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Kirk Douglas
0 FOLLOWERS • 60 CREDITS • DEC 9, 1916 - FEB 5, 2020 • 103
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Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor, producer, director and author. He grew up as Izzy Demsky and legally changed his name to Kirk Douglas before entering the United States Navy during World War II. During his career, Douglas appeared in more than 90 movies and was known for his explosive acting style. He became an international star for his leading role as an unscrupulous boxing hero in Champion (1949), which brought him his first nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. Other early films include Young Man with a Horn (1950), Ace in the Hole (1951), and Detective Story (1951), a film for which he received a Golden Globe nomination as Best Actor in a Drama. He received a second Oscar nomination for his role in The Bad and the Beautiful (1952), and his third nomination for portraying Vincent van Gogh in Lust for Life (1956), which landed him a second Golden Globe nomination. In 1955, Douglas established Bryna Productions, which produced films as varied as Paths of Glory (1957) and Spartacus (1960). He took the lead roles in both films. Douglas has been praised for helping to break the Hollywood blacklist by having Dalton Trumbo write Spartacus with an official on-screen credit. In 1963 Douglas starred in the Broadway play One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, a story that he purchased and later gave to his son Michael Douglas, who turned it into an Oscar-winning film. As an actor and philanthropist, Douglas received an Oscar for Lifetime Achievement, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. As an author, he wrote ten novels and memoirs. He is No. 17 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male screen legends of classic Hollywood cinema. Kirk Douglas died at age 103.
Overview
Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor, producer, director and author. He grew up as Izzy Demsky and legally changed his name to Kirk Douglas before entering the United States Navy during World War II. During his career, Douglas appeared in more than 90 movies and was known for his explosive acting style. He became an international star for his leading role as an unscrupulous boxing hero in Champion (1949), which brought him his first nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. Other early films include Young Man with a Horn (1950), Ace in the Hole (1951), and Detective Story (1951), a film for which he received a Golden Globe nomination as Best Actor in a Drama. He received a second Oscar nomination for his role in The Bad and the Beautiful (1952), and his third nomination for portraying Vincent van Gogh in Lust for Life (1956), which landed him a second Golden Globe nomination. In 1955, Douglas established Bryna Productions, which produced films as varied as Paths of Glory (1957) and Spartacus (1960). He took the lead roles in both films. Douglas has been praised for helping to break the Hollywood blacklist by having Dalton Trumbo write Spartacus with an official on-screen credit. In 1963 Douglas starred in the Broadway play One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, a story that he purchased and later gave to his son Michael Douglas, who turned it into an Oscar-winning film. As an actor and philanthropist, Douglas received an Oscar for Lifetime Achievement, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. As an author, he wrote ten novels and memoirs. He is No. 17 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male screen legends of classic Hollywood cinema. Kirk Douglas died at age 103.
Known For
What's My Line?
Golden Globe Awards
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
The Merv Griffin Show
The Oscars
The Steve Allen Show
Real Time with Bill Maher
The Colgate Comedy Hour
The Simpsons
Wogan
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Touched by an Angel
Tales from the Crypt
The Lucy Show
Parkinson
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Kennedy Center Honors
Tonight Starring Jack Paar
Tony Awards
The George Gobel Show
Clive Anderson All Talk
Is Paris Burning?
If You're Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast
The Strange Love of Martha Ivers
The Man from Snowy River
This Is Your Life
Out of the Past
The Making of A Movie
I Walk Alone
In Harm's Way
Seven Days in May
A Gunfight
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
Spartacus
Once Is Not Enough
Last Train from Gun Hill
Saturday Night Live
Young Man with a Horn
Scalawag
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Draw!
Paths of Glory
Ace in the Hole
The Vikings
The Secret
Detective Story
Posse
The Brotherhood
Arthur Hailey's The Moneychangers
Production Credits
Seven Days in May
The Vikings
Seconds
Posse
The Brotherhood
Spartacus
Paths of Glory
A Gunfight
Scalawag
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