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George Clooney at the Screen Actor's Guild Awards, at the Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, Sunday, January, 29,2012. Photo by Kevin Mazur. |
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George Clooney with Jerry Weintraub, Brad Pitt and Matt Damon |
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Forecourt Ceremony held on Tuesday, June 5, 2007 |
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Born: May 6, 1961, in Lexington, Kentucky
Age at the time of the ceremony: 46 |
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George Clooney is a major movie star. Popular with both men and women, Clooney went from garage horror movies to stunning success in a wide range of projects, many of which he is co-producer or director or both.
Clooney was born in comfortable circumstances in Lexington Kentucky, where his mother was a city councilwoman; his father was a television host and brother of singer Rosemary Clooney. During elementary school days, the family moved about some, eventually settling in Augusta Kentucky, where Clooney attended Augusta High School. He played basketball and was good enough to consider life as a professional baseball player, but didn't get far with that one.
When a movie company was filming in Augusta, 17-year-old George got a role as "Young Man Carrying a Barrel" in Centennial, aired over NBC in October 1978. Clooney attended Northern Kentucky University and the University of Cincinnati, working odd jobs to do so. He eventually dropped out.
He was cast as a supporting player in a medical sitcom starring Elliott Gould, improbably called E/R, aired over CBS in September 1984, and as George Burnett in 17 episodes of The Facts of Life, aired over NBC in September 1985. But the big screen kept calling with roles such as Oliver in Return to Horror High (released in February 1987) with Lori Lethin, and Matt in Return of the Killer Tomatoes (released in April 1988) with Anthony Stake.
While attending the Beverly Hills Playhouse acting school, Clooney
got to be second lead in the cop show Bodies of Evidence, aired in syndication for 16 episodes in June 1992, and did 19 episodes of Sisters with Swoosie Kurtz, aired over NBC in September 1994.
Clooney's Big Break came when he was cast as Dr. Doug Ross for
109 episodes of ER, aired over NBC from September 1994 to February 1999. Clooney would continue to do episodes now and again; he made his final appearance on the show in March 2009.
Meanwhile, Clooney heard the call of the Big Screen once more. For director Robert Rodriguez, Clooney co-starred with Harvey Keitel in From Dusk Till Dawn (released in January 1996). In a more romantic mood, he co-starred with top-billed Michelle Pfeiffer in the rom-com One Fine Day (released in December 1996).
The call of the Big Screen led Clooney to don the Batsuit in
Batman & Robin (which played the Chinese in June 1997); Clooney described the film as "a waste of money." You mean making it or paying to see it? Clooney righted the ship by starring for director Steven Soderbergh
in Out of Sight (released in June 1998). These two would have many adventures together; Clooney, Soderbergh and writing partner Grant Heslov would open a production company together in 2001.
For director Terrence Malik, Clooney did a cameo at the end of The Thin Red Line (released in January 1999) with Sean Penn, then played the lead chain-gang convict in his first film with the Cohen Brothers, O Brother, Where Art Thou? (released in February 2001) with John Turturro. He landed in blockbuster territory with The Perfect Storm (which played the Chinese in June 2000) with Mark Wahlberg.
Speaking of Mark Wahlberg, Clooney was an
executive producer for Rock Star (which played the Chinese in September 2001) with Mark Wahlberg. Ocean's Eleven (released in December 2001) with Brad Pitt, became a world-wide smash hit caper film, folllowed by two more.
Clooney is a busy guy. He was an executive producer on Insomnia (released in May 2002) with Al Pacino, starred in the sci-fi film Solaris (released in November 2002) with Natascha McElhone, then first-time directed and played television producer Chuck Barris as a bungling CIA
agent in Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (released in January 2003) with Drew Barrymore.
He was executive producer of Far from Heaven (released in January 2003) with Julianna Moore, he executive produced 10 episodes of K Street, aired over HBO in September 2003, with Mary McCormack, appeared in another Cohen Brothers film Intolerable Cruelty (released in October 2003) with Catherine Zeta-Jones, released the next Ocean's movie, Ocean's Twelve (which played the Chinese in December 2004) with Brad Pitt, and executive produced on 10 episodes (directing five) of Unscripted, aired over HBO in January 2005.
Clooney wowed everyone with his starring and directing Good Night, and Good Luck (released in November 2005) with David Straithern giving an outstanding performance as Edward R. Murrow. He was an executive producer on Rumor Has It. . . (which played the Chinese in December 2005) with Kevin Costner, Jennifer Aniston and Shirley MacLaine.
He starred and was executive producer on Syriana (released in December 2005) with Matt Damon, with Clooney winning an Oscar for supporting actor. Clooney and the gang of producer Weintraub, and co-stars Pitt and Damon were asked down to the Chinese to make their imprints for the Forecourt just before the US Premiere of Ocean's Thirteen on Tuesday, June 5, 2007. (The film played the Chinese for three weeks in June 2007).
Clooney then made what might be considered his best role as the title character and was executive producer on Michael Clayton (released in October, 2007) with Tilda Swinton. After this heavy drama, Clooney went all bonkers by starring and directing the comedy Leatherheads (which played the Chinese in April 2008) with Renée Zellweger.
Burn After Reading (released in September 2008) with Frances McDormand, was another Cohen Bros. flick; in the meantime, Clooney was an executive producer on The Informant! (released in September 2009) with Matt Damon. He starred and produced The Men Who Stare at Goats (released in November 2009), then starred in and produced The American (released in September 2010).
He was executive producer for 19 episodes of Memphis Beat, aired over TNT in June 2011, with Jason Lee, then played a governor running for president as well as producing and directing The Ides of March (released in October 2011) with Ryan Gosling. He starred in The Descendants (released in December 2011) with Shailene Woodley.
The following year found him winning an Oscar for Best Picture by being a producer on
Argo (released in October 2012) with Ben Affleck. He played just about the only supporting actor for Sandra Bullock in Gravity (which played the Chinese in October 2013). He was a producer on August: Osage County (which was shown at the Chinese during AFI Fest in November, 2013), with Meryl Streep, and starred, produced and directed The Monuments Men (released in February 2014) with Matt Damon.
In retrospect,
Tomorrowland (released in May 2015) with Britt Robertson, was a misfire, but as a producer on Our Brand Is Crisis (released in October 2015) with Sandra Bullock, Clooney fared better. For the Cohens, he starred in Hail, Caesar! (released in February 2016) with Josh Brolin. He was a producer on the crime thriller Criminal (released in April 2016) with Kevin Costner and Ryan Reynolds.
Clooney starred and was producer for director Jodie Foster in another film about television, Money Monster (released in May 2016) with Julia Roberts. He was producer and director of Suburbicon (released in October 2017) with Matt Damon. Clooney has executive produced 10 episodes of On Becoming a God in Central Florida with Kirsten Dunst, aired over YouTube Red in 2019. He directed two episodes and played Scheisskopf in an anambitious remake of Catch-22, aired over Hulu in May 2019. Clooney Starrred with Felicity Jones and directed the pensive sci-fi movie The Midnight Sky, streaming over Netflix in December 2020. He co-starred with Julia Roberts in the comedy Ticket to Paradise (released in October 2022).
Reuniting with Brad Pitt, Clooney stared in Wolfs (which played the Chinese in September 2024). |
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Grauman's Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, California. George Clooney Forecourt block. Executed by Unknown, Tuesday, June 5, 2007. 36 x 36 inches. |
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Grauman's Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, California. Jerry Weintraub, George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Matt Damon Forecourt ceremony, Tuesday, June 5, 2007. George Clooney takes a break from signing his name in the wet cement. |
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