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Elvis O’Connor hired by talent agency while still in the womb

Talent agents believed little Elvis O'Connor, now 11 months, would be a star and signed him to the Scream Management Agency before he was born.

Elvis' parents -- Andy and Shelley O'Connor of Manchester, England -- sent a 3D ultrasound image of their unborn son to the casting agency through which Elvis' big sister, 5-year-old Alana, has found several acting roles.

"They said they could tell he was going to look like his sister and that they would like to put him on their books," Andy tells the Daily Mail.

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Fortunately, the agency's assumptions were right about Elvis' good looks. The baby boy, at just 6 months old, played the child of train-robber Ronnie in the ITV series Mrs. Biggs.

"He was pretty much cast for Mrs Biggs before he was even born," Andy acknowledges, adding, "Everyone loved him on set and he was really well behaved."

While the unborn rarely get signed with talent agencies, newborns are allowed to work in the industry within days of having their umbilical cord cut.

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New York City agent Adele Sharf tells the story of booking an overdue expectant mom, anticipating that her newborn would be available for a soap-opera shoot the following week.

Slate breaks down some of the newborn laws by state: In California, a baby must be two weeks old before making his or her movie debut. In other states, there are no such age restrictions.

Canada's ACTRA Independent Production Agreement stipulates that a child must be 15 days old before appearing on camera.