George Clooney

Early life

George Timothy Clooney was born on May 6, 1961, in Lexington, Kentucky.

His mother, Nina, was a former pageant queen. His father, Nick Clooney, was a TV newscaster, actor, and talk-show host in Cincinnati. He has a sister, Ada.

From an early age, George would hang around his father's sets, often participating in shows, where he proved to be a crowd favorite. George's aunt, singer Rosemary Clooney, encouraged him to become a comedian. Early in their careers, George Clooney and Jay Leno were simultaneously sheltered by her, according to the January 2, 2007, show of Tonight Show with Jay Leno, when George Clooney was the guest.

Clooney spent his earlier years in Columbus, Ohio, attending St. Michael's elementary school. Later, he attended Kentucky's Augusta High School, which he graduated in 1979, but was a poor student. George did excel in athletics; baseball in particular. He was invited to try out for the Cincinnati Reds in 1977, but was not offered a contract.

He briefly attended Northern Kentucky University from 1979-81, but did not graduate. His college time was spent mainly on girls and partying.

He spent a season picking tobacco for his uncle Jack, then in 1982 took off for LA in his 1976 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, with $300 in his pocket.

Film career

Clooney spent most of his "struggling actor" years riding to auditions on a bicycle. His first major role was in the television medical comedy/drama, E/R. Additionally, he played a handyman on the series The Facts of Life. His first significant break was a semi-regular supporting role in the sitcom Roseanne, playing Roseanne Barr's overbearing boss Booker Brooks, followed by the role of a construction worker on Baby Talk and then as a sexy detective on Sisters. Clooney achieved stardom when he was selected to play maverick Dr. Doug Ross on the NBC hit drama ER.

Prior to his success on ER, he befriended another actor named Grant Heslov, a close friend and frequent collaborator with whom Clooney later co-wrote Good Night, and Good Luck. Heslov is also the president of Section 8 Entertainment, Clooney's and director Steven Soderbergh's production company. Clooney said in an interview that he was driving an RV through the country with Heslov, (who was getting over a broken engagement), when he got a phone call from his agent telling him that NBC just picked up ER for a full season. Clooney said, "I think I just got my career."

Clooney continued to star in movies while appearing in ER, his first major role coming with From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) and followed by The Peacemaker (1997), the first movie from Dreamworks SKG studio, Batman & Robin (1997), and Out of Sight (1998). In 1999 he left the cast of ER to pursue his film career full-time. As a stipulation in his new contract, Clooney would return to ER for occasional guest spots, which he only had to do once. Further movie roles included One Fine Day (1996),Three Kings (1999),The Perfect Storm (2000), O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), Ocean's Eleven (2001), Welcome to Collinwood (2002), Intolerable Cruelty (2003), and Ocean's Twelve (2004). He made his debut as a film director in the 2002 feature Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, an adaptation of the autobiography of TV producer Chuck Barris.

In 1995, Clooney received a tape version of The Spirit of Christmas, the video greeting card which would inspire South Park. He thought it was so funny that he made copies and sent it around the LA area; Matt Stone and Trey Parker were so thankful for his help that they invited him to play a role in the show, and he ended up voicing Stan Marsh's gay dog Sparky in the episode Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride, a role with no dialogue except normal dog noises. He later appeared in the film South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut. Despite this history, show creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone lampooned Clooney for his outspoken political views in their feature film Team America: World Police. However, Clooney later said that he would have been offended if he hadn't been made fun of in the film.

Clooney on the set of Ocean's Twelve in Winnetka, Illinois.

On January 31, the nominees for the 2006 Academy Awards were announced. Clooney was nominated for Achievement in Directing and Original Screenplay for Good Night, and Good Luck and Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role for Syriana. He became the first person in Oscar history to be nominated for directing one movie and acting in another in the same year. Clooney was also nominated for the David Lean Award for Achievement in Directing by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts BAFTA for Good Night, and Good Luck.

Clooney's portrayal of Bob Barnes in Syriana won him a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role and an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. His character, and story of Syriana, are based loosely on former CIA agent Robert Baer and his memoirs of being an agent in the Middle East.

Clooney has said that he plans to devote more of his energies to directing, after the success of Good Night, and Good Luck. On directing, Clooney said it's a great industry to grow old in, as he felt acting wasn't. He will next appear onscreen in The Good German which is directed by frequent collaborator Steven Soderbergh.

In 2001, Soderbergh and Clooney set up the movie production studio Section Eight Productions.

Other ventures

On July 8, 2005, news reports said that George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon would be working with Cindy Crawford's husband Rande Gerber to design and build a new casino hotel in Las Vegas. On August 29, 2005, Clooney officially announced his involvement with the Las Ramblas Resort project. The project never came to fruition, however, and the property on which the resort was to be built was sold in June 2006.

After serving as pitchman outside the U.S. for products like Fiat and Martini vermouth, Clooney lent his voice to a series of Budweiser ads beginning in 2005 (which are still running as of October 2006). Clooney was later criticized by actor Russell Crowe for such extracurricular pursuits. Clooney then responded by pointing out hypocrisy in the form of Crowe's frequent endorsements of his extracurricular rock and roll band.

Clooney loves Italy and he owns two villas in on Lake Como (Villa Oleandra and Villa Margherita).

Family & dating

George's father Nick Clooney is an American television journalist, anchorman, game show and American Movie Classics host, as well as a politician from the state of Kentucky. George is also the nephew of singer Rosemary Clooney and Jose Ferrer, and the cousin of her actor son Miguel Ferrer.

Clooney also had a 300 pound pig, named "Max," that lived with him for 18 years, which has died.

Nick Clooney is noted for saying "I spent the first part of my life being referred to as Rosemary Clooney's brother, and now I am spending the last part of my life being referred to as George Clooney's Dad."

George Clooney was married to actress Talia Balsam from 1989 to 1993. Clooney has stated he has no intent or desire to have children.

His girlfriends have included Dedee Pfeiffer (actress, dated mid-1980s), Kelly Preston (actress, 1987-89), Denise Crosby (actress, dated 1990s), Kimberly Russell (actress, b. 1964, dated 1995), Karen Duffy (actress, dated 1995-96), Celine Balitran (model, 1996-99), Brooke Langton (actress, b. 1970, dated 1999), Lisa Snowden (model, actress, dated 2000-01), Traylor Howard (actress, b. 1966, dated circa 2000), Julia Roberts (actress, reportedly dated 2001), Renee Zellweger (actress, dated 2001), Mariella Frostrup (TV hostess, b. 1962, dated 2002), Jennifer Siebel (actress, b. 1974, dated 2002), and Krista Allen (actress, 2002-04).

Politics

Clooney has been characterized as a political liberal.

Father

Clooney's father, Nick, ran as a Democrat in the 2004 election for a seat in the House of Representatives representing Kentucky's 4th Congressional district. He challenged Republican Geoff Davis for the open seat. Many observers, citing the star power and funding that Clooney's famous son would be able to draw, rated the race as highly competitive, and it quickly gained a high profile as one of few seriously contested House races. Clooney lost the election, gaining 44% of the vote to Davis's 54%. The conservative demographics of the northern Kentucky Fourth District, which were at odds with Clooney's mostly liberal leanings, have been cited as a major reason for Nick Clooney's loss.

He appeared as a guest in The Daily Show, supporting his then new movie, Good Night, and Good Luck, but his father was a major part of his discussion with host Jon Stewart.

Iraq war

Speaking about the Iraq war: "You can't beat your enemy anymore through wars; instead you create an entire generation of people seeking revenge. These days it only matters who's in charge. Right now that's us - for a while at least. Our opponents are going to resort to car bombs and suicide attacks because they have no other way to win. ...I believe (Rumsfeld) thinks this is a war that can be won, but there is no such thing anymore. We can't beat anyone anymore." (quote).

Jack Abramoff and Republicans

He is noted for his public criticisms of Jack Abramoff and other Republicans.

On January 16, 2006, during his acceptance speech for the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for Syriana, Clooney paused to thank sarcastically the disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff before adding, "Who would name their kid Jack with the word ‘off' at the end of your last name? No wonder that guy is screwed up!"

Darfur

Clooney is active in advocating a resolution of the Darfur conflict. His efforts include an episode of Oprah and speaking at the Save Darfur rally in Washington, D.C. on April 30th, 2005.

Senate

There has been some movement to try to convince Clooney to run for political office in his home state of Kentucky, including talk of a Clooney candidacy for US Senate against incoming Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in 2008. . A facebook group called "George Clooney for Senate" has been started with almost 1,000 members.

Comments on Alzheimers of Charlton Heston, and reaction

Clooney remarked in January 2003, while accepting a special filmmaking achievement award from the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures, "Charlton Heston announced again today that he is suffering from Alzheimer's."

When asked if he went too far with his comment, he said, "I don't care. Charlton Heston is the head of the National Rifle Association. He deserves whatever anyone says about him."

Asked in an October 2003 CNN interview whether it was "in poor taste in retrospect?", Clooney replied: "Yes, oh, yes. It was in poor taste. It was a funny joke.... I have a lot of good friends who -- in fact, I have a very good friend who is dying of Alzheimer's. And it was just a funny joke."

Charlton Heston's response, after noting the "class" of the actor's late aunt, singer-actress Rosemary Clooney: "It just goes to show that sometimes class does skip a generation."

He said further: "I don't know the man - never met him, never even spoken to him, but I feel sorry for George Clooney - one day he may get Alzheimer's disease. I served my country in World War II. I survived that - I guess I can survive some bad words from this fellow."

Bill O'Reilly, on the O'Reilly Factor, sounded off about the press' lack of reporting Clooney's comments. "Just imagine if someone mocked Christopher Reeve's paralysis," O'Reilly added. "The Hollywood press and the elite media would go nuts, but very little has been said about Clooney's insensitivity."

"We've been inundated with e-mails from people across the country expressing outrage," Elizabeth Wilson, of the Alzheimer's Association, indicated. "It was a totally insensitive joke at the expense of a man who had the courage to come forward, reveal that he had been disgnosed with this tragic disease - and by doing so gave hope to others that attention would be focused on it and perhaps hasten a cure. It was particularly hurtful to the four million Americans who suffer from Alzheimer's and the 18 million more who love and care for them."

Medical problems

Clooney suffered from Bell's palsy for a time while he was in high school.

In 2005, during the filming of a scene for the movie Syriana in which Clooney's character is tied to a chair and tortured, the chair was accidentally kicked over and Clooney hit his head on the concrete floor, tearing his dura mater. His doctors dismissed his complaints until he began leaking spinal fluid from his nose; he has since undergone surgery to bolster his spine with plastic bolts. Clooney had to cancel some promotional appearances and, finding it impossible to obtain insurance coverage, had to put up his house for collateral in order to make his second film as a director, Good Night, and Good Luck. He dismissed media reports that he contemplated suicide following surgery, insisting that he was simply talking about the idea of having to live in severe pain for the rest of his life.

After a trip to Darfur, Sudan in 2006, Clooney suffered from symptoms that he thought were malaria. It turned out that it was food poisoning from the flight back home.

Academy Awards

George Clooney is the first person in Academy Award history to be nominated for acting in one movie (Syriana) and for writing and directing another (Good Night, and Good Luck) in the same year.

Other Awards and honors

George Clooney is one of only two people to have been given the title of Sexiest Man Alive twice by People Magazine, first in November 1997 and again in November 2006. The other is Brad Pitt.

Clooney also received the American Cinematheque Award in October 2006.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2008	Burn After Reading		(TBA)
	2007	Michael Clayton	Michael Clayton	To be released fall 2007; Producer Credit
	Ocean's Thirteen	Danny Ocean	Post Production
2006	The Good German	Jake Geismar	Post Production
	2005	Good Night, and Good Luck.	Fred Friendly	Director and Co-Writer Credits
	Syriana	Bob Barnes	Producer; Winner 2006 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
2004	Ocean's Twelve	Danny Ocean	Executive Producer Credit
	2003	Intolerable Cruelty	Miles Massey
	Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over	Devlin
	2002	Confessions of a Dangerous Mind	CIA Agent Jim Byrd	also Director
	Solaris	Chris Kelvin
	Welcome to Collinwood	Jerzy	Executive Producer & Producer Credits
	Starbuck Holger Meins		Documentary
	2001	Ocean's Eleven	Danny Ocean
	Spy Kids	Devlin
	2000	The Perfect Storm	Billy 'Skip' Tyne
	Fail Safe (2000)	Col. Jack Grady
	O Brother, Where Art Thou?	Ulysses Everett McGill
	1999	Three Kings	Major Archie Gates
	The Book That Wrote Itself	Himself
	South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut	Voice of Doctor Gouache
	The Limey	TV Interviewee
	1998	The Thin Red Line	Captain Bosche
	Out of Sight	Jack Foley
	Waiting for Woody	Himself	Comedic Short
	1997	Full-Tilt Boogie	Himself	Documentary
	The Peacemaker	Thomas Devoe
	Batman & Robin	Batman/ Bruce Wayne
	South Park	Sparky the Dog (voice)	Episode: Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride
	1996	From Dusk Till Dawn	Seth Gecko
	One Fine Day	Jack Taylor
	Curdled	Seth Gecko	Uncredited Didn't appear in film, photo shown
1995	Friends (TV series)	Dr. Michael Mitchell	Episode: The One with Two Parts: Part 2
1994 - 1995	ER	Dr Doug Ross	106 episodes
1993	The Harvest	Lip Syncing Transvestite
1993 - 1994	Sisters	Detective James Falconer
1992	Unbecoming Age (1992) Mac
1991	Roseanne	Booker Brooks	11 episodes, 1988-1991
1990	Red Surf	Remar
1988	Return of the Killer Tomatoes	Matt Stevens
	1987	Return to Horror High	Oliver
	Grizzly II: The Predator		Uncredited
	Combat Academy	Maj. Biff Woods
	Murder, She Wrote	Kip Howard	Episode: No Laughing Murder
	The Golden Girls	Detective Bobby Hopkins	Episode: To Catch a Neighbor

Director Credits

Year	Title
	2005	Good Night, and Good Luck
	Unscripted
2002	Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

Preceded by Val Kilmer	Actors to portray Batman 1997-2001	Succeeded by Bruce Thomas
Awards
Preceded by Morgan Freeman for Million Dollar Baby	Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor 2005 for Syriana	Succeeded by TBD

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Source: Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License