DENZEL WASHINGTON

Denzel Washington
Born: December 28, 1954
Place: Mt. Vernon, NY

When Denzel was fourteen his parents’ marriage took a turn for the worst and he and his older sister were sent away to boarding school so that they would not be exposed to their parent’s eventual divorce.

Denzel earned a B.A. in Drama and Journalism from Fordham University in 1977. After a period of bouncing from major to major and briefly dropping out of school for a semester, Washington worked as a counselor at an overnight summer camp called Camp Sloan YMCA in Lakeville CT.

After participating in a staff talent show for the campers, a colleague suggested he try acting. Returning to Fordham that fall with a renewed purpose and focus, he enrolled at the Lincoln Center campus to study acting. Upon graduation, he was given a scholarship to attend graduate school at the prestigious American Conservatory Theatre where he stayed for one year before deciding to return to New York to begin a professional acting career.

Washington made his professional acting debut in the 1977 made-for-televispon movie Wilma. He made his film debut in the 1981 film Carbon Copy. His big break came when he starred in the popular television hospital drama, St. Elsewhere from 1982 to 1988. He was one of a few actors to appear on the series for its entire six-year run.

In 1989, Washington won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for playing a defiant, self-possessed ex-slave in the film Glory. Washington played one of his most critically acclaimed roles in 1192’s Malcolm X, directed by Spike Lee. His performance as the Black Nationalist leader earned him an Oscar nomination. Both the influential film critic Roger Ebert and the highly acclaimed film director Martin Scorsese called the movie one of the ten best films made during the 1990s.

Malcolm X transformed Washington's career, turning him, practically overnight, into one of Hollywood’s most respected actors.

In 2000, Washington appeared in the crowd-pleasing Disney film, Remember the Titans, which grossed over $100 million at the United States box office. He was nominated and won an Oscar for Best Actor for his next film, the 2001 cop thriller, Training Day, as Det. Alonzo Harris, a rogue LAPD cop with questionable law-enforcement tactics. The role was a much-acclaimed change-of-pace for the actor, who was known for playing many heroic leads. Washington was the second African-American performer ever to win an Academy Award in the category of Best Actor (for Training Day), the first being Sidney Poitier, who happened to receive an Honorary Academy Award the same night that Washington won for Best Actor. Washington holds the record for most Oscar nominations by an actor of African descent; so far he has earned five.

In 1983, Washington married actress Pauletta Pearson (now Pauletta Washington), whom he met on the set of his first screen role, Wilma. The couple have four children: John), who signed a footbal contract with the St. Louis Rams in May 2006 after playing college football at Morehouse; Katia, who is attending Yale University, and twins Olivia and Malcolm (named in honor of Malcolm X). In 1995, the couple renewed their wedding vows in South Africa with Archbishop Desmond Tutu officiating.

Washington and his family visited soldiers at the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, TX. He later made a sizable donation to the Fisher Houses, small hotels that provide rooms for soldiers' families while the soldiers are hospitalized.

Washington will next star as New York subway security chief Zach "Z" Garber in The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3, a remake of the 70's thriller, The Taking of Pelham One, Two Three, opposite John Travolta and directed by Tony Scott, opening in July 2009.