Harry Potter Biography

Harry Potter is the fictional creation of author J.K. Rowling, who first featured him in the 1997 book Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. (In the U.S., the book was titled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.) Potter is a student wizard at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where he belongs to the house of Gryffindor, plays the odd broom-riding sport of quidditch and battles the villain Lord Voldemort. Rowling's original book was a smash hit and Potter became an international fad, with parents and children standing in line for the release of sequels. Rowling followed the original with six more books: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1999), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003), Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005), and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007).

To date, six Harry Potter feature films have been released: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001); Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002); Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004); Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005); Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007); Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009); Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010); and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011). The films starred Daniel Radcliffe in the role of Harry Potter, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson as Harry's friends Ron and Hermione, and Tom Felton as arch-rival Draco Malfoy.