George Clooney Biography

No academic, he loved baseball, but failed to make the cut for the Cincinnati Reds. He tried university, then broadcast journalism, but he disliked both. To the rescue came Clooney’s uncle and nephews, all actors, who gave him a minor role in a horse-racing film 'And They’re Off'. The film was never released, yet Clooney was hooked.

In his battered ’76 Monte Carlo, the aspiring actor drove off to LA, worked as his singer aunt’s driver for a while, and then moved in with a fellow actor, touting for roles and studying acting. He worked on construction sites, sold insurance door to door, drew caricatures in the malls and sold lemonade from a stall. Finally he landed a part in a hospital drama 'E/R' in 1984, which wasn't successful, but it gave Clooney air time and started him on a run of TV series and low budget film roles.

Clooney’s reputation in television spread; he was known as an actor who could get pilots the go ahead and he made money, but he had trouble securing a film agent to represent him, which lost him some memorable roles, including the part of JD in 'Thelma and Louise', which he lost to Brad Pitt.

Clooney's success was secured when he got the part of Doug Ross, doctor heart throb on 'ER', and the series was an enormous hit.

He followed this television success with movies 'Dusk Till Dawn' with Quentin Tarantino, 'One Fine Day', with Michelle Pfeiffer and 'The Peacemaker', with Nicole Kidman, and has enjoyed superstar status ever since.