Before Two and a Half Men and Tiger Blood: A Charlie Sheen Timeline
Charlie Sheen is back on TV just a little over a year after getting the boot from his longtime sitcom home, Two and a Half Men. And while many (read: anyone not living under a rock) recall the long, strange trip Sheen took from Men to his new FX sitcom Anger Management (premiering Thursday at 9/8c), we decided to retrace the career highs and lows that came long before his tiger blood-infused media rampage, his standup comedy tour, and his recent resurgence:
As Anger Management launches, Charlie Sheen makes peace with Two and a Half Men
Badlands (October 1973): Look, Dad, I can act! Sheen made an un-credited appearance as "boy under lamppost" in this film starring his father, Martin Sheen.
Red Dawn (August 1984): Sheen's first big break came playing one of a group of high schools resisting occupation by the Soviets in an alternate 1980s.
Ferries Bueller's Day Off (June 1986): Sheen made a memorable cameo as a burnt-out criminal suspicious young man Jeannie (Jennifer Grey) meets at the local police station. He may have criticized her heavy eye make-up, but he also offered her some rather insightful advice. Who knew?
Charlie Sheen: Anger Management will be my acting swan song
Platoon/ Wall Street (December 1986/1987): Greed was very good for Oliver Stone's momentary-it-boy, who showed off his dramatic chops first as a Vietnam soldier in the Oscar winner for Best Picture and then in the famed yuppie classic.
Major League (April 1989): This baseball satire marked Sheen's return to comedy. (Not to be confused with Sheen's Top Gun spoof, Hot Shots!, or his role in the horror film send-up, Scary Movie 3).
Charlie's Got a Gun (January 1990): The first sign of trouble. Sheen accidentally shot his then-fiancée Kelly Preston in the arm and their relationship ended soon after. Sheen completed drug rehab later that year.
Frequent Flier (July 1995): Sheen testified in the tax evasion trial of Heidi Fleiss, admitting he spent almost $53,000 on her prostitutes.
Charlie Sheen to play the President in Machete sequel
Friends (May 1996): Sheen guest-starred on Season 2 as Phoebe's ex who returns from the Navy. (Too bad they both got chicken pox!) For a bad boy, Sheen sure cleaned up real nice in that uniform.
Papa Don't Preach (May 1998): Sheen was hospitalized for overdosing on cocaine and his own father turned him into the police for violating his probation. Who do you think you are, Martin, the President of the United States?
Being John Malkovich (October 1999): Sheen played himself in this cult classic. One of his lines: "Hot lesbian witches. Think about it. It's f---ing genius." Need we say more?
Spin City (September 2000): He replaced Michael J. Fox on the political comedy for two seasons, and won the Golden Globe for best TV actor in a comedy. Fun fact: Sheen's ex-wife, Denise Richards went on to date Richie Sambora, the future ex-husband of Sheen's on-screen love interest, Heather Locklear. It is a small world.
VIDEO: Charlie Sheen's Anger Management goes off the rails
Two and a Half Men (September 2003): Sheen starred as a bachelor bad boy — a role that played up his own reputation — in the Chuck Lorre sitcom, which went onto become the top-rated comedy and earned Sheen three Emmy nominations.
Tis the Season? (December 2009): Sheen was arrested on Christmas Day for an alleged altercation with his third wife, Brooke Mueller. He took time off from Men to check into rehab and was welcomed back in May with a raise to $1.8 million an episode, making him highest-paid actor on television for his final season.
The Beginning of the End (October 2010): Sheen was reportedly removed from The Plaza Hotel in New York City after causing a disturbance, and allegedly doing $7,000 worth of damage to the room. Richards, who was also staying at the hotel, separately from Sheen, accompanied him to the hospital. His rep said Sheen had an "allergic reaction" to medicine.
Laughter Is the Best Medicine (January 2011): Sheen was rushed to hospital complaining of severe abdominal pains, which his friend said was caused by Sheen "laughing too hard at the TV." He began at-home rehab and Men was put on hiatus.
Biting the Hand (February 2011): Though the show was still on hiatus, Sheen, who claimed he was ready to return to work, blasted Lorre in several interviews and started throwing around terms like "Adonis DNA" and "tiger blood." He was officially fired from the show in March.
Winning, Or Did He? (March 2011): Sheen broke the Guinness World Record for fastest time to reach one million Twitter followers and then broke a Ticketmaster record for selling out his "My Violent Torpedo of Truth/Defeat is Not An Option" tour in 18 minutes. Unfortunately, the torpedo landed with a thud. The tour received bad reviews and dozens of tickets were soon found on third-party online ticketsellers.
The Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen (September 2011): 6.4 million people tuned into the roast, which aired the same night as the launch of Two and a Half Men 2.0. "How much blow can Charlie Sheen do? Enough to kill two and a half men," Jon Lovitz joked.
Dude, Where's My Car? (March 2012): Sheen does his best to make house arrest look sexy when he appears in a Fiat commercial. Hey, it's still a major upgrade from J. Lo's fake Brooklyn ad.
Anger Management (June 2012): Sheen returns to TV, playing an ex-baseball player-turned-therapist with anger management problems. Hmm, why does this sound so familiar?
Anger Management premieres Thursday at 9/8c on FX.
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