Biography for
Gretchen Carlson More at IMDbPro »

Date of Birth

21 June 1966, Anoka, Minnesota, USA

Birth Name

Gretchen Elizabeth Carlson

Height

5' 3" (1.60 m)

Spouse

Casey Close

(4 October 1997 - present) 2 children

Trivia

Miss America 1989. First classical violinist to be crowned Miss America. Her platform was to promote the arts.

1990 honors graduate of Stanford University, with a degree in sociology (organizational behavior). Also, studied at Oxford University in England.

Miss Minnesota 1988.

Has a sister and two brothers.

Mother is Karen Carlson.

Her sister and brother-in-law are adopting a child from Guatemala [November 21, 2007].

Has a son, Christian, 6, and a daughter, Katya, (born May 17, 2003) [2009].

Was a middle child in her family.

Favorite pro football team is the Minnesota Vikings.

One of her babysitters was Rep. Michele Bachmann.

Her husband, Casey Close, is a sports agent whose clientèle include Ryan Howard, Derek Jeter and Josh Hamilton.

Of Swedish descent.

National celebrity spokesperson for the March of Dimes.

Her family has a General Motors auto dealership in Anoka, Minnesota. It has been in the Carlson family for 90 years [2009].

When they were younger, Gretchen and her sister played violin and cello, respectively, for five Christmas services at the church where their grandfather was a minister.

Before coming to Fox News in 2006, she joined CBS News as a correspondent in 2000 and then began working on "Saturday Early Show" (1997) as a co-anchor in 2002.

Graduated from Anoka-Hennepin School District 11's Anoka High School, where she was the 1984 class valedictorian.

Recuperating from shoulder surgery in January, 2009 [February 7, 2009].

Her father, Lee Carlson, celebrated his 75th birthday on April 26, 2009.

Her family's General Motors auto dealership received a letter notifying it to close by late 2010 [June 2009].

Favorite TV shows are "Hart to Hart" (1979) and "Mad Men" (2007).

Her parents' GM dealership in Anoka, Minnesota, Lee Carlson's Main Motors, has not been reinstated as of March 11, 2010.

Received the March of Dimes' Volunteer Honor Award on September 30, 2010 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Her parents are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary [May 20, 2011].

In 1984, was elected as one of the Anoka High School homecoming attendants and was named Miss Teen Minnesota and was first runner-up in the 1984 Miss Teen USA national competition.

Personal Quotes

I wanted to see how much of an insult it was to be called an ignoramus. I didn't know what it meant; I just Googled it. For all of you out there who don't know what "ignoramus" is, it's an ignorant lawyer.

Where Are They Now

(2010) Lives in Connecticut with her husband and their children.