Actress Katherine Heigl has been modeling since she was nine, and when she started working this year with Seventeen, we fell in love with her--so much, in fact, that we invited her to a kickoff party in New York for our 50th anniversary (watch for out knockout anniversary issue in October!). At the party, it turned out we weren't her only admirers: Someone else seemed to fall in love with her, too. Let's just say his first name is Joey....Whoa!

Seventeen: Okay. I can't resist asking about Joey Lawrence. What's up with you two?

Heigl: We met at Seventeen's 50th anniversary party and it was really weird because he came up to me and I couldn't believe it. I was like, "This guy is actually talking to *me*." I shook his hand, but I don't like to fawn all over guys and be like, "Omigod, it's Joey Lawrence." So I was kind of like, "Yeah, nice to meet you, whatever..." and then I walked away. Then Janice Grossman, the publisher, reintroduced me to Joey. We exchanged phone numbers and then we just talked there for about an hour. And then he started calling me every single night.

Seventeen: Have you guys had a first date yet?

Heigl: When I took a trip to L.A. we went out, even though I'm not supposed to date until I'm 16. But my mother made a special exception because she had a talk with Joey--Just kind of a "my daughter's not really supposed to be dating but because I like you, you can take her out" talk. My mom says it was because he was nice and responsible and because he appreciated and respected my values.

Seventeen: What makes you so compatible?

Heigl: He's just like me. Neither of us drinks or smokes or gets into that whole Hollywood scene--we try to keep it pretty normal. And both of our parents are really into our lives and are big supporters of us--and we're both really into our families.

Seventeen: Tell me about your family. Does everyone get along?

Heigl: I have two brothers and one sister. Holt is 25, Jason is 23, and Meg is 18. I get along really well with everybody because we basically stay out of each other's way. My sister, Meg, went to college in Idaho this year. We didn't get along until she went away, and then I realized how much I missed her and how boring it was around here without her. Now we get along really well. Everyone's living home right now and we have these big family dinners and we all joke around--Jason used to hang me over the banister by my feet when I was little and the other day he did it to me again. I was like, "I thought we got over this."

Seventeen: So how did you get your start in the business?

Heigl: I guess I started when I was about nine years old doing Sears and catalog work. And then I started going out for commercials with my modeling agency, and after I did a couple of commercials and really liked it, I started auditioning for movies. When I booked my first movie I knew that's just what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

Seventeen: Most people don't seem to realize how hard modeling can be. What's your take on it?

Heigl: It's very demanding, but in a good way. You have to do exactly what the photographer wants, but a lot of times you don't understand what they want. They're like, "Give me and energetic look," and you don't know what that is, but you have to do the best you can and continually change it and do different things and move around a lot. And you spend a lot of time just waiting around or doing hair and makeup and clothing.

Seventeen: Why do you like acting more than modeling?

Heigl: I think it's more my thing. I've always just liked acting better. I love the whole idea of becoming someone else and being in their lives.

Seventeen: So tell me about your first onscreen kiss. Were you nervous?

Heigl: I was really scared because Dalton James [from My Father the Hero] was an older guy. His girlfriend was there and so was my mom, and the whole cast and crew was watching. We both had like two things of Binaca and we just constantly sprayed it in our mouths. When it was finally over, I went right to my diary and wrote it all down--it was the most exciting thing that happened to me all summer.

Seventeen: What do you do when you're with your friends?

Heigl: We do little things, like the other night we were supposed to go to the beach and have a picnic and tell ghost stories and stuff, or sometimes we'll go to the movies. And a lot of times we just end up hanging out at someone's house. Everybody around here has a trampoline, so we all sit on the trampoline, get tan, and talk. It's kind of our quality time.

Seventeen: How would your friends describe you?

Heigl: They'd probably say I'm the bull-headed one. I'm very adamant about standing up for what I believe in. Like, I have a very dear friend and she's very sweet and kind and if people sometimes get on her case, I'll get really angry and totally stand up for her. It comes from my mom.

Seventeen: So I have to get one last question in about you and Joey. Is it hard to be in a long-distance relationship?

Heigl: It's both good and bad. It's good because of the distance--they say, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder." But it's bad because I hate seeing all my friends with their boyfriends holding hands and stuff. But I think it's worth it. I like him because he's so genuine. I think he's the first guy that I've every really, really liked. I'm almost...maybe, I think I might be in love with him. But that's kind of strong to say so I'm not sure. So far it's been great.