BIOGRAPHY

Though widely preceived to be an Australian -- and sporting a thick- enough accent to bear that out -- Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson was born January 3rd, 1956, in Peekskill, NY, to Irish Catholic parents (a railroad brakeman and an Australian opera singer, respectively). One of eleven children, Gibson moved with his family to Australia in 1968, and quickly developed an Aussie accent after schoolmates teased him for his yankee accent. Though originally desiring to become a journalist, Gibson studied drama at the National Institute of Dramatic Arts in Sydney, which he attended with such notables as Judy Davis. Initially, the young actor suffered from terrible stage fright and was still a student when he appeared in Summer City. Following graduation, he found work playing in supporting roles with the South Australia Theatre Company.      In 1979, Gibson starred in two very different feature films. In the moving drama Tim, the 22-year-old actor played a mildly retarded handy man. The role won him a Sammy (one of the Australian entertainment industry's highest accolades). In the other film, Mad Max, he played a leather-clad futuristic cop in a world nearly destroyed by nuclear war. His success with both roles made him a bright young star in Australia. He substantially furthered his career by starring in Peter Weir's powerful WWII drama Gallipoli (1981) -- which won him a second Sammy for Best Actor -- but it was not until Gibson appeared in The Road Warrior (Mad Max 2) that same year that he achieved global popularity. His second collaboration with Weir, The Year of Living Dangerously (1983), in which Gibson played a callous reporter covering a bloody Indonesian coup, only bolstered his growing reputation. He made his Hollywood debut playing Fletcher Christian to

Anthony Hopkins' Captain Bligh in The Bounty (1984) and then played a farmer opposite Sissy Spacek in the melodramatic The River (1984). Later that year, Gibson returned to Australia to play Mad Max one more time in the overblown Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome (1985) opposite singer Tina Turner.      Gibson then took a two-year break from filmmaking, but came back strong starring opposite Danny Glover in Richard Donner's smash action picture Lethal Weapon. Gibson's wild man portrayal of officer Martin Riggs, a volatile

man who lost the will to live following his wife's death, made him the perfect foil for Glover's more low-key character. The honest chemistry between the leads made the film of the year's big box-office draws and in turn made Gibson a superstar. He reprised the role of Riggs in three sequels (1989, 1992, 1998). Until 1990, Gibson was noted for his action roles, romantic heroes, and contemporary dramatic characters. Therefore it was a shock for audiences to see him show up as Shakespeare's tragic Danish frince in Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet (1990). His performance divided critics, winning over some even as it underwhelmed others, but many were impressed by Gibson's audacity in taking the role in the first place.      In the early 1990s, Gibson further extended his range by founding his own production company, Icon Productions. Through it, he made his directorial debut with The Man Without a Face (1993), a drama in which he played a horribly burned teacher with a dark secret. Though a well-wrought, moving effort, it only had middling box office success. He did better in 1994 in Richard Donner's movie version of the popular television comedy-western Maverick. As a director/producer, Gibson swept the 1995 Oscars with Braveheart, his epic account of 13th-century Scottish leader William Wallace's life and struggle to forge an independent nation. That same year, he also provided the speaking and singing voice to John Smith in Disney's animated feature Pocahontas, and proved he could actually carry a tune.      Through the 1990s, Gibson's popularity and reputation continued to grow, thanks to such films as Ransom (1996) and Conspiracy Thoery (1997). In 1998, Gibson further increased this popularity with the success of two films, Lethal Weapon 4 and Payback. More success followed in 2000, due to the actor's lead role as an animated rooster in Nick Park and Peter Lord's hugely acclaimed Chicken Run, and to his wokr as the titular hero of Roland Emmerich's blockbuster period epic The Patriot (2000). After taking up arms in the

battlefield for a more modern era in the Vietnam drama We Were Soldiers in 2002, Gibson would next step in front of the cameras for director M. Night Shyamalan's dramatic sci-fi thriller Signs (also 2002). As the patriarch of a rural family who discovers unexplainable crop circles on his farm, Gibson explored the phoenomena that has captivated the imaginations of stargazers who believe that their may be an extraterrestrial factor behind the curious and sometimes beautiful mystery. (This biography was taken from Yahoo! Movies. Click here to view it.)

TRIVIA

FILMOGRAPHY

BIRTH NAME: Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson HEIGHT: 5' 11" SPOUSE: Robyn Moore (June 1980 -- Present); 7 Children. SALARIES: $25 million each for Signs (2002), We Were Soldiers (2002) and The Patriot (2000), $20 million each for Conspiracy Theory (1997) and Ransom (1996), $15 million for Maverick (1994) and $10 million for Lethal Weapon 3 (1992). - Has seven children with his wife Robyn: Hannah, twins Edward and Christian, William, Louis, Milo and Tommy. - Trained at NIDA (National Institute of Dramatic Arts). As well as Judy Davis, other fellow students, during his time there, included Colin Friels and Dennis Olsen. - Roomates with Geoffrey Rush in college. - He took up acting only because his sister submitted an application behind his back. The night before an audition, he got into a fight, and his face was badly beaten, an accident which won him a role. - Was considered for the role of James Bond in the early-to-mid 1990s. - Is a big fan of The Three Stooges.  - He and his wife met through a dating service. - Has a horseshoe kidney (two kidneys fused into one) - Abstains from alcohol completely. - Owns a production company with branches in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom. - Almost turned down the role of William Wallace because he thought he was too old for the role. He asked the producers if he could direct it instead. A compromise was made, he could direct the movie if he agreed to play Wallace. - Brother of actor Donal Gibson. - Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in Film History (1995). He ranked at #37.

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD (2004) PAPARAZZI (2004) THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST (2004) THE SINGING DETECTIVE (2003) SIGNS (2002) WE WERE SOLDIERS (2002) INVINCIBLE (2001) WHAT WOMEN WANT (2000) THE PATRIOT (2000) CHICKEN RUN (2000) THE THREE STOOGES (2000) MILLION DOLLAR HOTEL (2000) PAYBACK (1999) LETHAL WEAPON 4 (1998) CONSPIRACY THEORY (1997) FATHERS' DAY (1997) RANSOM (1996) POCAHONTAS (1995) BRAVEHEART (1995) MAVERICK (1994) THE MAN WITHOUT A FACE (1993) FOREVER YOUNG (1992) LETHAL WEAPON 3 (1992) HAMLET (1990) AIR AMERICA (1990) BIRD ON A WIRE (1990) LETHAL WEAPON 2 (1989) TEQUILA SUNRISE (1988) LETHAL WEAPON (1987) MAD MAX BEYOND THUNDERDOME (1985) MRS. SOFFEL (1984) THE RIVER (1984) THE BOUNTY (1984) THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY (1982) ATTACK FORCE Z (1982) GALLIPOLI (1981) THE ROAD WARRIOR: MAD MAX 2 (1981) TIM (1979) MAD MAX (1979) SUMMER CITY (1977)