Penelope Cruz - Biography

Last Editor: teresa22176				Penelope Cruz Biography -   Name : Penelope Cruz Name At Birth : Penélope Cruz Sánchez Date of Birth : 28 April 1974 Place of Birth : Madrid, Spain Height : 5' 6'' Weight : 47Kg Nickname : Pe Eyes : Hazel Hair : Brown Father : Eduardo Cruz (auto mechanic) Mother : Encarna Cruz (hairdresser manager) Sister : Monica (professional flamenco dancer) Brother : Eduardo Jr Education : -Secondary Studies (dropped out) National Conservatory Madrid Spain (majored in Classical Ballet) Cristina Rota's School in Nueva York (4 years

Penelope Cruz Trivia -

After filming All the Pretty Horses (2000), she became a vegetarian. It was rumored that she donated her entire The Hi-Lo Country (1998) salary to the Mother Teresa's children's sanctuary in Calcutta after spending a week there volunteering. This was later denounced by Cruz, according to a Reuters news article in 2001. Daughter of Eduardo (merchant) and Encarna (hairdresser). Brother, Eduardo. Academic curriculum: Finished 2º B.U.P. (2nd. year of secondary school). Had 4 years of dance performance with Cristina Rota, several dance courses at New York, 9 years of classic ballet at the Conservatorio Nacional and 3 years of Spanish ballet with Ángela Garrido. Also had Jazz Dance course with Raúl Caballero. Volunteered in Uganda for 2 months in 1997 with then boyfriend Faiz Ahmad. She founded a non-government organisation (NGO) called Sabera Foundation. Together with Nacho Cano and other Spanish entertainers, they have set up a home, a school and a clinic for homeless girls and people suffering from tuberculosis in Calcutta. Two documentary programs were made for Spanish TV on this project. Unfortunately differences of opinion caused a collapse in the project and Sabera Foundation tragically no longer exists. She dated Tom Cruise. [2001-January 2004] She was named after the song "Penélope" by Joan Manuel Serrat. Her sister Mónica Cruz is now a TV star in Spain. She starred in "Un paso adelante" (2002) as a young dancer with a famous aunt. Voted the 7th Sexiest Female Movie Star in the Australian Empire Magazine September 2002. She lived with Nacho Cano, Spanish musician, part of the trio (famous in Spain) called "Mecano", a pop music group. Penelope appeared in one of the band's video-clips "la Fuerza del Destino" and that's where her romance with one of the two Cano brothers that form part of the group along with the singer Ana Torroja begun. Best friends with actresses Goya Toledo and Salma Hayek. Ranked #23 in Stuff magazine's "102 Sexiest Women in the World" (2002). She likes to keep stray cats. Learned Italian because she wanted her part in the movie Non ti muovere (2004) really badly. It paid off and she went on to win the Italian equivalent of the Oscars for Best Actress. She speaks four languages: Spanish, Italian, French and English. Was accompanied by Matthew McConaughey to the Grammy Awards in 2005. The couple met on the set of Sahara (2005). She shares her birthday with Jessica Alba & Jay Leno Spanish citizen. Two of her boyfriends have been named "Sexiest Man Alive" by People Magazine: Tom Cruise (in 1990) and Matthew McConaughey (in 2005). Sister of Mónica Cruz Bigas Luna was determined to have her starring as the lead character in the torrid Las edades de Lulú (1990), but Penélope was only 14. They agreed that she was too young for the role and Francesca Neri was cast instead. Two years later, Luna's fixation with Cruz resulted in her breakthrough performance in Jamón, jamón (1992), her first film, famous for her somewhat erotic scenes. They eventually collaborated again in Volavérunt (1999). Claims that Victoria Abril's powerful performance in Pedro Almodóvar's ¡Átame! (1990) ("Tie me up, tie me down!") determined her to become an actress. Ranked as #51 in FHM's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2005" special supplement. (2005) She claims her role in Bigas Luna's Jamón, jamón (1992) psychologically scarred her for life. She was a teenager when she was cast in the film which required her to do nudity and sex scenes. Named #72 in FHM magazine's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2006" supplement. (2006). Good friends with ex-boyfriend Tom Cruise. She was one of the first people to visit his new-born baby daughter Suri. One of People magazines 50 Most Beautiful People in the world 2005. Sister of singer Eduardo Cruz and actress Mónica Cruz. Second Spanish performer to be Oscar-nominated. The first one was Javier Bardem. Is a fan of Indian cinema and has expressed interest in working with Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan someday. Ranked #58 on the Maxim magazine Hot 100 of 2007 list. Choosen by Empire Magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Movie Stars in the world (#50) 2007.In 2006, she was earning $2 million per year representing L'Oreal cosmetics. Ranked #82 on the Maxim magazine Hot 100 of 2008 list. Second Spanish performer to win an Oscar for acting. The first was Javier Bardem. She is the only person to win an acting Oscar (Vicky Christina Barcelona) and appear in two Oscar-winning Best Foreign Language Films (All About My Mother and Belle Epoque). In 2009, she won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, a Goya, and a BAFTA for her role in Vicky Cristina Barcelona. She is Spain's first female Oscar winner and second Hispanic actress since 1961.

Penelope Cruz Detailed Biography -

Penelope Cruz was born on April 28, 1974 to Eduardo, a merchant and a hairdresser in Madrid, Spain. Penelope was one of three children, brother Eduardo an dsister Mónica. She was named in memory of a Joan Manuel Serrat song. Penelope attended High School, but didn't finish, choosing to concentrate more on ballet and jazz. She had ten years of classic ballet and three years of Spanish ballet. Her studies took her to four years of Theatre at Cristina Rota's school in New York. She broke into acting in 1992. That year, she had starring roles in Jamón Jamón and Belle Epoque. Jamón Jamón (Ham Ham is the English title) cast her as the desperately poor daughter of a village prostitute, while Belle Epoque featured her as one of four lusty daughters of a wealthy man in pre-Franco Spain. Belle Epoque was a critical smash, winning nine Goya Awards, which is essentially the Spanish equivelant of the Oscars, and it did win an Oscar for Best Foreign Film. The success of this film thrust Cruz into the International spotlight, proving to be a huge stepping stone towards success. It wasn't until 1998, however, that Cruz had her first starring role in an English language film. She played the Mexican-American love interest in Stephen Frears' The Hi-Lo Country. Cruz donated her entire salary from this film to Mother Theresa's charity. Later in the year, she had another English film in the romantic comedy Twice Upon a Yesterday. She returned to Spain in 1999, to work again with Almodovar on Todo Sobre Mi Madre (All About My Mother), a critically acclaimed film that landed in Cannes that year. She also began work on her biggest project to date, All the Pretty Horses, which costars Matt Damon. The movie debuted in the year 2000.