Brad Pitt: Encyclopedia - Brad Pitt

Brad Pitt

William Bradley "Brad" Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American film actor.

He was born in Shawnee, Oklahoma to strict, Southern Baptist parents of mainly English and Irish descent and was raised in Springfield, Missouri. In high school, Pitt was involved in sports, debating, student government, and school musicals. He attended the University of Missouri School of Journalism where he was a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity. He was two credits shy of graduating with a journalism degree before trying his luck in Hollywood.

Brad Pitt - Career

Before he became successful at acting, Pitt supported himself as a chauffeur, by working as a furniture mover, and as a costumed mascot for the restaurant chain El Pollo Loco. In the late 1980s, Pitt started landing acting gigs on primetime series such as Dallas, thirtysomething, 21 Jump Street, Freddy's Nightmares, Another World, Growing Pains, and Head of the Class. In 1988, he finally landed his first starring role in The Dark Side of the Sun. However, as the film was being edited, civil war tore apart Yugoslavia, where location shooting was taking place. Most of the footage remained lost until 1998, when the film was finally released.

In 1991, Pitt finally got his big break in one of that year's biggest hits: Thelma & Louise as J.D., Thelma (Geena Davis)'s one-night stand who gives her tips on robbing 7-11 stores. He followed up that success with A River Runs Through It and Seven. He was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the 1995 film Twelve Monkeys.

In 1995, he was chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 25 sexiest stars in film history. Pitt has also twice been named the Sexiest Man Alive by People magazine, the only person to ever receive this honor more than once. He is consistently rated among the world's sexiest men in womens' polls worldwide.

Brad Pitt - Personal life

Pitt was involved in a long-term relationship with actress Gwyneth Paltrow. They became engaged in December 1996, but the couple split in June 1997. Extensive tabloid coverage surrounded the relationship. Nude photographs of the couple, taken by paparazzi without permission, controversially appeared in magazines.

Also in 1997, the film Seven Years in Tibet was released. This film, which chronicled China's invasion of Tibet, was hailed by Tibetan nationalists and resulted in Brad Pitt, along with his co-star David Thewlis, being banned from entering China for life.

Pitt married actress Jennifer Aniston on July 29, 2000. Their separation was announced on January 7, 2005, and Aniston filed for a divorce on March 25 the same year. There has been speculation that the marriage ended due to Aniston's refusal to have children with Pitt, which he greatly desired. Aniston has denied this. Further speculation surrounded Pitt's relationship with his then co-star Angelina Jolie, while filming Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Both Pitt and Jolie denied such relationship during his marriage to Aniston.

After separation from Aniston, Pitt began dating actress Angelina Jolie. Pitt accompanied Jolie to Ethiopia in July 2005 to pick up her adopted daughter Zahara from an orphanage in that country. It was announced on December 2, 2005, that Pitt is seeking to legally adopt Angelina Jolie's two children, Maddox and Zahara. [1]

After returning from Africa, Pitt was diagnosed with a mild case of viral meningitis. He checked himself into Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles but was released a few days later. Though reluctant to embrace celebrity status, the philanthropic Pitt has been an active supporter of research into diseases such as AIDS. Unlike many Hollywood celebrities, he has remained largely bipartisan, working with members of both parties to help fight poverty, disease, and improve global environmental conditions. Along with U2 frontman Bono and TV evangelist Pat Robertson, Pitt has used his celebrity to campaign for assistance to Africa, and he is the marquee spokesman for the ONE Campaign. Pitt has also traveled overseas to visit and entertain U.S. and allied troops.

Brad Pitt - Trivia

• Like many A-list stars, Pitt does not normally perform in American television commercials, instead opting to do commercials that are seen in Asia only, most notably for Edwin Jeans, the Toyota Altis, and Japanese canned coffee, ROOTS. A notable exception to this is a Heineken commercial which aired during the 2005 Super Bowl. It was directed by David Fincher, who directed Pitt in the feature films Seven and Fight Club.
• Pitt was previously engaged to Gwyneth Paltrow (she appeared with him in Se7en) and dated actresses Juliette Lewis, Robin Givens, Alice Wilkinson, and Geena Davis. Paltrow confessed in an interview that she regretted breaking up with him.
• In an odd and mysterious event, he tore his Achilles tendon during the production of Troy, in which he plays, coincidentally, Achilles.
• He sued Damiani International, the company which made the wedding ring he gave Jennifer Aniston, for selling replica "Brad and Jennifer" rings. According to Pitt, the ring was his design and was to be exclusive. Under the settlement reached in January 2002, Pitt will design jewelry for Damiani that Aniston will model in ads, and the company will stop selling the copies.
• While doing promotional work for Mr and Mrs Smith in June 2005, he told Entertainment Tonight's Jann Carl that his favourite food is steak.
• He was taught to ride a horse by John Scott, a rancher/stunt co-ordinator from Alberta who also taught numerous other Hollywood stars the same skill.
• Together with Paramount Pictures head Brad Grey and Jennifer Aniston, Pitt is the co-founder of the production company Plan B. Aniston is no longer a partner in the company, although she is still attached to many projects that were set up before her divorce. The company produced the blockbuster Charlie and the Chocolate Factory starring Johnny Depp.
• He has been awarded a Blue Peter badge.
• He does not like showing his bare feet in public.
• Despite being one of the most popular actors, he hasn't achieved major box office success like Tom Cruise or Arnold Schwarzenegger. Pitt's biggest hit was Troy, which was considered a flop by many because of its budget. The 2005 film Mr. and Mrs. Smith defied all expectations and took in over $300 million at the international box office—still less than Cruise's War of the Worlds. Many believe that the success of the Smith movie was due to the curiosity of the relationship between Brad and co-star Angelina Jolie. Some critics believed that it may have been a publicity stunt, to further promote the movie internationally and increase DVD sales.
• He owns a house in the picturesque town of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California.
• He is known to be a soccer fan and supports Manchester United.
• Currently, Brad Pitt is in the process of adopting Angelina Jolie's 2 children. Also, a recent rumor claims Angelina is pregnant with Brad's baby.

Brad Pitt - Filmography

• No Man's Land (1987)
• Less Than Zero (1987)
• Happy Together (1989)
• Cutting Class (1989)
• Across the Tracks (1991)
• Thelma & Louise (1991)
• Johnny Suede (1991)
• Contact (1992) (short subject)
• Cool World (1992)
• A River Runs Through It (1992)
• Kalifornia (1993)
• True Romance (1993)
• The Favor (1994)
• Interview with the Vampire (1994)
• Legends of the Fall (1994)
• Se7en (1995)
• Twelve Monkeys (1995)
• Sleepers (1996)
• The Devil's Own (1997)
• Seven Years in Tibet (1997)
• The Dark Side of the Sun (1997; filmed in 1988)
• Meet Joe Black (1998)
• Being John Malkovich (1999) (cameo)
• Fight Club (1999)
• Snatch (2000)
• The Mexican (2001)
• Spy Game (2001)
• Ocean's Eleven (2001)
• Full Frontal (2002) (cameo)
• Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002) (cameo)
• Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (2003) (voice)
• Abby Singer (2003) (cameo)
• Troy (2004)
• Ocean's Twelve (2004)
• Special Thanks to Roy London (2005) (documentary)
• Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)
• The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (post-production) (2006)
• Chad Schmidt (announced) (2006)
• Babel (filming) (2006)
• Benjamin Button (announced) (2007)

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Brad Pitt", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki