Tony Curtis (born June 3, 1925) is an American film actor famous for his thick black wavy hair, handsome good looks, flashing long eyelashes and trademark New York accent.

Biography

Tony Curtis, whose birth name was Bernard Schwartz, is the eldest of three sons born to Manuel and Helen Schwartz. Tony was born on June 3, 1925, in New York City. Tony grew up in an impoverished section of the Bronx and and his family struggled through the Depression. Eventually, Tony joined the Navy in 1943, and upon his release from active duty, he returned to New York where he used the GI Bill to attend acting school. He and many other popular actors, all started to learn the ropes together at that school. Tony first gained attention in a Greenwich Village stage production of "Golden Boy." Not long after his discovery, he was offered a seven year contract by Universal Pictures. In 1948 he headed for California where his screen debut had him dancing with Yvonne de Carlo in Criss Cross (1948). His few seconds on screen were enough to generate tens of thousands of fan letters a week asking for a lock of his hair. Universal realized it had a rising star.

Tony first earned top billing rights in The Prince Who Was a Thief (1951) which co-starred Piper Laurie. Tony returned to the screen as a boxer in Flesh and Fury (1952). Two more pictures with Laurie, No Room for the Groom and Son of Ali Baba, followed. Although under contract with Universal, Paramount cast Tony in the role of Houdini (1953,) which cast him opposite Janet Leigh (his first wife). Pictures like Beachhead (1954) and Johnny Dark (1954) and The Black Shield of Falworth (1955) were all by-the-numbers products. Tony's next big film came under United Artists label in 1956, Trapeze.

Tony further went onto his first taste of The Sweet Smell of Success (1957) with Burt Lancaster. Tony even made it seem natural for a Norseman to have a New York accent in The Vikings (1958). But it was in 1958 when Curtis and Sidney Poitier starred in Stanley Kramer's social drama The Defiant Ones (1959) which earned both men Academy Award nominations and was among the most acclaimed and profitable films of the year. Now back at Universal, he first starred in a Blake Edwards comedy, The Perfect Furlough (1958). Tony's most memorable role was in Some Like It Hot (1959) playing opposite Marylin Monroe and Jack Lemon. Riding on the crest of Some Like It Hot, Tony got to work first hand with his idol Cary Grant in Blake Edward's comedy, Operation Petticoat (1959), another massive hit.

For director Stanley Kubrick, Tony co-starred in the 1960 epic Spartacus, followed a year later by The Great Impostor. He delivered a strong performance in The Outsider (1961. Tony made a brief appearance in John Huston's acclaimed The List of Adrian Messenger before appearing opposite Gregory Peck in Captain Newman, M.D. With second wife Christine Kauffman, he starred in Wild and Wonderful (1964) which was his last film for Universal. Tony then focused almost solely on comedy, including Goodbye Charlie, the big-budget The Great Race, and, with Jerry Lewis in Boeing Boeing. He battled long and hard to win the against-type title role in The Boston Strangler (1968), a role he receives critical acclaim for to this day. Tony returned to comedy again with Those Daring Young Men in Their Jaunty Jalopies (1969).

Starring in over 140 major motion pictures. An American icon, Tony not only appears on the cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club but was the inspiration for, and the voice of, the character "Stony Curtis" in the cartoon The Flintstones.

Tony had many great friends over time, including close relationships with the legendary Rat Pack--Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford. Also, Jack Lemmon, Kirk Douglas, Marlon Brando, Marilyn Monroe, Hugh Hefner, Arnold Schwarzenegger, just to name a few.

Tony has been married five times. He first wed actress Janet Leigh in 1951, and the couple had two daughters, Kelly (b.1957) and Jamie Lee (b.1958). After a marriage of 11 years, Tony married actress Christine Kaufmann. They had two daughters, Alexandra (b.1964) and Allegra (b.1966). Tony and Kaufmann divorced in 1967 and a year later he married Leslie Allen in 1968 and they had two sons: Nicholas (b.1971, who died in 1994) and Benjamin (b.1973. Tony and Allen divorced in 1982. He wed lawyer Lisa Deutsch in 1993, and divorced her in 1994, no children. On November 6, 1998, Tony married his fifth wife, Jill VandenBerg. Tony is still married to Jill today, making their marriage the longest lasting and most succesful relationship Tony has ever enjoyed. Tony attributes his health, well-being, and happiness to Jill.

Tony is now enjoying a successful second career as a fine artist. Since at least the early 1960s, Curtis has had a second career as a painter, assemblage creator, and sketcher. His work can command more than $50,000 a canvas now and it is on this he now focuses rather than movies. "I still make movies but I'm not that interested any more. I paint all the time." Tony's paintings are featured in galleries all around the world, including in Las Vegas, Carmel, Maui, Whistler, London, Paris, and New York. In 2007 his painting The Red Table went on display at the Metropolitan Museum in Manhattan.

In addition, Tony is the biggest supporter of Shiloh Horse Rescue and Sanctuary, a non-profit horse rescue started by he and his wife, Jill. Tony and Jill actively support the rights of horses not to be abused and slaughtered for human consumption. Currently, Tony and Jill have over two hundred rescued horses on their ranch outside Jean, Nevada. For more information visit www.shilohhorserescue.com