photo:
http://gossip.whyfame.com/files/2010/07/mel_gibson.jpg
Biography
Overview
Gibson was born in Peekskill, New York, the sixth of ten children born to Hutton Gibson (the son of a US businessman John Hutton Gibson and an Irish-Australian opera singer Eva Mylott) and Anne Reilly Gibson (who was born in the USA to Irish immigrants). The family also adopted a child, bringing the total number of children in the family to eleven. One of Mel's younger brothers, Donal, is also an actor.
Although Gibson always maintained his United States citizenship, he lived in Australia from the age of twelve. Following a victory on the TV game show Jeopardy!, Gibson's father moved his family to Australia in 1968 in protest of the Vietnam War for which his elder sons were potentially at risk for being drafted, and also because he believed that changes in American society were immoral. Early Gibson films feature a distinct, noticeable Australian accent.
Some people have criticised Mel Gibson and his father for their traditional Catholic beliefs and political views, which have drawn accusations of Anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial.
Extremely devoted to his faith, as evidenced by his production of The Passion of the Christ, Mel Gibson has donated money to finance the construction of an "Independent" Traditional Catholic chapel in Malibu, California, in which only the Latin Tridentine Mass is celebrated.
Gibson married Robyn Moore on June 7, 1980, with whom he has the following children:
daughter, Hannah (born 1980)
twin sons, Edward and Christian (born 1982)
son, Willie (born 1985)
son, Louis (born 1988)
son, Milo (born 1990)
son, Tommy (born 1999)
Rumors that Hannah was going to become a nun were quashed by the family after initial mention in the media.
His wife remains an Anglican despite 26 years of marriage to Gibson. Hutton never disapproved of her religion, saying that "true love knows no boundaries". Nor has Gibson attempted to convert her (although all their children are Catholic, not Anglican).
Film career
Helen Hunt and Mel Gibson in What Women Want
After graduating from the National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1977, Gibson's acting career began in Australia with appearances in the television series including The Sullivans, Cop Shop and Punishment.
He made his Australian movie debut as the leather-clad post-apocalyptic survivor in George Miller's Mad Max, which later became a cult hit and launched two of its own sequels. His international profile increased through Peter Weir's anti-war First World War film Gallipoli. Gibson's boyish good looks made him a natural for leading man roles. In 1984, he made his US movie debut, starring as Fletcher Christian in The Bounty. Actor Anthony Hopkins played Captain Bligh opposite Gibson.
In December 2005, it was announced that Gibson will produce a television movie about Dutch Holocaust survivor Flory Van Beek, although it had been rumoured previously that he would make a movie about the Maccabees.
Gibson's next film, Apocalypto, will be a mythic action-adventure set in the days of the Mayan civilization.
Lethal Weapon and Hamlet
Main articles: Lethal Weapon and Hamlet
Gibson moved to more mainstream filmmaking with the popular Lethal Weapon series, where he starred as a maverick and violent cop Martin Riggs in a buddy relationship with his older and more conservative partner played by Danny Glover. Gibson surprisingly moved to the classical genre, playing the melancholy Danish prince in Franco Zeffirelli's movie of Shakespeare's Hamlet (1990). Gibson has been equally successful as a comedic actor, in movies such as Maverick (1994) and What Women Want (2000).
Braveheart
Main article: Braveheart
In 1996, Gibson received two Academy Awards (Best Director and Best Picture) for Braveheart (1995), based on the life of Sir William Wallace, a thirteenth century Scottish warlord who fought the English in the late 13th century and early 14th century. Gibson played Wallace.
The Passion of the Christ
Main article: The Passion of the Christ
The Passion of the Christ
Gibson co-wrote, produced and directed The Passion of the Christ (2004), a movie in Aramaic, Hebrew and Latin, recounting a description of the last twelve hours of the life of Jesus. The movie has received praise, including from Christians and a number of politically conservative Jewish leaders and scholars (e.g., Michael Medved, David Horowitz, and Steven Waldman).
The movie was initially criticised by some Christian and Jewish figures, a number of whom claimed that it may promote anti-Semitism, as it relies on imagery similar to that of passion-plays, a mainstream Christian tradition that some activists believe to be capable of inciting anti-Semitic incidents. The movie has been criticised by a group of Protestant scholars for its adherence in a number of scenes and details to the visions of a 17th century mystic and nun, the Venerable Mary of Agreda and a 19th century German visionary, Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich, both Roman Catholics. Despite such fears, no anti-Semitic incidents traceable to the movie's influence ever materialized.
Gibson was asked if his movie would be offensive to Jews today; his response was:
It's not meant to. I think it's meant to just tell the truth. I want to be as truthful as possible. But when you look at the reasons Christ came, he was crucified—he died for all mankind and he suffered for all mankind. So that, really, anyone who transgresses has to look at their own part or look at their own culpability.
He also stated on his decision to cut a scene in which Caiaphas says "his blood be on us and on our children" soon after Pontius Pilate washes his hands of Jesus:
I wanted it in. My brother said I was wimping out if I didn't include it. But, man, if I included that in there, they'd be coming after me at my house. They'd come to kill me. [1], [2], [3], [4]
When the Carmelite nuns at the convent in Coimbra, Portugal got word out that they wanted to see a copy of the film before it was released on DVD, Gibson personally arranged for a special digital screening from one inch tape and shipped in a projector and screens to view it and introduced the film in person. Later, he stopped by again to have a private meeting with the convent's most famous nun, Sister Lucia, who was 97 and was the last survivor of the three children who saw the vision of the Our Lady of Fatima, the Virgin Mary, and were said to have been given secrets by her, known as the Three Secrets of Fatima. Sister Lucia died not long after.
In spite of the criticism (or perhaps helped by it), the movie grossed US$611,899,420 worldwide ($370,782,930 in the US alone) and became the eighth highest-grossing film in history. Currently, in 2006, it is the 28th highest-grossing film and the highest-grossing rated R film of all time. Despite this, the film went without any significant recognition by the major American film award celebrations, although it was nominated for Best music (score), Best cinematography, and Best make-up at the 77th Academy Awards.
In criticism of the film, many critics pointed out that this film is semi-autobiographical for Gibson. They referred to past films such as the Lethal Weapon series and Braveheart, in which Gibson starred, where his character has been brutally attacked and beaten, much like Jesus in this film.
Apocalypto
Main article: Apocalypto
Apocalypto
Gibson's next historical epic, Apocalypto, will be released into theaters in the summer of 2006. The film is set 600 years ago in Meso-America, before the Spanish conquest, during the decline of the Maya. Dialogue is spoken in the Yucatec Maya language, in the same way Gibson used Aramaic and Latin for his The Passion of the Christ. It will feature a cast of unknown actors from Mexico City, the Yucatán, and some Native Americans from the United States.
While Gibson financed the film himself, Disney will release it in certain markets.
All that has been revealed about the plot is that the film is set against the turbulent end times of the once great Mayan civilization. When a Mayan man's idyllic existence is brutally disrupted by a violent invading force, he is taken on a perilous journey. Through a twist of fate and spurred by the power of his love for his woman and his family he will make a desperate break to return home and to ultimately save his way of life.
The title is a Greek term which means "an unveiling" or "new beginning", but the movie is not religiously themed or connected to the biblical Apocalypse.
Controversies
Some gay rights groups have accused Gibson of homophobia for a 1992 interview in the Spanish magazine El Pais. In the interview, when asked what he thought of gay people, he said, "They take it up the ass." Gibson then bent over and pointed to his buttocks, saying "This is only for taking a shit." When the interviewer recalled that Gibson previously had expressed fear that people would think he is gay because he's an actor, Gibson responded in saying "Do I sound like a homosexual? Do I talk like them? Do I move like them?" Gibson later defended his comments on Good Morning America, saying "I don't think there's an apology necessary, and I'm certainly not giving one. [Those remarks were a response] to a direct question. If someone wants my opinion, I'll give it. What, am I supposed to lie to them?"
In January 1997, to make amends with the gay community and to show that he is not homophobic, Gibson hosted along with Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) ten lesbian and gay filmmakers for an on-location seminar on the set of the movie Conspiracy Theory. During the seminar Gibson provided up-and-coming lesbian and gay filmmakers with an up-close and personal look into the inner workings of a major Hollywood feature film. [5]
Other groups were later angry at the depiction of a homosexual character in Braveheart. However, historians agree that the character, the Prince (later King) Edward II of England, was indeed homosexual, and also agree with what was portrayed in the movie of the King being a mere puppet of Thomas of Lancaster (though Edward's father never threw his lover out of a window). It should also be noted that Gibson did not write the screenplay for that film.
Gibson was accused of homophobia once more in his movies with his portrayal of Herod Antipas in The Passion of the Christ. Antipas is portrayed as an effeminate homosexual (despite never being explicitly stated, some people believe it is implied as such). Although this was a common caricature of Herod in medieval Passion plays, it does not appear in the Gospels and is contrary to the historical record regarding Antipas.
In 2006, Gibson threatened[6] to sue Melgibsonsblog.blogspot.com (link), a hoax website which a person pretending to be Gibson writes ridiculous statement, if the site did not shut down. The site remains open, however.
Despite the fact that he has been perceived as being a conservative Republican (even though he has never identified himself as such), Gibson joined many of his colleagues in the entertainment industry in opposition to the Iraq War and even praised Michael Moore's documentary film Fahrenheit 9/11, leading some to question labeling him as a conservative. Gibson has however been vocal in his support for the death penalty, and in 2004 publicly condemned stem-cell reasearch. In March 2005 he issued a statement condemning the euthanasia of Terri Schiavo.
Trivia
Mel Gibson's "hidden" one-frame cameo appearance in the teaser trailer for Apocalypto
In Gibson's early Australian television and film roles, he spoke in a heavy general Australian accent. His voice was even dubbed in the US release of Mad Max (along with the rest of the cast). In the early 1990s, he began to lose the accent after having lived in the United States for over a decade. In fact, even in 1987's Lethal Weapon his accent is only slightly discernable. He now speaks in an American accent.
Gibson was born with a physical anomaly called "Horseshoe kidney". His two kidneys are fused at the base into a U shape. This fusion anomaly occurs in about one of every 400 people.
In December 2004, Gibson purchased Mago Island from Tokyu Corporation of Japan for $15 million. [7] Descendants of the original native inhabitants of Mago (who were displaced in the 1860s) have protested the purchase.
He is a teetotaller.
Gibson has a one-frame cameo appearance in the teaser trailer of Apocalypto.
With his earnings from The Passion of the Christ, Gibson constructed a church on his California estate. He also donated $100 million of the film's earnings to the Catholic church.
Prankster
Gibson has a reputation for being a prankster on the set of his movies, and many of his leading ladies have often accused him of acting juvenile on the set. On the set of Conspiracy Theory, he played several pranks on co-star Julia Roberts, and grossed out co-star Jodie Foster by licking the dirt off a wagon wheel on the set of Maverick. On the set of Braveheart, he spread the false rumor that co-star Sophie Marceau was the grandaughter of famous French mime Marcel Marceau. He also directed several scenes in an Elmer Fudd voice, including the funeral scene of Murron Wallace, causing everyone to break down laughing. Before the filming of What Women Want, co-star Helen Hunt pleaded with Gibson to be spared of his pranks. Reportedly, there was no incident.
Quotes
"Vatican II corrupted the institution of the church. Look at the main fruits: dwindling numbers and pedophilia." - Time, January 27, 2003
"Why are they calling her a Nazi? ...Because modern secular Judaism wants to blame the Holocaust on the Catholic Church. And it's a lie. And it's revisionism. And they've been working on that one for a while." - On criticism of Anne Catherine Emmerich, an 18th century nun whose writings influenced his portrayal of Jesus' death and also featured what Gibson's opponents consider anti-Semitic overtones. The New Yorker, September 15, 2003
Filmography
As actor
Summer City (1977)
I Never Promised You a Rose Garden (1977)
Mad Max (1979)
Tim (1979)
The Chain Reaction (1980)
Gallipoli (1981)
Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)
Attack Force Z (1982)
The Year of Living Dangerously (1982)
The Bounty (1984)
The River (1984)
Mrs. Soffel (1984)
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985)
Lethal Weapon (1987)
Tequila Sunrise (1988)
Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)
Bird on a Wire (1990)
Air America (1990)
Hamlet (1990)
Lethal Weapon 3 (1992)
Earth and the American Dream (1992) (documentary) (narrator)
Forever Young (1992) (also executive producer)
The Chili Con Carne Club (1993) (short subject)
The Man Without a Face (1993)
Maverick (1994)
Braveheart (1995)
Ransom (1996)
Fathers' Day (1997) (Cameo)
Conspiracy Theory (1997)
FairyTale: A True Story (1997) (Cameo)
Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)
Payback (1999)
The Million Dollar Hotel (2000)
Chicken Run (2000) (voice)
The Patriot (2000)
What Women Want (2000)
The One Dollar Diary (2001) (documentary)
We Were Soldiers (2002)
Signs (2002)
Acting Lessons: Should Have Looked Like Mel (2003) (short subject)
Paparazzi (2004) (also producer)
Sam and George (2007) (currently announced start of production) (also producer)
As director
The Man Without a Face (1993)
Braveheart (1995)
The Passion of the Christ (2004) (also producer and writer)
Apocalypto (2006) (currently in pre-production) (also executive producer, producer, and writer)
Awards & accomplishments
Best Actor in a Lead Role, Tim (1979)
Australian Film Institute: Best Actor in a Lead Role, Gallipoli (1981)
People's Choice Awards: Favorite Motion Picture Actor (1991)
MTV Movie Awards: Best Action Sequence, Lethal Weapon 3 (1993)
MTV Movie Awards: Best On-Screen Duo, Lethal Weapon 3 (1993) - shared with Danny Glover
ShoWest Award: Male Star of the Year (1993)
National Board of Review: Special Achievement in Filmmaking, Braveheart (1995)
American Cinematheque Gala Tribute: American Cinematheque Award (1995)
ShoWest Award: Director of the Year (1996)
Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards: Best Director, Braveheart (1996)
Golden Globe Awards: Best Director, Braveheart (1996)
Academy Awards: Best Director, Braveheart (1996)
Academy Awards: Best Picture, Braveheart (1996)
People's Choice Awards: Favorite Motion Picture Actor (1997)
Hasty Pudding Theatricals: Man of the Year (1997)
Blockbuster Entertainment Awards: Favorite Actor - Suspense, Ransom (1997)
Blockbuster Entertainment Awards: Favorite Actor - Suspense, Conspiracy Theory (1998)
People's Choice Awards: Favorite Motion Picture Star in a Drama (2001)
People's Choice Awards: Favorite Motion Picture Actor (2001)
Blockbuster Entertainment Awards: Favorite Actor - Drama, The Patriot (2001)
Australian Film Institute: Global Achievement Award (2002)
People's Choice Awards: Favorite Motion Picture Actor (2003)
People's Choice Awards: Favorite Motion Picture Actor (2004)
Named as the world's most powerful celebrity by US business magazine Forbes (2004)
