She achieved icon status in the early 1980s for her role in the teen comedy Fast Times at Ridgemont High, in which she stripped off her bikini top in a slow-motion fantasy sequence.

That same year, in the romance film Paradise and more popular The Blue Lagoon, Cates appeared nude, although she was said to have used a body double in some of the close-ups.

Her later roles were more modest and largely oriented toward younger audiences, her face made the covers of teen magazines such as Seventeen, Tiger Beat, Teen Beat and others.

In 1989, she married actor Kevin Kline, whom she had originally met while auditioning for the part in The Big Chill. In 1991, she was slated to be in Father of the Bride, but dropped out due to pregnancy. Kline and Cates make their home in New York City and have two children, Owen, born in 1991 and Greta, born in 1994. They all appeared in Cates' most recent film, The Anniversary Party (2001).

Public Name: Phoebe Cates
Birth Name: Phoebe Belle Katz
Date of Birth: July 16, 1963
Place of Birth: New York City

Filmography

• The Anniversary Party (2001)
• Princess Caraboo (1994)
• Bodies, Rest & Motion (1993)
• Drop Dead Fred (1991)
• Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
• I Love You to Death (1990) (uncredited)
• Largo Desolato (1990) (TV)
• Heart of Dixie (1989)
• Shag (1989)
• Bright Lights, Big City (1988)
• Date with an Angel (1987)
• Lace II (1985) (TV)
• Gremlins (1984)
• Lace (1984) (TV)
• Private School (1983)
• Baby Sister (1983) (TV)
• Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
• Paradise (1982)