RATINGS: Cast & Crew

DOB: May 31, 1930

Background: Eastwood was born in San Francisco  and eventually settled in Piedmont, California, where he participated in basketball, football, gymnastics, and swimming in high school. He was encouraged to sign up for school plays at Oakland Technical High School, but at the time he wasn't interested. In 1950 he was drafted into the US Army during the Korean War. While he was stationed at Fort Ord, he was spotted by an assistant for Universal Studios, which was filming there. He auditioned, was signed by producer Arthur Lubin, and began his acting career.

Filmography: He began acting in the 1950s and experienced his first major career breakthrough when he was cast on the series "Rawhide," appearing from 1959 to 1965 despite his ambivalence about his part. In 1964 he appeared in "A Fistful of Dollars," his first spaghetti western with Italian director Sergio Leone. He completed Leone's trilogy with appearances in its sequels "For a Few Dollars More" (1965) and "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" (1966). He played more tough-guy roles before appearing in "Paint Your Wagon" in 1969, which would be the only musical of his career. In 1971, he played the title role in "Dirty Harry," which he would reprise in the sequels "Magnum Force" (1973), "The Enforcer" (1976), "Sudden Impact" (1983), and "The Dead Pool" (1988). He appeared regularly as renegades and antiheroes in films like "Escape from Alcatraz" (1979) while also beginning to cultivate a career as a director.

1971, the year he first played Dirty Harry, was also the year he directed his first feature film, "Play Misty for Me." He followed that effort with "High Plains Drifter" (1973), "Bronco Billy" (1980), "Pale Rider" (1985), and "Heartbreak Ridge" (1986), among many others. In 1992, he helmed "Unforgiven," which finally earned him recognition from the Motion Picture Academy. He won Oscars for directing and producting the film and was also nominated for his leading role. He subsequently made "Absolute Power," "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil," and "True Crime" to round out the 1990s, but it was in the 2000s that he received his greatest recognition. Between 2004 and 2007, he received another seven Oscar nominations for his work in front of and behind the camera, winning another pair of statues in 2005 for directing and producing "Million Dollar Baby." He also made "Mystic River" (2003), "Flags of Our Fathers" and "Letters from Iwo Jima" (both 2006), "Changeling" (2008), "Gran Torino" (2008), and "Invictus" (2009). The prolific filmmaker's next effort is the biopic "J. Edgar," which will be released later this year.

Academy Awards: Wins - Best Picture ("Million Dollar Baby," 2005) Best Picture ("Unforgiven," 1993); Best Director ("Million Dollar Baby," 2005) Best Director ("Unforgiven," 1993)

Best Picture Nominations
"Letters from Iwo Jima" (2007); lost to "The Departed"
"Mystic River" (2004); lost to "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King"

Best Director Nominations
"Letters from Iwo Jima" (2007); lost to Martin Scorsese ("The Departed")
"Mystic River" (2004); lost to Peter Jackson ("The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King")

Best Actor Nominations
"Million Dollar Baby" (2005); lost to Jamie Foxx ("Ray")
"Unforgiven" (1993); lost to Al Pacino ("Scent of a Woman")

Emmy Awards:

Best Nonfiction Special Nomination
"Johnny Mercer: The Dream's on Me" (2010); lost to "Teddy: In His Own Words"

Grammy Awards:

Best Soundtrack Album Nomination
"Million Dollar Baby" (2006); lost to Craig Armstrong ("Ray")

Golden Globes: Wins - Best Foreign Language Film ("Letters from Iwo Jima," 2007); Best Film Director ("Million Dollar Baby," 2005); Best Film Director ("Unforgiven," 1993); Best Film Director ("Bird," 1989)

Best Film Drama Nominations
"Million Dollar Baby" (2005); lost to "The Aviator"
"Mystic River" (2004); lost to "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King"
"Unforgiven" (1993); lost to "Scent of a Woman"

Best Film Director Nominations
"Invictus" (2010); lost to James Cameron ("Avatar")
"Flags of Our Fathers" (2007); lost to Martin Scorsese ("The Departed")
"Letters from Iwo Jima" (2007); lost to Martin Scorsese ("The Departed)
"Mystic River" (2004); lost to Peter Jackson ("Lord of the Rings: Return of the King")

Best Original Score Nomination
"Changeling" (2009); lost to A.R. Rahman ("Slumdog Millionaire")
"Grace is Gone" (2008); lost to Dario Marianelli ("Atonement")
"Million Dollar Baby" (2005); lost to Howard Shore ("The Aviator")

Best Original Song Nomination
"Gran Torino" (2009); lost to Bruce Springsteen ("The Wrestler")
"Grace is Gone" (2008); lost to Eddie Vedder ("Into the Wild")

SAG Awards:

Best Film Ensemble Nomination
"Million Dollar Baby" (2005); lost to "Sideways"