Kirk Douglas

Kirk Douglas (real name Iser Danilovich, subsequently Demsky) (b. 1916) is an American actor, film producer, writer, philanthropist and former Goodwill Ambassador of the US State Department.

There are many interesting facts in the biography of Kirk Douglas, which we will talk about in this article.

So, here is a short biography of Kirk Douglas.

Biography of Kirk Douglas

Kirk Douglas was born on December 9, 1916 in American Amsterdam (New York). He grew up and was raised in a poor Jewish family.

Kirk was the only son of his parents. In addition to him, his father, Gershl Danielovich, and mother, Briana Sanglel, had 6 more daughters.

Childhood and youth

6 years before Kirk was born, his parents emigrated from the Russian city of Chausy (now part of Belarus) to the United States. Upon arrival in America, the couple changed their surnames and names, becoming Harry and Berta Demsky.

When their long-awaited son was born, they named him Yser (Izya). However, due to frequent anti-Semitic attacks, in the future the boy had to change his name to Kirk Douglas.

Since the family lived very poorly, the future actor had to work as a child. He worked as a peddler of newspapers and food, and also took on any other job.

Kirk Douglas began dreaming of an actor's career in elementary school. He liked the theater, as a result of which he often staged children's performances at home.

After graduating from school, the young man became a college student. During that period of his biography, he was fond of wrestling, thanks to which he was able to receive a sports scholarship.

At the age of 23, Kirk entered the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.

An interesting fact is that Douglas did not have the money to pay for his studies at the university, but he managed to make such a good impression on the teachers that he was assigned a scholarship.

In his student years, Kirk had to earn money as a waiter, but he never complained about life.

At the height of World War II (1939-1945), Douglas was drafted into the army. The guy could have avoided service due to poor eyesight, but he did not.

Instead, Kirk improved his eyesight with special eye exercises and went to the front. In 1944, the soldier fell ill with dysentery, as a result of which the doctors decided to dismiss him.

Films

After the war, Douglas took up acting seriously. He played in performances, participated in radio programs, and also starred in commercials.

Soon, Kirk's close acquaintance, Lauren Beckall, introduced him to a producer. Thanks to this, he first appeared on the big screen in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946).

The film was a great success and was even nominated for an Academy Award for Best Screenplay. Douglas' performance was well received by both audiences and film critics.

The actor began to be offered different roles, as a result of which he starred in 1-2 tapes every year.

In 1949, Kirk was entrusted with the main role in the film "Champion". Having shown excellent performance, he was nominated for the first time for an Academy Award in the category for Best Actor.

Becoming a popular artist, Douglas signed a contract with the Warner Bros. Film Company.

After that, Kirk starred in such films as "Letter to Three Wives", "Detective Story", "Juggler", "Bad and Beautiful" and many others. For shooting in the last film, he was again nominated for an Oscar, but this time he did not manage to get the prestigious statuette.

In 1954, Douglas appeared in the science fiction film 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, based on the novel of the same name by Jules Verne. An interesting fact is that at that time this tape became the most expensive in the history of the studio "Walt Disney".

Two years later, Kirk Douglas got the lead role in the biographical drama Lust for Life, where he played Vincent Van Gogh. The actor once again proved his acting skills by being awarded the Golden Globe for Best Actor.

Douglas later formed a film production company, naming it after his mother, Brian Production. Films such as Paths of Glory, Vikings and Spartacus were shot under her auspices. It is worth noting that the main roles went to the same Kirk Douglas.

An interesting fact is that the historical film "Spartacus" was awarded four "Oscars". With a budget of $ 12 million, the picture became Universal's most expensive project in 1960, grossing about $ 23 million at the box office.

The actor calls his favorite role to work in the western "Daredevils are Alone", where he had to transform into a desperate cowboy.

In the late 60s of the last century, Americans were bored with Westerns and war films, and Douglas's attempts to try on a new image in the films "Agreement" and "Brotherhood" proved to be a failure.

Some success brought Kirk the western "Squad", released in screens in 1975, in which he played Marshal Howard, pursuing a gang of criminals.

For this role, Douglas was nominated for a Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival.

One of the last notable works of the Hollywood star is Harry Agensky in the comedy "Diamonds". In 1996, Kirk Douglas suffered a stroke, as a result of which he could not act in films for several years.

Over the years of his creative biography, Douglas starred in 90 films.

Personal life

In his youth, Kirk Douglas had an athletic build and expressive eyes. He was popular with women, including famous actresses Joan Crawford and Marlene Dietrich.

In 1943, while on a short vacation after being wounded, Kirk took his fellow student Diana Dill as his wife. In this marriage, the couple had 2 sons - Michael and Joel.

Douglas later married actress Anne Bidense, who gave birth to two more boys - Peter and Eric. All the artist's children also linked their lives with acting, but Michael Douglas was the most successful.

Kirk Douglas today

At the end of 2016, Kirk Douglas celebrated his centenary, which brought together many famous people.

To make a speech in front of the guests who came, the hero of the day trained in advance with a speech therapist. Steven Spielberg was the guest of honor of the evening.

During his life, Douglas published 10 novels and memoirs. As of today, he is in the TOP 20 Greatest Male Legends of the classic Hollywood movie screen.