Robert Downey Jr. Pics

Robert

Downey

1965-04-04

68.5

Athletic

Brown - Dark

Brown - Dark

New York City, New York, USA

Aries

White

Jewish

Chaplin, Tropic Thunder, Tony Stark / Iron Man in Marvel Studios movies

Male

American

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Actor/Actress, Soundtrack, Producer

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Robert John Downey Jr. (born April 4, 1965) is an American actor, film producer, and musician. Downey made his screen debut at the age of five when he appeared in one of his father`s films, and has worked consistently in film and television ever since. During the 1980s, he had roles in a series of coming of age films associated with the Brat Pack. Less Than Zero (1987) is particularly notable, not only because it was the first time Downey`s acting would be acknowledged by critics, but also because the role pushed Downey`s already existing drug habit one step further. After Zero, Downey started landing roles in bigger films such as Air America (1990) and Soapdish (1991). These higher-profile roles eventually led to his being cast as Charlie Chaplin in the 1992 film Chaplin, for which he gained an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. Between 1996 and 2001, Downey was frequently arrested on drug-related charges and went through several drug treatment programs, but had difficulty staying sober. After being released from the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison in 2000, Downey joined the cast of the hit television series Ally McBeal, playing the new love interest of Calista Flockhart`s title character. His performance was praised and he was nominated for an Emmy Award in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series category and won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor in a mini-series or TV Film, but his character was written out when Downey was fired after two arrests in late 2000 and early 2001. After one last stay in a court-ordered drug treatment program, Downey finally achieved lasting sobriety and his career began to take off again. He appeared in semi-independent films such as The Singing Detective (2003), A Scanner Darkly (2005), and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005). He also had supporting roles in the mainstream films Gothika (2003) and Zodiac (2007). In 2004, Downey released his debut studio album The Futurist. n 2007, Downey was cast as the title character in the comic book adaptation Iron Man which premiered in the spring of 2008, making almost $100 million at the domestic box office in its opening weekend. In addition to receiving commercial success, Downey`s performance in the film received rave reviews. His other 2008 films include Charlie Bartlett and the Ben Stiller-directed Tropic Thunder, in which he portrayed an Australian method actor overly engrossed in his role as an African-American soldier. He received his second Oscar nomination for said film, in the category of Best Supporting Actor, which he lost to Heath Ledger. He will next play the titular lead character in Guy Ritchie`s adaptation of Sherlock Holmes, set for release for Christmas 2009. Early life and family Downey was born in New York City, New York, the younger of two children. His father, Robert Downey, Sr., is an actor, writer, producer, cinematographer, and director of underground films, and his mother, Elsie (née Ford), is also an actress and appeared in Downey Sr.`s films. Downey`s father is of Irish and Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry and his mother is of German and Scottish descent. His father was born "Robert Elias," but changed his last name to "Downey" (after his stepfather James Downey) when he was a minor and wanted to enlist in the Army. Downey had minor roles in his father`s projects in his childhood. He made his acting debut at age 5 playing a sick puppy in the absurdist comedy Pound (1970), and then at age 7 he appeared in the surrealist Greaser`s Palace (1972). At the age of 10, he was living in England and studied classical ballet. He grew up in Greenwich Village and attended the Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Training Center in upstate New York, as a teenager. When his parents divorced in 1978, Downey moved to California with his father, but in 1982 he dropped out of Santa Monica High School and moved back to New York to pursue an acting career full time. Career Beginnings and critical acclaim In 1985, at the age of twenty, Downey joined the cast of the weekly television comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL), but was fired in 1986 following a cast overhaul that was done in order to save the show`s slump in the ratings. Downey had his breakthrough when in 1985 he played James Spader`s sidekick in Tuff Turf and then a bully in John Hughes`s Weird Science. He was considered for the role of Duckie in John Hughes`s film Pretty in Pink (1986), but his first lead role would be with Molly Ringwald in The Pick-up Artist (1987). Because of these and other coming of age films Downey did during the 1980s, he is sometimes named as a member of the Brat Pack. In 1987, Downey played Julian Wells, a drug-addicted rich boy whose life rapidly spirals out of his control, in the film version of Bret Easton Ellis` novel Less Than Zero. His performance, described by Janet Maslin in The New York Times as "desperately moving", was widely praised, though Downe

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Downey,_Jr.

Santa Monica High School, Santa Monica, California (dropped out)

downeyunlimited.com, www.robertdowneyjrmusic.com

Robert John Downey Jr.

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72

Actor, Singer/Songwriter

Robert Downey Sr.

Elsie Downey

Allyson Downey

Moby

Caa

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48

Indio Falconer Downey (son), Exton Elias Downey (son)

Anthony Michael Hall

Married

2275

John

Robert John Downey, Jr. (born April 4, 1965) is an American actor who made his screen debut at the age of five, appearing in his father's film Pound. He has appeared in roles associated with the Brat Pack, such as Less Than Zero and Weird Science. Other films he has starred in include Air America, Soapdish, and Natural Born Killers. He starred as the title character in the 1992 film Chaplin, earning him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor.

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