Kirk Douglas

Kirk Douglas is of Belarusian Jewish ancestry and one of the most known superstars in Hollywood. Kirk Douglas or Issur Danielovitch Demsky was born in New York on December 9, 1916. Kirk was an awesome student and he wrestled in competitions while studying at St. Lawrence University. Acting was his way out of poverty and he received admission into the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. He appeared in a new Broadway play before joined the Navy in 1941. Upon returning from the war Kirk was screen-tested and given the main role in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers in 1946. He then appeared in I Walk Alone in 1948, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in 1957 and Seven Days in May in 1964, all with Burt Lancaster.
Kirk received his first Oscar nomination in Champion in 1949 and he was again nominated for his role in The Bad and the Beautiful in 1952. He also received a nomination in Lust for Life in 1956. He propelled his career further with his own production company, Bryna Productions. The company produced Paths of Glory in 1957 and Spartacus in 1960.
Lonely are the Brave in 1962 plus a war film with John Wayne In Harm's Way in 1965. In 1966 Kirk played again with Wayne in Cast a Giant Shadow and in The War Wagon in 1967. Kirk Douglas continued his career in the Villain in 1979 and then in The Man from Snowy River in 1982.
He is a huge humanitarian and has been a Goodwill Ambassador for the US State Department since 1963. He continues to appear in specials despite a stroke and a helicopter crash suffered in the 1990s. Kirk was married twice. Once to Anne Douglas from May 1954 until the present and Once to Diana Douglas from 1943 until 1951. He as a total of four sons, Michael, Eric and Joel and Peter. He has written seven books and has won many awards.