Charlize Theron Pictures

Biography

NAME: Charlize Theron
NATIONALITY: South African
HEIGHT: 5'11"
WEIGHT: 135 lbs
MEASUREMENTS: 35-26-37
HAIR: Currently dyed blonde (naturally brown).
EYES: Green Blue
BORN: August 7, 1975 in Benoni, South Africa.

Theron was born in Benoni, Gauteng, South Africa. Her father, Charles Theron, was a construction company owner of French Huguenot descent; her mother, Gerda, is of German descent and took over her husband's business after his death. Theron's first language is Afrikaans. She is also fluent in English and speaks some Xhosa. In the United States, both in her films and while being interviewed, etc., Theron speaks with a typical American accent and style of speech, leading most people to assume she is American.

"Theron" is a French surname pronounced in Afrikaans as "Tronn," although she has said that she prefers the pronunciation "Thrown." The pronunciation commonly used in the United States involves two syllables, with stress on the first.

Theron grew up as the only child on her parents' farm near Johannesburg (Benoni). At the age of thirteen, Charlize was sent to boarding school and began her studies at the National School Of The Arts in Johannesburg. At fifteen, Theron witnessed the death of her father, an abusive alcoholic; her mother shot him in self-defense when he attacked her. The police laid no charges against her.