Biography of Michael Keaton
Michael Keaton is an acclaimed American actor best known for his roles in the early Tim Burton films Beetlejuice, Batman and Batman Returns. These pictures brought him great success, but later in the filmography of our today’s hero there were many other bright films. In this article, we will try to follow how the career of this outstanding actor developed, and also talk about what stage she is at today.
Childhood and family of Michael Keaton
Michael John Douglas (namely, this is the real name of the actor) was born on September 5, 1951 in the small town of Coraopolis in central Pennsylvania. His mother, Leona Elizabeth, looked after the house and family, and his father, George Douglas, worked as a civil engineer. In the biography of this family, several different national lines intertwined at once. So, in particular, in the veins of our today’s hero, in addition to American, Irish and Scottish blood also flows.
Michael Keaton – the legendary Batman
Perhaps it was this explosive mixture that predetermined the entire life path of the famous Hollywood actor. Despite a strict Catholic upbringing, Michael Keaton has always been a windy teenager. Having somehow finished school, he moved to Ohio, where he studied rhetoric at the University of Kent for two years. However, he never received a diploma of higher education.
After moving to Pittsburgh, he briefly worked as a model, security guard, and bartender. And after that, he suddenly suddenly thought about the profession of an actor. For some time he tried to realize himself as a stand-up comedian, theater actor and even a cameraman. But it always turned out somehow not very good. Realizing the need for change, at the age of twenty-four, our today’s hero moved to Los Angeles, where he enrolled in theater courses and began to walk around the clock for various auditions and castings.
It is noteworthy that it was in the City of Angels that our today’s hero began to use the pseudonym “Michael Keaton” for the first time. Such a decision came to the young actor quite simply. In order to avoid confusion and analogies with Michael Douglas, the talented guy “borrowed” the surname from his favorite actress – Diane Keaton. So, in fact, the name appeared, under which the whole world knows Michael today.
At first, the actor starred in commercials, played small roles in television shows, and also played in episodes of American TV shows. It was only at the age of thirty-one that Michael Keaton finally managed to find his first bright role. Such was the role in the comedy film “Night Shift”. Despite the small budget, the success of the picture at the American box office was quite good. Michael gained first popularity and subsequently starred exclusively in comedy films for several years.
This genre turned out to be truly native to our today’s hero. In just five years, he played roles in eight successful projects at once. Among the most popular works of the actor are the films “Mr. Mom”, “Johnny Danger”, “Bluff”, “Enthusiast”, “Beetlejuice”. The last of these tapes has become especially popular. It was after the release of the fantastic comedy of the young Tim Burton that Michael Keaton became a national star in the United States.
Star Trek actor Michael Keaton, filmography
Filming in the film “Beetlejuice” brought the actor the first nomination for the “Saturn” award, and with it new interesting offers. One of these was the role of the notorious Bruce Wayne in Tim Burton’s new film, Batman. Reincarnated as the legendary superhero, Michael Keaton instantly became the idol of millions of teenagers in all corners of the Earth. It is noteworthy that after this film, the actor began to act more often in action films, leaving behind the once beloved comedy genre.
Some time later, Michael Keaton also began to appear frequently in love melodramas. So, in the filmography of the actor, the tapes “Batman Returns”, “Jackie Brown”, “Desperate Measures”, “Silence”, “My Life” and some other films appeared.
During this period, many critics began to note the rapid professional growth of Michael Keaton. Deep and heartfelt films “The Price of Victory”, “Live from Baghdad”, “White Noise” appeared in his career. At this moment, our today’s hero managed to fall in love with not only ordinary viewers, but also recognized film critics.
In the 2000s, as a full-fledged Hollywood star, Michael Keaton starred in a variety of films. His career included comedies, action films, dramatic films and love melodramas. It is noteworthy that initially our today’s hero was also supposed to play Dr. Jack Shepard in the now popular TV series Lost. However, in the original version of the script, this character was supposed to die soon enough, and therefore Michael rejected the proposal of the producers to shoot in the TV project.
Michael Keaton at present
In the second half of the 2000s, our today’s hero showed himself in several unusual roles. First, he presented to the public his directorial project – the film “Jolly Gentleman”, and then took part in the dubbing of the popular cartoons “Cars” and “Toy Story”. For some time, new bright acting work did not appear in his filmography. However, in 2013, Michael Keaton nevertheless managed to triumphantly return to the big screens, playing the role of a sadistic criminal, which was not typical for him, in the film Penthouse North. The release of this tape took place in 2013, and very soon news about the new projects of the famous actor appeared on the Internet.
One of the last roles of Michael Keaton was Robocop
So, in particular, in 2014, three bright films with the participation of Michael Keaton should appear on the screens of the whole world at once. The most anticipated among them, of course, are the tapes “Robocop” and “Need for Speed”. In each of the new films, the actor must play the leading roles.
Personal life of Michael Keaton
In 1982, our today’s hero was married to actress Caroline McWilliams. This marriage lasted eight years, during which the common son of celebrities, Sean, was born.
Subsequently, for five years, Michael Keaton met with another actress – the star of the series “Friends” Courteney Cox. The relationship with her lasted five years.
Today, the actor keeps the details of his personal life a secret.
