Biography, Filmography And Pictures:

Blonde hair and green eyed actor Cody Linley is easily every young girls teen-idol heart-throb. His teen years were spent playing Jake Ryan on the Hanna Montana television series, and he is the guy who gave Cyrus her first onscreen kiss (See Video Below). In 2008, he danced his way to an even larger audience when he appeared on the reality series “Dancing with the Stars” with partner Julianne Hough.

Cody Martin Linley was born on Nov. 20, 1989, and was raised in Lewisville, Texas and lived with his parents Lee and Cathy Linley, and his four brothers. His mother is a well-known acting and talent coach, who has instructed young future Disney stars Demi Lovato from “Camp Rock” and Madison Pettis from “The Game Plan”.

Cody made his television debut in the movie “Still Holding On: The Legend of Cadillac Jack” (1998), a fact-based story about a woman's fight to get her rodeo star husband freed from a false murder conviction. He then appeared in the family adventure "My Dog Skip" (2000), starring Frankie Muniz, Luke Wilson and Kevin Bacon, about a shy young boy who grows up in 1940's Mississippi with the help of his beloved dog, Skip. Even though his part was small, he was able to hold his own against the other big-name celebrities. Another small role followed in the romantic comedy "Where The Heart Is" (2000), with Natalie Portman, Ashley Judd and Joan Cusack.

Another small role, but in a big-budget, high-profile film came with his part as a tough boy in the Sandra Bullock romantic thriller "Miss Congeniality", about an FBI agent who must go undercover in the Miss United States beauty pageant to prevent a group from bombing the event. Again, the actors part was a small one, but he was getting attention from Hollywood producers who began searching for a vehicle for the young actor. 

Linley then made guest appearances on the television shows "Walker, Texas Ranger" and "That's So Raven", before taking another bit part in the family comedy "Cheaper By The Dozen" (2004), starring Steve Martin, Bonnie Hunt and Hilary Duff, where a father of twelve children must handle a new job and his unstable family.

He finally got his big Hollywood break in the starring role of Cal in the family drama "When Zachary Beaver Came to Town", the sad story of Zachary Beaver, a sideshow attraction also known as the world's fattest boy, arrives in the small town of Granger, Texas. His character looses his older brother in the war and his best friend has lost his mother, and together the two boys bond, and struggle with the sadness of a harsh adult world. The film shot Cody into the Hollywood celebrity limelight, and audiences adored the 14-year-old actor, and producers wanted more of him on the screen. 

They got their wish when he co-starred as Christopher in the thriller "Echoes Of Innocence" (2005), about a fashionable high school girl who hears voices and sees visions, and is torn between her commitment to a long-lost first love and her growing feelings for another. 

Another small role followed in the comedy "Rebound" (2005), starring Martin Lawrence and Megan Mullally, where a much-admired college basketball coach is demoted to a junior varsity team after a public meltdown. He was then hired and cast in the supporting role of Mullet Fingers in the family adventure film "Hoot" (2006), the story of a young man who moves from Montana to Florida with his family, where he becomes involved in a fight to protect a population of endangered owls. But another big break was just around the corner, one that would change his life forever.

The actors good looks and acting abilities made him a Disney Channel essential, seen by his role as Jake Ryan on the network’s smash hit “Hannah Montana.” The show’s title character, played by music sensation Miley Cyrus, falls in love with Jake, and in a 2006 episode the two shared their first onscreen kiss. “I thought it might be weird, but it wasn’t,” he said. “It was a kiss for a scene and then we went back to being just friends.”

Another “Hannah Montana” celebrity, Emily Osment, worked with Linley in the thriller “The Haunting Hour: Don’t Think About It” (2007), based on the book by R.L. Stine. Rumors swirled among Cody's fans that the star was dating both Miley and Emily Osment, but they all claimed to be just friends. There were also rumors that the actor was gay, but those rumors died down after it was revealed, two years later, that he had briefly dated "Camp Rock" star Demi Lovato, but the love birds split a few months before “Camp Rock” premiered. He worked with Lovato again when he was hired as an internet correspondent for the third season of “Disney Channel Games” in 2006, a series of competitions that profiled the network’s biggest young stars.

In 2008, he lent his voice to the video game “The Hardy Boys: The Hidden Theft”, starring Jesse McCartney as Frank Hardy. Another big break came in the starring role of Eli Channing in the horror thriller "Forget Me Not" (2008), playing the brother of Sandy Channing, the popular class president of her small-town high school, whose friends start disappearing, and he discovers they have awakened the vengeful spirit of a girl they wronged long ago. 

His next took center stage when he joined the cast of ABC’s “Dancing With The Stars.” The smash hit reality show combined Linley, who was only 18-years-old, with professional dancer and country music singer singer Julianne Hough. The two competed for the "Dancing With The Stars" trophy against celebrities like Lance Bass, Kim Kardashian, and Cloris Leachman.

Watch Cody Linley In Hanna Montana Backstage Interview

Watch Cody Linley Picture Slideshow

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