Biography
In a career that spanned over half a century, actor-director Clint Eastwood managed to become both a top box office draw and an Oscar-winning director, while managing to shrug off the trappings of Hollywood. Never one to worry about critical or audience reception, Eastwood amassed a staggeringly impressive body of work both in front of and behind the camera, while at the same time starring in two film series that were both legendary and …
Clint Eastwood SlideShow
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Career Milestones
1955 | Film acting debut, "Revenge of the Creature" |
1957 | Appeared on the anthology series "The West Point Story" (CBS 1956-1957; ABC 1957-1958) |
1959 | Starred as Rowdy Yates on popular TV Western "Rawhide" (CBS) |
1964 | Delivered breakthrough screen role as the man with no name in the Sergio Leone directed "A Fistful of Dollars" |
1966 | Re-teamed with Leone for the sequel "For a Few Dollars More" |
1968 | First film with director Don Siegel, "Coogan's Bluff" |
1969 | Made singing debut in the film musical "Paint Your Wagon" |
1970 | Directed first film, a documentary short about the filming of "The Beguiled" (1971) |
1970 | Starred opposite Shirley MacLaine in "Two Mules for Sister Sara," directed by Siegel |
1971 | First played the role of detective Harry Callahan in "Dirty Harry" after Frank Sinatra turned down the part |
1971 | Made feature directorial debut with "Play Misty For Me"; also starred |
1972 | Starred in title role of "Joe Kidd" |
1973 | Directed William Holden and Kay Lenz in "Breezy"; first directing assignment in which he did not also act |
1973 | Reprised Harry Callahan in "Magnum Force" |
1975 | First of six films with off-screen companion Sondra Locke, "The Outlaw Josey Wales" |
1975 | Moved production company, Malapaso Co. to Warner Bros. on a "handshake deal" |
1976 | Third outing as Callahan in "The Enforcer" |
1978 | Teamed with an orangutan in the comedy "Every Which Way But Loose" |
1980 | Sang on the soundtrack to "Bronco Billy"; also starred in and directed |
1982 | Producing debut, "Firefox"; also starred in and directed |
1983 | Last feature with Sondra Locke, "Sudden Impact" |
1984 | Earned critical praise for playing a troubled police detective in "Tightrope"; also produced |
1985 | Made TV directorial debut with an episode of NBC's "Amazing Stories" entitled "Vanessa in the Garden"; story by Steven Spielberg |
1986 | Won a landslide victory as mayor of Carmel, CA; served for two years |
1988 | First credit as an executive producer, "Thelonius Monk: Straight, No Chaser" |
1988 | Helmed "Bird," the biopic of jazz legend Charlie Parker |
1990 | Portrayed a John Huston-like film director in "White Hunter, Black Heart"; also produced and directed |
1992 | Re-established his superstar status and won widespread acclaim with "Unforgiven"; film won the Best Picture and Best Director Oscar |
1993 | Documentary "Clint Eastwood - The Man From Malpaso" aired on Cinemax |
1993 | Had the Clint Eastwood Scholarship Award named after him by Warner Bros. |
1993 | Played an aging Secret Service agent in "In the Line of Fire" |
1993 | Teamed with Kevin Costner in the taut "A Perfect World"; also directed and composed a song for the soundtrack |
1995 | Launched the record label, Malpaso Records; first project was the soundtrack for "The Bridges of Madison County"; also directed and co-starred with Meryl Streep |
1995 | Produced "The Stars Fell on Henrietta" featuring Frances Fisher and Robert Duvall |
1997 | Directed (also produced) the film adaptation of "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil"; co-starred his daughter Alison Eastwood |
1997 | Portrayed a thief who becomes embroiled in a murder with political overtones in "Absolute Power" |
1999 | Directed and starred in "True Crime" about a journalist who becomes convinced a man on Death Row is innocent; also produced |
2000 | Teamed with James Garner, Tommy Lee Jones and Donald Sutherland for the sci-fi adventure "Space Cowboys"; also produced and directed |
2000 | Was subject of documentary "Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows," directed by David Ricker; screened at Venice Film Festival |
2002 | Starred in and directed "Blood Work" |
2003 | Directed Sean Penn and Kevin Bacon in the film adaption of "Mystic River"; received Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations for Best Picture and Best Director; was nominated by the Directors Guild of America for Outstanding Directorial Achievement |
2004 | Produced, directed, starred in and composed the music for "Million Dollar Baby" starring Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman; nominated for Golden Globes for Best Picture and Best Original Score; earned an Oscar nomination for Best Actor |
2006 | Directed "Letters from Iwo Jima," the companion piece to the Iwo Jima drama "Flags of Our Fathers," told from the Japanese viewpoint; received Golden Globe and Oscar nominations for Best Director and an Oscar nomination for Best Picture |
2006 | Helmed the WWII drama "Flags of Our Fathers," which centered around the six men that raised the American flag at the Battle of Iwo Jima; received one of two Golden Globe nominations for Best Director |
2007 | Composed the score for "Grace is Gone" starring John Cusack; earned Golden Globe nominations for Best Original Score and Best Original Song for a Motion Picture |
2008 | Directed the period thriller "Changeling," starring Angelina Jolie; also scored the music; earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Original Score |
2008 | Helmed and starred in drama "Gran Torino"; earned a Golden Globe nomination for performing the title song |
2009 | Directed Morgan Freeman as former South African President Mandela in "Invictus," about the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa; earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Director |
2009 | Executive-produced "Johnny Mercer: The Dream's On Me" for TCM, which earned an Emmy nomination in 2010 for Outstanding Nonfiction Special |
2010 | Directed the film "Hereafter," which told three parallel stories about three people affected by death in different ways |
2011 | Directed and produced biographical drama "J. Edgar," starring Leonard DiCaprio |
2012 | Starred as a retiring baseball scout in drama "Trouble with the Curve"; first acting role in a film he did not direct since 1993's "In the Line of Fire" |
Awards
1970 | Golden Globe Award for Henrietta Award (World Film Favorites) |
1987 | Golden Globe Award for Cecil B. DeMille Award |
1988 | Cannes Film Festival for Jury Prize in Bird |
1988 | Golden Globe Award for Best Director - Motion Picture in Bird |
1992 | Academy Award for Actor In a Leading Role in Unforgiven |
1992 | Academy Award for Best Picture in Unforgiven |
1992 | Academy Award for Directing in Unforgiven |
1992 | BAFTA Award for David Lean Award For Achievement In Direction, The in Unforgiven |
1992 | BAFTA Award for Film in Unforgiven |
1992 | Directors Guild of America Award for Feature Film in Unforgiven |
1992 | Golden Globe Award for Best Director - Motion Picture in Unforgiven |
1992 | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor in Unforgiven |
1992 | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Director in Unforgiven |
1992 | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Director in Unforgiven |
1997 | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay in L.A. Confidential |
2002 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Composer in Mystic River |
2002 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Life Achievement |
2003 | Academy Award for Best Picture in Mystic River |
2003 | Academy Award for Directing in Mystic River |
2003 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Composer in Mystic River |
2003 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Director in Mystic River |
2003 | Critics' Choice Award for Lifetime Achievement Award |
2003 | Directors Guild of America Award for Feature Film in Mystic River |
2003 | Golden Globe Award for Best Director - Motion Picture in Mystic River |
2003 | National Board of Review Award for Best Film in Mystic River |
2003 | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Director |
2004 | Academy Award for Actor In a Leading Role in Million Dollar Baby |
2004 | Academy Award for Best Picture in Million Dollar Baby |
2004 | Academy Award for Directing in Million Dollar Baby |
2004 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Director in Million Dollar Baby |
2004 | Directors Guild of America Award for Feature Film in Million Dollar Baby |
2004 | Golden Globe Award for Best Director - Motion Picture in Million Dollar Baby |
2004 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score - Motion Picture in Million Dollar Baby |
2004 | New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Director in Million Dollar Baby |
2005 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture in Million Dollar Baby |
2006 | Academy Award for Best Picture in Letters From Iwo Jima |
2006 | Academy Award for Directing in Letters From Iwo Jima |
2006 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Director in Letters From Iwo Jima |
2006 | Directors Guild of America Award for DGA Lifetime Achievement |
2006 | Golden Globe Award for Best Director - Motion Picture in Flags of Our Fathers |
2006 | Golden Globe Award for Best Director - Motion Picture in Letters From Iwo Jima |
2006 | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Director in Flags of Our Fathers |
2006 | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Director in Letters From Iwo Jima |
2007 | Berlin International Film Festival for Berlinale Camera |
2007 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Composer in Grace is Gone |
2007 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score - Motion Picture in Grace is Gone |
2007 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song - Motion Picture in Grace is Gone |
2007 | Los Angeles Film Festival for Spirit of Independence Award |
2008 | BAFTA Award for Director in Changeling |
2008 | Cannes Film Festival for Special Prize |
2008 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Actor in Gran Torino |
2008 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Composer in Changeling |
2008 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score - Motion Picture in Changeling |
2008 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song - Motion Picture in Gran Torino |
2008 | National Board of Review Award for Best Actor in Gran Torino |
2008 | Rome International Film Festival for IMAIE Acting Award |
2009 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Director in Invictus |
2009 | Golden Globe Award for Best Director - Motion Picture in Invictus |
2009 | National Board of Review Award for Best Director in Invictus |
2009 | Palm Springs International Film Festival for Career Achievenment Award |
2010 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Nonfiction Special |