Denzel Washington Biography

Denzel Washington

Denzel Hayes Washington Jr., Actor

Birthdate: December 28, 1954

Birthplace: Mount Vernon, NY

Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr. was born in Mount Vernon, NY. His mother, Lennis "Lynne," was a beautician and owner of beauty parlor owner and operator. His father, Reverend Denzel Washington, Sr. was a Pentecostal minister who also worked for the water department and at a local department store. Denzel Jr. was the middle child of three children. When he was 14, his parents split and he and his older sister were sent away to boarding school.

Washington went to Fordham University to study Journalism. While enrolled in college, he got involved in acting and appeared in student drama productions. Upon graduation, he received a scholarship to attend the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, where he stayed one year before deciding to return to New York to begin working as a professional actor.

His acting debut came in the form of a made for television movie called "Wilma" in 1977. In 1981, he made his film debut in "Carbon Copy". He also appeared in several off-Broadway productions and television movies before catching his big break in NBC's hit television medical drama series "St. Elsewhere" playing Dr. Chandler for six years from 1982-1988. 1987, Washington played the role of South African antiapartheid campaigner Steve Biko in Richard Attenborough's "Cry Freedom". The role gained him a nomination for Best Supporting Actor. In 1989, he went on to win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor playing a defiant ex-slave in "Glory". That same year, critics also raved over his role as Reuben James, a Caribbean-born British soldier who after a distinguished military career turns to a life of vigilantism and violence in "For Queen and Country".

Washington played several roles that continued to propel his career in the 90's including Spike Lee's "Mo Better Blues" and "Mississippi Marsala." In 1992, he took on another Spike Lee movie playing the role of Black Nationalist leader Malcolm X in "Malcolm X." His performance earned him an Oscar nomination in a film that was proclaimed one of the ten best films made during the 1990s. This role brought him to the forefront in acting and made him one of the most sought out actors in Hollywood.

In 1993, he took on the risky role of Joe Miller, a homophobic attorney of a homosexual man with AIDS in the movie "Philadelphia" starring Tom Hanks. He went on to film several successful thrillers including "The Pelican Brief" and "Crimson Tide." He expanded his career to play in the romantic comedy "Much Ado About Nothing" and the romantic drama "The Preacher's Wife." In 2000, he took on the Disney film "Remember the Titans" which grossed over $100 million at the box office.

In 2001, he received his second Oscar, but this time for a leading role in the cop thriller "Training Day."

In 2002, he made his directorial debut in the drama "Antwone Fisher" in which he also co-starred.

Washington went on to film several more blockbusters including "Man on Fire," "The Manchurian Candidate" and Spike Lee's "Inside Man."

His most recent film "American Gangster" had Washington co-starring opposite Russell Crowe.

Washington married actress Pauletta Pearson in 1983 and they have four children together. Their oldest son, John David, was drafted by the NFL's St. Louis Rams in 2006.