Clint Eastwood
The iconic actor and filmmaker who defined masculinity on screen.
Clint Eastwood Jr. was born on May 31, 1930, in San Francisco. He became a major star playing the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy of spaghetti Westerns in the 1960s, and later as the tough cop Harry Callahan in five *Dirty Harry* movies. These parts made him a lasting symbol of masculinity in American culture. He also served as mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, from 1986 to 1988.
His biggest box office hits were the comedies *Every Which Way but Loose* (1978) and *Any Which Way You Can* (1980). Other well-known films include the Westerns *Hang 'Em High* (1968), *The Outlaw Josey Wales* (1976), and *Pale Rider* (1985); the war film *Where Eagles Dare* (1968); the prison drama *Escape from Alcatraz* (1979); *Heartbreak Ridge* (1986); the thriller *In the Line of Fire* (1993); and the romance *The Bridges of Madison County* (1995). Later works include *Gran Torino* (2008), *The Mule* (2018), and *Cry Macho* (2021). Since 1967, his production company, Malpaso Productions, has made all but four of his American films.
Eastwood has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. He won Best Director and Best Picture for the Western *Unforgiven* (1992) and the sports drama *Million Dollar Baby* (2004). Besides directing many of his own movies, he has directed films without acting in them, such as *Mystic River* (2003) and *Letters from Iwo Jima* (2006), both nominated for Oscars, and the legal thriller *Juror #2* (2024). He also directed the biographical films *Changeling* (2008), *Invictus* (2009), *American Sniper* (2014), *Sully* (2016), and *Richard Jewell* (2019).
His awards include four Oscars, four Golden Globes, and three César Awards, along with nominations for three BAFTAs and a Grammy. He has received the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement, the Honorary Palme d'Or, and an AFI Life Achievement Award. France has given him two of its highest honors: he was made a Commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1994 and received the Legion of Honour in 2007.
Eastwood was born in San Francisco to Ruth and Clinton Eastwood. His mother later took the surname Wood after remarrying. Nurses called him "Samson" because of his birth weight. He has a younger sister, Jeanne. His ancestry is English, Irish, Scottish, and Dutch, and he is a descendant of Mayflower passenger William Bradford, making him the 12th generation of his family born in North America. His family moved three times in the 1930s due to his father's job changes, but contrary to what Eastwood has said, they did not relocate between 1940 and 1949. They settled in an affluent part of Piedmont, California, with a swimming pool, country club membership, and two cars. His father was a manufacturing executive at Georgia-Pacific, and his mother later worked as a clerk at IBM.
He attended Piedmont Middle School, where he was held back and also went to summer school. He was asked to leave Piedmont High School after writing an obscene message on the athletic field scoreboard and burning an effigy on the school lawn, among other infractions. He transferred to Oakland Technical High School and graduated in 1949. He worked various odd jobs, including lifeguard, paper carrier, grocery clerk, forest firefighter, and golf caddy. He says he tried to enroll at Seattle University in 1951 but was drafted into the Army during the Korean War. While returning from a secret meeting in Seattle, he was a passenger on a bomber that crashed into the ocean near Point Reyes; he and the pilot escaped on a life raft. He was discharged in February 1953.
According to a CBS press release, a Universal-International camera crew spotted Eastwood at Fort Ord and invited him to meet a director, though this story is disputed. His official biography credits a man named Chuck Hill, who had Hollywood contacts, for sneaking him into a Universal studio and introducing him to cameraman Irving Glassberg. Glassberg arranged an audition with Arthur Lubin, who was impressed by Eastwood's looks but not his acting, calling him amateurish. Lubin suggested drama classes and gave him a contract in April 1954 at $100 per week. Early on, Eastwood was criticized for his stiff delivery and for speaking through his teeth, a habit he kept for life.
- born
- May 31, 1930
- field
- Actor, filmmaker
- nationality
- American
- known_for
- Man with No Name in Dollars Trilogy; Harry Callahan in Dirty Harry films; directing Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby
Lore & Background
Eastwood's greatest commercial successes are the adventure comedy Every Which Way but Loose (1978) and its action comedy sequel Any Which Way You Can (1980). Other popular Eastwood films include the Westerns Hang 'Em High (1968), The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) and Pale Rider (1985), the action-war film Where Eagles Dare (1968), the prison film Escape from Alcatraz (1979), the war film Heartbreak Ridge (1986), the action film In the Line of Fire (1993), and the romantic drama The Bridges of Madison County (1995). More recent works include Gran Torino (2008), The Mule (2018), and Cry Macho (2021). Since 1967, Eastwood's company Malpaso Productions has produced all but four of his American films. An Academy Award nominee for Best Actor, Eastwood won Best Director and Best Picture for his Western film Unforgiven (1992) and his sports drama Million Dollar Baby (2004). In addition to directing many of his own star vehicles, Eastwood has directed films in which he did not appear, such as the mystery drama Mystic River (2003) and the war film Letters from Iwo Jima (2006), for which he received Academy Award nominations, as well as the legal thriller Juror #2 (2024). He also directed the biographical films Changeling (2008), Invictus (2009), American Sniper (2014), Sully (2016), and Richard Jewell (2019). Eastwood's accolades include four Academy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, and three César Awards as well as nominations for three BAFTA Awards and a Grammy Award. He has been honored the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement, the Honorary Palme d'Or, and an AFI Life Achievement Award. Bestowed two of France's highest civilian honors he also received the Commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1994, and the Legion of Honour in 2007.
Reader's Guide
Clinton Eastwood Jr. was born on May 31, 1930, at Saint Francis Memorial Hospital in San Francisco, to Ruth (née Margret Runner; 1909–2006) and Clinton Eastwood (1906–1970), who at the time lived in Oakland's Lake Merritt neighborhood. During her son's fame, Ruth was known by the surname of her second husband, John Belden Wood (1913–2004), whom she married after the death of Clinton Sr. Eastwood was nicknamed "Samson" by hospital nurses because he weighed 11 pounds 6 ounces (5.2 kg) at birth. He has a younger sister, Jeanne Bernhardt (b. 1934). He is of English, Irish, Scottish, and Dutch ancestry. Eastwood is descended from Mayflower passenger William Bradford, making him the 12th generation of his family born in North America. His family relocated three times during the 1930s as his father changed occupations. Contrary to what Eastwood has suggested in media interviews, they did not move between 1940 and 1949. After settling in Piedmont, California, the Eastwoods lived in an affluent part of town, had a swimming pool, belonged to a country club, and each parent drove their own car. Eastwood's father worked as a manufacturing executive at Georgia-Pacific for most of his career. As Clint and Jeanne grew older, Ruth took a clerical job at IBM. Eastwood attended Piedmont Middle School, where he was held back due to poor academic performance, and records indicate he also attended summer school. From January 1945 until at least January 1946, he attended Piedmont High School, but was asked to leave after writing an obscene suggestion to a school official on the athletic field scoreboard and burning an effigy on the school lawn, in addition to other infractions. He transferred to Oakland Technical High School and graduated on February 2, 1949. Eastwood worked a number of odd jobs, including lifeguard, paper carrier, grocery clerk, forest firefighter, and golf caddy. He said he attempted to enroll at Seattle University in 1951, but instead was drafted into the United States Army during the Korean War. Don Loomis recalled hearing that Eastwood was romancing one of the daughters of a Fort Ord officer, who may have been encouraged to look out for him when postings were assigned. While returning from a prearranged tryst in Seattle, he was a passenger on a Douglas AD bomber that ran out of fuel and crashed into the ocean near Point Reyes. Using a life raft, he and the p
Did You Know?
- Eastwood was nicknamed 'Samson' by hospital nurses because he weighed 11 pounds 6 ounces (5.2 kg) at birth.
- He is descended from Mayflower passenger William Bradford, making him the 12th generation of his family born in North America.
- While returning from a prearranged tryst in Seattle, Eastwood was a passenger on a Douglas AD bomber that ran out of fuel and crashed into the ocean near Point Reyes; he and the pilot swam 2 miles to safety.
Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)
"Clinton "Clint" Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American film actor, director, producer, and composer. He has been mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California." — Clint Eastwood "I thought I might die. But then I thought, 'Other people have made it through these things before'. I kept my eyes on the lights on shore and kept swimming." — Clint Eastwood "Zmijewsky, Boris; Lee Pfeiffer (1982). The Films of Clint Eastwood. p. 16. Secaucus, New Jersey: Citadel Press. ISBN 0806508639." — Clint Eastwood "Zmijewsky, Boris; Lee Pfeiffer (1982). The Films of Clint Eastwood. p. 20. Secaucus, New Jersey: Citadel Press. ISBN 0806508639." — Clint Eastwood
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