RATINGS: Cast & Crew

DOB: July 13, 1957

Background: Crowe was born in Palm Springs, California, but his family eventually settled in San Diego. He skipped two grades in elementary school and suffered from nephritis as a child, and in high school he began writing for the school newspaper as well as contributing music reviews to the San Diego Door. After contributing articles to the magazines Creem and Circus, he wrote for Rolling Stone, for which he interviewed the likes of Bob Dylan, David Bowie, and Carlos Santana. He was and remains the youngest person ever to contribute to the magazine.

Filmography: At age 22, he went undercover to chronicle the high school experience, which became the basis for the book "Fast Times at Ridgemont High," which he would adapt into a screenplay for the well-known 1982 film. Crowe's directorial debut was the romantic comedy "Say Anything" (1989) starring John Cusack. He followed that success with "Singles" (1992) and the hit sports comedy "Jerry Maguire" (1996), which was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. He based his next film, the period comedy "Almost Famous" (2000), on his experiences as a young Rolling Stone writer, and won an Oscar for his effort. His next two films, "Vanilla Sky" (2001) and "Elizabethtown" (2005) were met with mixed reviews, but this year he returns with the film "We Bought a Zoo" starring Matt Damon.

Academy Awards: Win - Best Original Screenplay ("Almost Famous," 2001)

Best Picture nomination:
"Jerry Maguire" (1997); lost to "The English Patient"

Best Original Screenplay nomination:
"Jerry Maguire" (1997); lost to Joel Coen and Ethan Coen ("Fargo")

DGA Awards: Nominations - Best Director ("Almost Famous," 2001; "Jerry Maguire," 1997)

Grammy Awards: Win - Best Soundtrack Album ("Almost Famous," 2001)

WGA Awards: Nominations - Best Original Screenplay ("Almost Famous," 2001; "Jerry Maguire," 1997); Best Adapted Screenplay ("Fast Times at Ridgemont High," 1983)