Biographic - Sunday January 23, 2011 Comic Strip Licensing and Permissions

Transcript

His mother was a dancer and a circus clown. Once grandfather was a stage actor, and the other doubled for John Wayne in a couple of films. His great-uncle was a lifelong actor with over 20 movies to his credit. For Christian Bale, the child star who grew up to play Batman, the acting bug was definitely in the blood.... Born in Pembrokeshire, Wales, on January 30, 1974, Christian Charles Philip Bale was raised in England, Portugal and California. A child actor, he appeared in a number of television commercials as well as worked in the theater, most notably opposite Rowan Atkinson in "The Nerd." He made his screen debut in the 1986 TV movie "Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna." He beat out 4,000 other youngsters to land the lead in Steven Spielberg's "Empire Of The Sun" going on to earn rave reviews for his performance. His starring role as Jim Hawkins, opposite Charlton Heston as Long John Silver in a TV remake of "Treasure Island" was followed by the lead in the 1992 musical "Newsies" and 1993's "Swing Kids" movies that each required intensive dance training. After voicing the Thomas character in 1995's animated hit "Pocahontas" he went on to tackle a series of roles that showcased his versatility. Christian portrayed a decadent rock star in "Velvet Goldmine" before tackling roles as diverse as Demetrius in Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and "Jesus of Nazareth" in the made-for-tv "Mary, Mother Of Jesus" His transformation from child actor to adult star was completed by his chilling performances in "American Psycho" and "Shaft." "Captain Corelli's Mandolin" and "Reign Of Fire" continued to extend his range, and he shed more than 60 pounds for "The Machinist." Since 2005's "Batman Begins" he has been the latest incarnation of the famous caped crusader, and also appeared as John Connor in the fourth installment of "The Terminator" movie series. Acclaimed performances in the likes of "3:10 To Yuma" and "Public Enemies" were followed by a Golden Globe Nomination for "The Fighter."

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