Biography for
Sean Connery
Height:
6' 1"
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Mini biography
Sean
Connery found fame and fortune as the suave, sophisticated British agent, James Bond. After six Bond films, Connery yearned to break from the Bond image, and eventually earned an Oscar as veteran Chicago cop, Jimmy
Malone, in THE UNTOUCHABLES. A genuine movie star, his co-stars often complement his professionalism. Connery continues to be at his best when he plays no-nonsense characters.
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Spouse
'Micheline Roquebrune' (1975 - ?)
Diane Cilento (1962 - 1973) (divorced)
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Trade mark
Whatever the part, he always has a Scottish accent
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Trivia
Was offered by Brian DePalma the role of "Robert Elliott" in Dressed to Kill (1980) and was enthusiastic
about it, but declined on account of previously acquired commitments.
(October 1997) Ranked #14 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list.
In 1953, he entered the Mr. Universe contest, finishing third in the tall man's division.
He was voted PEOPLE's "Sexiest Man Alive" in 1989.
Father of Jason Connery
Now resides in Spain. According to his friend, Michael Caine, he is a bit of a hypochondriac.
Sean Connery wears a toupee in all the James Bond movies. He started loosing his hair already at the age of 21.
Privately and in most other movies, he wears none.
He has two small tattoos on his right arm. One says "Scotland forever", the other "Mum and Dad" He got them when he enlisted in the British
Navy at the age of 16.
At the age of 19 he was a nude model for the Edinburgh Art College.
Took dancing lessons for 11 years. His teacher was the Swedish dancer Gert Malmgren.
Thinks that the
James Bond movies have stagnated and that Quentin Tarantino should direct the coming ones.
(1993) Had radiation therapy for an undisclosed throat ailment.
Donated his salary from Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) to charity.
Formerly worked as a coffin polisher
Brother of Neil Connery
Formerly worked as a Milk Delivery Man
Major contributor to the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP)
(1999) Voted 'Sexiest Man of the Century' by People Magazine
Said in an interview that during the filming of Never say never again, he was taking
martial arts lessons and in the process angered the instructor whom in turn broke his wrist, and Connery stayed with the wrist broken for a number of years thinking it was only a minor pain... the instructor was Steven
Seagal.
Recipient of 22nd Annual Kennedy Center Honors for lifetime contribution to arts and culture, presented by President Clinton in Wash DC, Dec. 5, 1999.
Once entered a Mr. Universe contest.
Lives in Marbella, Spain, near a golf course where he plays daily.
Dropped out of school at 13
Received a Knighthood from Britain's Elizabeth, Queen on New Year's Eve, 1999
Noted to be one of
James Bond's favorite actors in the novel "Scorpius." Connery previously played James Bond in seven films.
(1995) Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#7).
Is an ardent supporter of Glasgow Rangers FC and is a frequent visitor to home games at Ibrox Park, Glasgow.
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Personal quotes
"I was called Sean long before I was an actor," [Connery] said in a 1964 interview. 'I had an Irish buddy when I was twelve named Seamus -- 'pronounced Sha-mus'. So they nicknamed us Seamus and Shawn
and it stuck."
"I never disliked Bond, as some have thought. Creating a character like that does take a certain craft. It's simply natural to seek other roles."
"More than anything else, I'd like to be an old man with a good face, like Hitchcock or Picasso."
"I've honestly not been too aware of my age until I went to the doctor for a full check-up. He
said I had the heart of a young man - 'but you're not young, you're 40.'"
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Salary
Playing by Heart (1998) $60,000
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) $250,000
Diamonds Are Forever (1971) $1.2m
Biography from Leonard Maltin's Movie Encyclopedia:
Actor. (b. Aug. 25, 1930, Edinburgh, Scotland, as Thomas Connery.)
"The name's Bond. James Bond." And try as he might, Sean Connery's never going to totally escape his identification as that debonair secret agent with the license to kill. To his credit, though, he's been able
to supplant his Agent 007 image with a wide range of impressive performances since abandoning the Bond role. After a three-year stint in the British navy, Connery toiled in a series of odd jobs-milkman, bricklayer,
lifeguard-before his weight-lifting hobby enabled him to represent Scotland in the 1950 Mr. Universe contest. He eventually approached acting as a lark, an understandable decision for one of workingclass origins, and
debuted on-screen in Lilacs in the Spring (1954).
American audiences first noticed Connery as a heavy in Tarzan's Greatest Adventure and then as a personable romantic lead in Darby O'Gill and the Little People
(both 1959). He was lost in the huge all-star cast of the WW2 epic The Longest Day (1962), but stardom was just around the corner. His polished demeanor and ultra-masculine appeal was noticed by producer Harry Saltzman,
who cast him as James Bond in the first big-screen 007 adventure, Dr. No (1962). (The character had appeared on U.S. TV in 1954, played by Barry Nelson in an adaptation of Casino Royale.)
The first Bond film was
so popular that it spawned its own genre, and Connery reprised the role in From Russia, With Love (1963), Goldfinger (1964), Thunderball (1965), You Only Live Twice (1967), and Diamonds Are Forever (1971), before
wearying of the role-and its straitjacketing of his career. He'd traded on his newfound stardom to win leading roles in Hitchcock's Marnie (1964), A Fine Madness (1966), Shalako (1968), The Molly Maguires (1970), and
The Anderson Tapes (1972)-but none of them were blockbuster hits, and Connery publicly despaired of ever shaking the 007 image. It took a while, but slick performances in such diverse vehicles as Zardoz, Murder on the
Orient Express (both 1974), The Man Who Would Be King, The Wind and the Lion (both 1975), Robin and Marian (1976), Cuba (1979), and Outland (1981) did the trick
.
Then, amazingly, Connery returned to his
star-making role in 1983's prophetically titled Never Say Never Again in a good-humored performance as a more "mature" Bond. Connery's popularity actually increased as his years advanced; balding,
gray-bearded, and considerably thicker around the middle, he's still considered one of the sexiest men alive. He's played a medieval detective in The Name of the Rose (1986), an alien gladiator in two Highlander films
(also 1986, and 1991), a tough Irish cop in The Untouchables (1987, for which he won a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award), a stiff-necked soldier in The Presidio (1988), a good-natured thief in Family Business a dotty
archaeologist in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (both 1989), a Russian sub commander in The Hunt for Red October a boozy publisher in The Russia House (both 1990), King Richard the Lion Hearted in Robin Hood: Prince
of Thieves (1991), an iconoclastic scientist in Medicine Man (1992), and an expert in Japanese relations in Rising Sun (1993). He also executive produced the last two films. As Connery has reached seniorcitizenship, his
international popularity shows no signs of abating, as witness his roles in Just Cause (1995) and First Knight (also 1995, as King Arthur). |
