Kirk Douglas - Biography

Last Editor: jbthesk8er				Kirk Douglas Biography -   Name : Kirk Douglas Date of birth : 9 December 1916 Place of birth : Amsterdam, New York, USA Birth name : Issur Danielovitch Demsky Height : 5' 9

Kirk Douglas Trivia -

Recipient of American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement award, with screening of 16 his films. [December 1999] Ranked #53 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list. [October 1997] Born Issur Danielovitch to father Jacob Danielovitch, and mother Channa, from Russia, who came to America in 1912. Suffered a stroke. [1995] Received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Carter on 17th January 1981. This is the highest US honor a civilian can receive. Turned down 2 Oscar winning roles: Lee Marvin's role in Cat Ballou (1965) and William Holden's role in Stalag 17 (1953). Grandfather of Cameron Douglas and Dylan Douglas (Michael Douglas' sons). Father of 4 sons: Michael Douglas, Eric Douglas, Joel Douglas and Peter Douglas. Earned $50,000 for saying the only English word at the end of a 1980s Japanese TV commercial: "Coffee". Speaks German (fluently, but not accent-free) and also French. Survived a helicopter crash on 23 February 1991 in which two people were killed. He was left with a debilitating back injury. Kirk has celebrated his Bar Mitzvah twice. Once, obviously, when he was 13 years old and the other time when he was 83 years old. President Class Of 1939, St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York. Graduated with a degree in English. Received honored UCLA Medal honor 14 June 2002 from the University of California, Los Angeles, during school's graduation ceremony for theater, film and television students. Previous recipients include former US Presidents Carter and Clinton, former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres, and actors Laurence Olivier and Carol Burnett. Granddaughter, Carys Zeta born. [21 April 2003] Inducted into the Hall of Great Western Performers of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in 1984. Father-in-law of Catherine Zeta-Jones. Was originally cast to play Col. Sam Trautman in First Blood, but walked out on the project. Douglas wanted substantial changes made to the script, specifically that John Rambo die at the hands of Trautman, like the character did in the novel. The writers held their ground and refused. Richard Crenna was eventually cast in the role. He was voted the 36th Greatest Movie Star of all time by Entertainment Weekly. Wore lifts in many of his films. Kirk had a fully Jewish upbringing, but did not practice extensively as an adult. This changed when, in his 80s, he had a second Bar Mitzvah, reaffirming his faith and causing him to practice again. was named #17 greatest actor on The 50 Greatest Screen Legends list by the American Film Institute Had a pacemaker fitted following a heart attack in a restaurant in 1989. President of jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1982 President of jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1980 Member of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1970 He and Burt Lancaster acted together in 7 movies: Victory at Entebbe (1976) (TV), Tough Guys (1986), Seven Days in May (1964), The List of Adrian Messenger (1963), I Walk Alone (1948), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957) and _The Devil's Disciple (1959)_ He was not as good of a friend with Burt Lancaster as was often perceived. The closeness of their friendship was largely fabricated by the publicity-wise Douglas, while, in reality, Lancaster was often cruel and dismissive to Douglas. He had both knees replaced in 2005, against the advice of his doctors. The operation was a success. After his son, Michael was fired from the stage production of the play, Summer Tree, Kirk bought the stage and film rights to the story and gave to Michael to star in.

Kirk Douglas Detailed Biography -

Kirk Douglas has had a legendary career in Hollywood, including 84 films, nine plays, eight books, and a host of other contributions to his art, his country and his fellowmen. Born Issur Danielovitch on December 9, 1916 in Amsterdam, NY, he was the son of illiterate Jewish-Russian immigrants. He won a wrestling scholarship to Saint Lawrence University and worked as a wrestler in summer carnivals. A second scholarship from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts put him on the road to Broadway. He made his Broadway debut in Spring Again, but interrupted his budding stage career in 1942 to enlist in the U.S. Navy, where he served as a communications officer in anti-submarine warfare. He returned to Broadway in The Wind is Ninety. He was then cast opposite Barbara Stanwyck in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers. Three years later, in 1949, his role in Stanley Kramer's Champion won him both stardom and an Academy Award nomination. He received his second nomination in 1952 for The Bad and the Beautiful, and his third in 1956 for his portrayal of Vincent Van Gogh in Lust for Life (he won the New York Film Critics' Best Actor Award). In 1955, Douglas formed one of Hollywood's first independent film companies, Bryna, named for his mother, and managed by his wife, Anne. The Bryna Company produced many memorable films, including Paths of Glory, The Vikings, Spartacus, Lonely Are the Brave, and Seven Days in May. Kirk Douglas also established the Douglas Foundation in order to make more significant and meaningful contributions to civic and charitable causes, including the Los Angeles Mission for the Homeless, which has opened the Anne Douglas Center for Women, and the Motion Picture Relief Home's Alzheimer's Unit, which has been named Harry's Haven after Mr. Douglas's father. The Douglas Foundation is currently restoring neglected playgrounds of Los Angeles schools and building a series of playgrounds in Israel. The Foundation has committed funds for a theater directly opposite the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem and for the Kirk Douglas Theatre of The Center Theatre Group, set to open in Culver City, California, in 2004. In 1958, Douglas broke the notorious Hollywood blacklist when he gave screen credit to blacklisted writer Dalton Trumbo for the Spartacus screenplay. He was widely condemned for his decision at the time. 30 years later the American Civil Liberties Union and the Writers Guild of America recognized his act as courageous. He considers it his proudest achievement. In 1963, he bought the dramatic rights to Ken Kesey's book One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and starred in it on Broadway. In 1975, his son Michael produced the movie, which collected five Oscars including best picture, but the biggest disappointment of his life was that he didn't play in the film. In 1981, President Carter presented Douglas with the Medal of Freedom, America's highest civilian award. He has been honored by governments and organizations of other countries as well, including France, Italy, Portugal, Israel, and Germany. Among the top international awards he received was his appointment in 1990 as Officier de la Legion d'Honneur for distinguished services to France in arts and letters. In 1991, the American Film Institute singled him out for its Life Achievement Award. In 1995, the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts distinguished him with its award for contributions to U.S. cultural life. In 1996, the Academy of Motion Pictures honored him with a Special Oscar for 50 years as a creative and moral force in the motion picture community. Kirk Douglas's conscience has often found an outlet in his movies. The TV movie Amos, which earned him Emmy and Golden Globe nominations, focused public attention on abuse of the elderly. His efforts have also included editorials and letters to newspapers, appearances on national television, and testimony before the Congressional Select Sub-Committee on Aging. In 1992, through the TV movie, The Secret, he attacked the social stigma associated with dyslexia. His performance was singled out as the year's best by the Los Angeles Times critics, and earned him the Einstein Award from the National Dyslexia Research Foundation. Kirk Douglas movie projects are often family affairs. Amos was produced by his son Peter, as were Final Countdown and Inherit the Wind, which won an Emmy award for best film. He has also co-starred with his son Eric in Yellow, a segment in HBO's Tales of the Crypt series, which earned him a second Emmy nomination. His son, Joel, served as production manager on the Douglas-directed Posse. In 1991, Douglas had a helicopter crash in which two people were killed and Kirk almost broke his back. In 1996, he had a stroke which affected his speech. For a time, he believed this would end his career as an actor, but with the encouragement of his friends and family, he kept working with a speech therapist and at the end of 1998 he returned to the screen in Diamonds, followed by an Emmy-nominated guest star role for Touched by an Angel. When not acting, Douglas occupies his time writing. His autobiography, The Ragman's Son, published in 1988, received rave reviews and became an international bestseller. He followed it up with three novels (Dance with the Devil in 1990, The Gift in 1992, and Last Tango in Brooklyn in 1994) and children's books (The Broken Mirror in 1997). In 1997, he published a sequel to his autobiography entitled Climbing the Mountain: My Search for Meaning. His second children's book, Young Heroes of the Bible, was published in October of 1999. The third installment of his autobiography, My Stroke of Luck, came out in January 2002. On December 9, 1999, Douglas celebrated his second Bar Mitzvah at age eighty-three at Sinai Temple in Westwood, California, marking the second cycle of life that began at the age of seventy, according to the Talmud. Since then, he has traveled to Israel and Jordon (as guest of King Abdullah and Queen Rania). He had a high school named for him in West Granada Hills, received the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, published another autobiography, received the Presidential Medal of the Arts in Washington. Douglas has been married to his wife, Anne, for 48 years, and is the father of four sons from two marriages: Michael, Joel, Peter and Eric. He also has five grandchildren who call him Poppy. He and Anne divide their time between residences in Beverly Hills and Montecito.