Freeman, who turns 82 on June 1,2019, wanted to be a fighter pilot before becoming an actor.
Actor Morgan Freeman was born on June 1,1937, in Memphis Tennessee, and so celebrates his 82nd birthday today. He has appeared in a number of blockbusters as well as on Broadway. However, it all could have been different.
According to Britannica Encyclopedia, Freeman wanted to be a fighter pilot before becoming an actor, but when he joined the air force in 1955, he was disappointed. When he left in 1959, he turned to acting and made his Broadway debut in an all-black production of Hello Dolly! in 1967.
In the 70s, he took parts in children’s educational television and a soap opera. Then he starred in 80s films such as Brubaker (1980) and Street Smart (1987). In 1989, he took the role of Hoke in Driving Miss Daisy (1989). As a director, he debuted with anti-Apartheid film Bopha! (1993).
He then starred in The Shawshank Redemption in 1994 which earned him his third Oscar nomination. This was followed by Se7en (1995), Kiss the Girls (1997), Along Came a Spider (2001) and The Sum of All Fears (2002). Following this, he was a supporting actor in Clint Eastwood’s Million Dollar Baby (2004) and then went on to play Lucius Fox in Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy.
Morgan Freeman poses during the unveiling of his dedicated beach locker room on the Promenade des Planches during the 44th Deauville U. S. Film Festival on September 7,2018 in Deauville, France. Francois G. Durand/WireImage
After some time on Broadway, Freeman teamed up with Eastwood again for Invictus (2009), a drama in which he played Nelson Mandela. He then starred in Last Vegas (2013) with Robert De Niro and Michael Douglas and provided his voice in The LEGO Movie (2014).
Freeman received the Kennedy Center Honor in 2008 and a Golden Globe for lifetime achievement in 2012.
In celebration of his birthday, Newsweek has analyzed data from Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic to rank his best 10 movies of all time.
10. Batman Begins (2005)
Score: 77 / 100
Rotten Tomatoes: 84 / Metacritic: 70
Plot: A Young Batman watches a tragedy unfold and vows to bring criminals to justice in his home city.
