The American actor, producer and director is considered one of the most versatile character actors in contemporary American cinema. He celebrated his breakthrough as “Don Vito Corleone” in the Mario Puzo novel adaptation “The Godfather II.” (1974), directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Robert De Niro was twice awarded the “Oscar” for his diverse acting skills. With his work, the perfectionist had an influence on international film like hardly any other mime; he became famous for his ambition to make his depictions particularly authentic. In 2001 he founded the “Tribeca Film Festival” in New York. In 2011, De Niro chaired the competition jury at the 64th Cannes Film Festival. His most popular productions include “Taxi Driver” (1976), “Raging Bull” (1980), “Once Upon a Time in America” (1984), “Goodfellas” (1990), “Cape Fear” (1991) and “Killing Season” (2013)…
Robert De Niro was born on August 17, 1943 in New York City, Little Italy, the son of a painter.
Robert De Niro’s parents divorced when he was two years old. His mother took over his upbringing. De Niro grew up in poor circumstances. He was considered a wild and impetuous child. A circumstance from which the school performance in particular had to suffer. He discovered his love of acting at school while rehearsing for a theater performance. Contrary to his nature, he obsessively learned his lines as Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz. The audience was enthusiastic about the acting achievements of the then ten-year-old. At 15 he dropped out of school and attended seminars on music and art. He took private acting lessons and attended workshops on drama and rhetoric. Prepared in this way, he was finally accepted at the Stella Adler Conservatory, a drama school in New York, at the age of 17 and after a long period of application. De Niro became a theater actor with an emphasis on classical roles. After a short time he was able to make a name for himself among promising young actors.
Only a little later De Niro was also discovered for the film. At first he played small supporting roles. But that was to change quickly when, in 1973, he was awarded Best Supporting Actor by the New York Film Critics Association for his work in The Last Game and The Witch’s Cauldron. In 1974 he had his international breakthrough as “Don Vito Corleone” in the Mario Puzo novel adaptation “The Godfather II”. He shared this role with Marlon Brando, who played “Vito Corleone” in old age in the first part of Francis Ford Coppola’s trilogy. Al Pacino starred as “Michael Corleone”. De Niro won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of the boy Don Vito. In his tireless work, he often stood in front of the camera up to three times a year for different feature film productions. His preparation for his roles documented his perfectionism. For his leading role in “Taxi Driver” in 1975 with Jodie Foster, he himself conducted milieu studies as a taxi driver, for his part in “New York, New York”, also directed by Martin Scorsese, he took intensive saxophone lessons. His identification with the film to the point of self-abandonment culminated in the Oscar-winning role of boxer Jake La Motta in Raging Bull, for which De Niro gained 50 pounds in just a few months.
In 1976 he married actress and singer Diahnne Abbott in New York. In 1978 he starred in the Vietnam War drama “Through Hell” with Meryl Streep. With more than a dozen other first-class feature films such as “Once Upon a Time in America”, “The Untouchables” or “Angel Heart”, De Niro asserted himself at the top of international character actors. In 1988, together with Jane Rosenthal, he founded the film and production company “Tribeca”, which is now one of the leading companies of its kind in the USA for sophisticated film adaptations. With “Tribeca” came own productions such as the title “In the Streets of the Bronx”, which De Niro also directed, “Good Fellas” or “Marvin’s Daughters” with Leonardo DiCaprio. After divorcing his first wife, he married Grace Hightower in 1997, with whom he lives in Los Angeles. After the first marriage remained childless, a son was born in 1998. As a tribute to his hometown, he created the “Tribeca Film Festival” after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, which took place for the first time in May 2002.
Other work included the relationship comedy My Bride, Her Father and I and the action thriller 15 Minutes of Fame. In 2002, the two comedies “Showtime”, in which Robert De Niro mimed the humorless detective “Mitch Preston”, and “About A Boy oder: Der Tag der Toten Ente”, in which he worked as a producer, were released in German cinemas. In the same year he played the Mafioso “Paul Vitti” in the serial comedy “Reinenervensache”. He also received the American Film Institute’s Life Achievement Award in 2002. With “The Good Shepherd” from 2007, De Niro’s second directorial work shed light on the beginnings of the US secret service CIA during the Cold War. He signed Matt Damon and Angelina Jolie to star. In 2009, he co-produced Public Enemies, which starred Johnny Depp as John Dillinger. In 2011, De Niro chaired the 64th Cannes Film Festival competition jury that awarded the Palme d’Or to Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life. In 2014 he starred in Motel Room 13 (The Bag Man).
Table of Contents
Filmography
1964 – “The Wedding Party”.
1968 – “Greetings”.
1969 – “Hi Mom!”.
1969 – “Who calls the killers”.
1969 – “Bloody Mama”.
1969 – “Gateway to Hell”.
1971 – “Jennifer On My Mind”.
1971 – “Where gangsters bang around the corner”.
1972 – “The Last Game”.
1973 – “Witches’ Cauldron”.
1974 – “The Godfather II”.
1975 – “1900”.
1975 – “The Last Tycoon”.
1976 – “Taxi Driver”.
1976 – “The Untouchables”.
1977 – “New York, New York”.
1978 – “The ones who go through hell”.
1980 – “Raging Bull”.
1981 – “Dangerous Confession”.
1982 – “Once upon a time in America”.
1983 – “The King of Comedy”.
1984 – “Brazil”.
1984 – “Falling in love”.
1986 – “Angel Heart”.
1986 – “The Mission”.
1987 – “The Untouchables”.
1988 – “Jacknife”.
1988 – “Midnight Run – Five Days To Midnight”.
1989 – “Stanley and Iri;s”.
1989 – “We are not angels”.
1989 – “Time of Awakening”.
1990 – “GoodFellas”.
1991 – “Backdraft”.
1991 – “Cape of Fear”.
1991 – “Guilty on Suspicion”.
1991 – “Mistress – The Lovers of Hollywood”.
1992 – “Night and the City”.
1993 – “His Name is Mad Dog”.
1993 – “This Boy’s Life”.
1993 – “On the Streets of the Bronx”.
1994 – “Hundred in one night”.
1994 – “Frankenstein”.
1995 – “Heat”.
1995 – “Casino”.
1995 – “Half-Blood”.
1995 – “The Wedding Day”.
1996 – “The Fan”.
1996 – “Sleepers”.
1996 – “Marvin’s Daughters”.
1997 – “Great Expectations”.
1997 – “Cop Country”.
1997 – “Jackie Brown”.
1997 – “Wage the Dog”.
1998 – “Pure nerves”.
1998 – “Ronin”.
1998 – “The Godfather of Manhattan” / Director.
1999 – “Flawless”.
2000 – “My bride, her father and I”.
2000 – “Men of Honor”
2001 – “15 Minutes of Fame”.
2002 – “A Matter of Nerves 2”.
2004 – “Godsend”.
2005 – “My wife, her parents-in-law and I”.
2005 – “Hide and Seek”.
2007 – “The Good Shepherd”. (also director)
What did Robert de Niro say?
What did Robert De Niro say in Cape Fear?
Max Cady : “I am like God, and God like me. I am as large as God, He is as small as I. He cannot above me, nor I beneath Him be.” Silesius, 17th Century.
What did Robert De Niro say about Robin Williams?
The actor claimed that Robin Williams was one of the funniest people he had ever known. “If you know me, you know how much I like to laugh. And no one made me laugh like Robin,” De Niro said, while remembering Williams. “Of course, it was more than the jokes.
Is robert de niro italian?
One of the greatest actors of all time, Robert De Niro was born on August 17, 1943 in Manhattan, New York City, to artists Virginia (Admiral) and Robert De Niro Sr. His paternal grandfather was of Italian descent, and his other ancestry is Irish, English, Dutch, German, and French.
Robert de Niro packed on 60 pounds for which martin Scorsese film?
Robert De Niro gained 60 pounds to emulate Jake La Motta’s decline in Raging Bull.
Does Robert de Niro speak Italian?
Robert De Niro has alweys been proud of his Italian roots, as a matter of fact his great-grandparents were from Molise. His ability in speaking the Sicilian dialect in The Godfather II led him to win a Best Supporting Actor Oscar.
Why Robert De Niro is so famous?
Robert De Niro is an American actor famous for his uncompromising portrayals of violent and abrasive characters and, later in his career, for his comic depictions of cranky old men.
Are Robert De Niro and Al Pacino best friends?
Not only are Al Pacino and Robert De Niro close colleagues, per a November 2019 GQ Magazine profile; they also share a friendship that spans over 50 years. “We got together early on.
How much is Robert De Niro worth right now?
$500 Million
What makes De Niro a great actor?
De Niro’s approach to acting has been celebrated throughout the years because of his uncanny ability to make the characters his own. “You never know what you do that could be totally out of left field but which actually might work, give something fresh to the whole scene, the character, whatever,” the actor believes.
