In addition to acting, Sassoon was also the lead singer of an all female group, Feline Force.[1]

Personal life

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While shooting a film in South Africa around 1994, Sassoon met a Zimbabwean musician. The two were married shortly thereafter and moved to Zimbabwe.[9] Around 1995, the couple had a son, London Vidal, whom Sassoon named in honor of her father's birthplace.[12] Sassoon's second marriage also ended in divorce.[9] She married for the third time to screenwriter and waiter Joe Meyers. In the spring of 2000, she gave birth to twin girls, Mycca and Skye.[12]

Death

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On December 31, 2001, Sassoon and her husband attended a New Year's Eve party at the Los Angeles home of socialites Mary and Gregory Sabatani. According to the Los Angeles Police Department, Sassoon was found dead of a suspected drug overdose at the Sabatani home around 9:00 the following morning.[8] However, Sassoon's manager Hilly Elkins, stated that Sassoon and her husband had left the party the night before after she complained of feeling ill. Elkins states that Meyers found Sassoon dead in their bed on New Year's Day morning.[13] Elkins and the Sassoon family believed Sassoon, who had a history of high blood pressure, died of a heart attack. Her family also maintained that she had not consumed any drugs and was clean and sober at the time of her death.[14] Sassoon's funeral was held on January 4, after which she was buried next to her grandmother at Eden Memorial Park Cemetery in Mission Hills, California.[8]

The Los Angeles County coroner later determined that while Sassoon did suffer from cardiovascular disease and she did suffer a heart attack, the heart attack was induced by an accidental overdose of the opioid pain-killer hydromorphone. Cocaine was also found in her system.[15]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
1985 Tuff Turf Feather
1987 Inside Out
1990 Hardball Shauna Episode: "Sex, Cops, and Videotape"
1990 The Fanelli Boys Valentina Episode: "Poetic Justice"
1991 Out of This World Velma Episode: "Heck's Angels"
1992 Dance with Death Jodie
1992 Secret Games Sandra
1992 Bloodfist IV: Die Trying Lisa Alternative title: Die Trying
Credited as Cat Sassoon
1992 Inside Out IV Pauline Segment: "Natalie Would"
1993 Angelfist Katara "Kat" Lang
1994 Hollywood Women Herself Miniseries
1995 Bloodfist VI: Ground Zero Tori Alternative titles: Assault at Ground Zero
Ground Zero
Credited as Cat Sassoon

References

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  1. ^ a b c d McLellan, Dennis (January 4, 2002). "Catya Sassoon, 33; Model, Actress, Daughter of Vidal". Los Angeles Times.
  2. ^ "Child to Mrs. Sassoon". The New York Times. September 4, 1968.
  3. ^ a b Jones, Edward (February 1, 1985). "Catya Sassoon 'fit the bill' for punk role". The Free Lance-Star. p. 26.
  4. ^ "RHOBH Alum Mourns Sudden Death of Brother at Age 51". Heavy. September 21, 2023.
  5. ^ "'Slowing down not my style'". thisisbath.co.uk. September 4, 2010. Archived from the original on October 19, 2013.
  6. ^ a b c Schnurmacher, Thomas (March 16, 1985). "Catya Sassoon: Hair apparent daughter on her own". The Montreal Gazette. pp. H–7.
  7. ^ a b Adelson, Suzanne (January 4, 1985). "Vidal Sassoon's Daughter Catya Is a Cut and Dry Case of Teenage Ambition". People. Archived from the original on September 27, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
  8. ^ a b c d Poole, Oliver (January 5, 2002). "Vidal Sassoon's daughter killed by drug overdose". The Telegraph.
  9. ^ a b c Sassoon, Vidal (2010). "17". Vidal: The Autobiography. Pan Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-230-75379-2.
  10. ^ Akbar, Arifa (January 5, 2002). "Daughter of Vidal Sassoon dies of drug overdose after New Year party". The Independent.
  11. ^ Freifeld, Karen; Vaughan, Doug; Stasi, Linda (February 1, 1990). "Inside New York". Newsday. p. 11.
  12. ^ a b Donnelley, Paul (2003). Fade to Black: A Book of Movie Obituaries (2 ed.). Music Sales Group. p. 613. ISBN 0-711-99512-5.
  13. ^ "Catya Sassoon dead". British Vogue. January 7, 2002.
  14. ^ Tippit, Sarah (January 7, 2002). "Sassoon's daughter dead at 33". news24.com.
  15. ^ "Sassoon's daughter died of a painkiller overdose". Deseret News. March 21, 2002.
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