Historical Figures Codexery

Billy Bob Thornton

Academy Award-winning actor, filmmaker, and musician known for Sling Blade, Fargo, and Goliath.

Billy Bob Thornton was born on August 4, 1955, in Hot Springs, Arkansas.[1] Thornton serves as the lead singer for the rock group the Boxmasters and has put out four albums as a solo artist.[2]

Quick Facts

Born
4 August 1955
Birthplace
Hot Springs, Arkansas, U.S.
Occupation
  • Actor
  • filmmaker
  • screenwriter
  • singer
  • songwriter
Years active
1974–present
Children
4

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

He worked as a roadie, drill press operator, and sawmill worker before trying out for the Kansas City Royals baseball team.[3] His screenplay earned him an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.[4] He portrayed a malicious mall Santa in 2003's Bad Santa.[5] In 2014, he starred as sociopathic hitman Lorne Malvo in the FX miniseries Fargo.[6]

Because of dyslexia, Thornton had difficulties in his schoolwork; a conclusive diagnosis for this condition did not occur until he was older.[3] Around the middle of the 1980s, Thornton made his home in Los Angeles, aiming to advance his music career alongside Tom Epperson, who would later become his co-writer.[7] Providing drumming and vocal performances, Thornton was a member of the South African rock group Jack Hammer.[4] The 1996 independent movie titled Sling Blade had Thornton as its writer, director, and star.[8]

Three different women are the mothers of Thornton's four children.[9]

What the cited sources add

A 2008 New York Daily News article reported that Thornton's former sister-in-law accused him of cyber-stalking, spousal abuse, and drug use.[10] The same article noted that Thornton's representatives insisted the allegations were "absolutely false"[10] A 2015 Evening Standard article confirmed that Thornton would reprise his role as Willie T. Stokes in Bad Santa 2.[11] That article stated Bad Santa 2 was set for cinema release on November 23, 2016.[11]

A Combustible Celluloid interview described Thornton as someone who never fit in with his hometown crowd nor with the Hollywood crowd.[12]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Billy Bob Thornton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Monitor", Entertainment Weekly, August 10, 2012, p. 27; "Billy Bob Thornton"; "Billy Bob Thornton Biography", The Biography Channel; "Billy Bob Thornton (American actor, director, and writer)"; "Billy Bob Thornton"; "Social Security Death Index", Ssdi.rootsweb.ancestry.com; "Billy Bob's Irish father inspires movie", rte.ie, February 13, 2012; Samikshya Humagain, "Billy Bob Thornton Brother: Jimmy Don, James Bean And John David Thornton", Superfest Film, December 27, 2023 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Billy Bob Thornton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Combustible Celluloid interview – Mark Polish, Michael Polish, Billy Bob Thornton, The Astronaut Farmer (2007)", combustiblecelluloid.com (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Billy Bob Thornton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Woods, "The MJ Q&A: 'Goliath' Star Billy Bob Thornton", Men's Journal, June 15, 2018; Frank, "Billy Bob Thornton (1955-)", Encyclopedia of Arkansas, February 12, 2026; Pringle, "On the Move: Billy Bob Thornton", The Times, September 23, 2007; Thornton, "The Billy Bob Tapes A Cave Full of Ghosts", Virgin Books, 2012, p. 66 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Billy Bob Thornton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Billy Bob Thornton" (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Billy Bob Thornton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Billy Bob Thornton reveals he was drunk while filming iconic Bad Santa scene", The Independent, October 21, 2019; Ebert, "Intolerable Cruelty movie review (2003) Roger Ebert", rogerebert.com; Atkinson, "Billy-Bob Thornton Love, Actually", CINEMA YEAR ZERO, December 23, 2021; "Billy Bob Hollywood's go-to guy", JAM! Showbiz; "School is in session", Los Angeles Daily News; "Friday Night Lights", TVGuide.com; "Thornton Gets Star on Hollywood Walk", Associated Press, March 25, 2015 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Billy Bob Thornton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "The 72nd Annual Golden Globe Awards (2015)", GoldenGlobes.com. Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA); "How 'The Big Bang Theory' scored Billy Bob Thornton for a surprise guest spot", EW.com; "The Judge", TVGuide.com; Kit, "Billy Bob Thornton Joining 'Entourage' Movie (Exclusive)", The Hollywood Reporter, January 29, 2014 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Billy Bob Thornton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Billy Bob Thornton"; Pringle, "On the Move: Billy Bob Thornton", The Times, September 23, 2007 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Billy Bob Thornton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Billy Bob Thornton"; "Encyclopedia of Arkansas", Encyclopedia of Arkansas (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Billy Bob Thornton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Billy Bob Thornton", Encyclopedia of Arkansas, May 31, 2017; "Billy Bob Thornton Is Married — Again!", TVGuide.com (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Pesce, "Billy Bob Thornton accused of stalking former sister-in-law", New York Daily News, May 21, 2008. facts only, no text reused. nydailynews.com
  11. "Bad Santa 2: Billy Bob Thornton to return as Willie for festive sequel", Evening Standard, December 23, 2015. facts only, no text reused. standard.co.uk
  12. "Combustible Celluloid interview – Mark Polish, Michael Polish, Billy Bob Thornton, The Astronaut Farmer (2007)", combustiblecelluloid.com. facts only, no text reused. combustiblecelluloid.com

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Billy Bob Thornton (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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