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

Vidal Sassoon Vidal Sassoon (17 January 1928 – 9 May 2012) was a British hairstylist and businessman. He was noted for repopularising a simple, close-cut geometric hairstyle called the five-point cut, worn by famous fashion designers including Mary Quant ...

and

Beverly Adams Beverly Adams (born November 7, 1945)) is a Canadian-American actress and author. Early life Adams was born in Alberta, Canada, but is a citizen of the United States. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Adams. Raised Roman Catholic, she ...

Early life

The eldest of four children, Sassoon was born at the Klingenstein Pavilion of Mount Sinai Hospital in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

hairstylist

, and his wife, Canadian-born actress

. She had three younger siblings: sister Eden and brothers Elan and David. Her father was born in

Shepherd's Bush Shepherd's Bush is a suburb of West London, England, within the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham west of Charing Cross, and identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Although primarily residential in character, its ...

and was of

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

and

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

descent. Sassoon's parents divorced in 1980. Raised in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...

, Sassoon began modeling as a 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 Mohawk may refer to: Related to Native Americans *Mohawk people (Kanien’kehá:ka), an indigenous people of North America (Canada and New York) *Mohawk language (Kanien’kéha), the language spoken by the Mohawk people *Mohawk hairstyle, from a ...

Career

Against her parents' wishes, Sassoon dropped out of

Beverly Hills High School Beverly Hills High School (shortly as BHHS or Beverly) is a public high school in Beverly Hills, California. The other public high school in Beverly Hills is Moreno High School, a small alternative school located on Beverly Hills High School's c ...

at the age of 14 to pursue a modeling career. She moved to

where she signed with the Prestige Agency and enrolled at

Professional Children's School The Professional Children's School (PCS) is a not-for-profit, college-preparatory school geared toward working and aspiring child actors and dancers in grades four through twelve. The school was founded in New York City in 1914 to provide an ac ...

. Her modeling career quickly took off and she became one of New York's top teen models. Sassoon later appeared on the covers of '' Seventeen'', ''

Brides A bride is a woman who is about to be married or who is a newlywed. When marrying, if the bride's future spouse is a man, he is usually referred to as the ''bridegroom'' or just ''groom''. In Western culture, a bride may be attended by a maid, ...

'' and ''

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Internationalism * World citizen, one who eschews traditional geopolitical divisions derived from national citizenship * Cosmopolitanism, the idea that all of humanity belongs to a single moral community * Cosmopolitan ...

''. 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 The Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is an addiction treatment and advocacy organization that was created in 2014 with the merger of the Minnesota-based Hazelden Foundation and the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, California, in the United State ...

. It would be the first of several rehab stays. After a month, Sassoon was released and resumed her career. 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. 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 be married in a Jewish ceremony at his home. The two were married at Vidal's home in August 1984. 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 ''Tuff Turf'' is a 1985 American drama film directed by Fritz Kiersch and starring James Spader and Kim Richards. The film was released in the United States on January 11, 1985. Producer Donald Borchers later said the film was a personal favor ...

''. Sassoon's marriage to Luca Scalisi ended shortly after the release of ''Tuff Turf''. By age 21, Sassoon was battling a serious addiction to drugs and eventually entered a drug rehabilitation facility. Sassoon later revealed in an interview with

Joan Rivers Joan Alexandra Molinsky (June 8, 1933 – September 4, 2014), known professionally as Joan Rivers, was an American comedienne, actress, producer, writer and television host. She was noted for her blunt, often controversial comedic persona that w ...

that she had suffered a drug induced

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

while undergoing treatment for her addiction. 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 Roger William Corman (April 5, 1926 – May 9, 2024) was an American film director, producer, and actor. Known under various monikers such as "The Pope of Pop Cinema", "The Spiritual Godfather of the New Hollywood", and "The King of Cult", he w ...

-produced

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

film '' Angelfist'', directed by

Cirio H. Santiago Cirio Hermoso Santiago (January 18, 1936 – September 26, 2008) was a Filipino film producer, director and writer. He used the screen names Cirio Santiago, Cirio H. Santiago, Leonardo Hermoso, and Leonard Hermes. Life and career Santiago was ...

. 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.

Personal life

While shooting a film in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

around 1994, Sassoon met a

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

an musician. The two were married shortly thereafter and moved to Zimbabwe. Around 1995, the couple had a son. Sassoon's second marriage also ended in divorce. She married for the third time to screenwriter and waiter Joe Meyers. In the spring of 2000, she gave birth to twin girls.

Death

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. 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 In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year, January 1, 1 January. Most solar calendars, such as the Gregorian and Julian calendars, begin the year regularly at or near the December solstice, northern winter ...

morning. Elkins and the Sassoon family believed Sassoon, who had a history of

high blood pressure Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is a long-term medical condition in which the blood pressure in the arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms itself. It is, however, a major ri ...

, died of a

. Her family also maintained that she had not consumed any drugs and was clean and sober at the time of her death. Sassoon's funeral was held on January 4, after which she was buried next to her grandmother at

Eden Memorial Park Cemetery Eden Memorial Park Cemetery is a Jewish cemetery located at 11500 Sepulveda Boulevard, Mission Hills, California, in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. Many Jews from the entertainment industry are buried here. It is located north of the ...

in Mission Hills, California. 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 Opioids are a class of Drug, drugs that derive from, or mimic, natural substances found in the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy plant. Opioids work on opioid receptors in the brain and other organs to produce a variety of morphine-like effects, ...

pain-killer

hydromorphone Hydromorphone, also known as dihydromorphinone, and sold under the brand name Dilaudid among others, is a morphinan opioid used to treat moderate to severe pain. Typically, long-term use is only recommended for pain due to cancer. It may b ...

Cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

was also found in her system.

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sassoon, Catya 1968 births 2002 deaths 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers Accidental deaths in California Actresses from Beverly Hills, California Actresses from California Actresses from Manhattan American child actresses American child models American female models American film actresses American people of British-Jewish descent American people of Canadian descent American people of Greek-Jewish descent 20th-century American Sephardic Jews American television actresses Beverly Hills High School alumni Burials at Eden Memorial Park Cemetery Drug-related deaths in California Jewish American actresses Jewish female models Jewish women singers 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American women