A tall, soft-spoken and leathery leading man who, since the 1960s, has diversified into directing and producing after achieving iconic status, Clint Eastwood arose from the world of television westerns to become the number-one box-office star in the world, and subsequently earned critical acclaim as a director. His production company, Malpaso, has crafted moderate-budget features that range from mainstream fare to personal and ambitious endeavors. Eastwood is not entirely part of the Hollywood establishment—his business is run out of Carmel, California, on the Monterey Peninsula, where he has also served as mayor and ran a restaurant.

 A child actor who made the transition to adult roles, Christian Slater began his career in NYC on stage and in the world of daytime dramas. The gifted young performer appeared alongside Dick Van Dyke in "The Music Man" (1980) and appeared in the Broadway musicals "Copperfield" (1981) and "Merlin" (1983). Almost simultaneously, he made inroads in soap operas like "One Life to Live" and "All My Children". In 1985, he joined "Ryan's Hope" as the delinquent boyfriend of Ryan Fennelli (Yasmine Bleeth)—a show on which his father had played the leading character of Frank Ryan in the late 1970s.

 A vibrant, toothpick-thin comedian, actor and writer whose stand-up material has often dared to take on the African-American establishment yet found the universality in the American experience, Chris Rock became the favored comic de jour after distinguishing himself on NBC's "Saturday Night Live" from 1990-93. He later headlined two HBO specials and launched his own talk show "The Chris Rock Show" on HBO in 1997.

 The third son of actor Martin Sheen, intense, square-jawed Charlie Sheen exploded into the public's consciousness as the narrator-grunt of Oliver Stone's autobiographical Vietnam War picture "Platoon" (1986), a deja vu of sorts that returned him to the Philippines, the scene of his first feature film (as an extra), Francis Ford Coppola's "Apocalypse Now" (1979), starring his father. That performance coupled with his role as Michael Douglas' unscrupulous protégé whose naked ambition leads him into conflict with his blue-collar father (played by his real-life dad) in Stone's "Wall Street" the following year, catapulted him to the status of one of the hottest young actors in Hollywood. Since then, Sheen has worked prolifically, but for much of the 90s, it was his profligacy that earned the biggest headlines and arguably prevented him from fulfilling his early promise.

 While still in his twenties, the likeable and low-key Casey Affleck, who enjoyed a slow and steady rise as an actor, saw the show business mechanics from the inside out while watching his older brother Ben Affleck gain meteoric Hollywood success – as well as the inevitable and subsequently vicious backlash. Still, the younger Affleck saw himself on another path, eschewing studio-produced Frankenstein projects in favor of eclectic character parts. The promise of his early work in “To Die For” (1995) and “Good Will Hunting” (1997) did eventually lead him to the blockbuster types like “Ocean’s Eleven” (2001) and its star-packed sequels. While nestled comfortably into one of Hollywood’s most entertaining ensembles, Affleck still found a way to comfortably transform in a variety of projects, creating a witty, quirky onscreen persona along the way.

 A raffish performer whose relaxed style and working-class persona made him an indelible favorite during his star-making turn on the quirky detective series, “Moonlighting” (ABC, 1985-89), actor Bruce Willis used his cocky charm and insatiable will to become one of the biggest movie stars in the world. A surprisingly versatile performer, Willis hit his peak as an action hero during the late 1980s and early 1990s, especially as the star of the behemoth hit “Die Hard” (1988).

Exuding an air of gravitas in whatever role he played, Academy-Award winner Sir Ben Kingsley made a specialty of playing historical characters, ranging from Dmitri Shostakovich in "Testimony (1987) to mobster Meyer Lansky in "Bugsy" (1991). His most acclaimed performance, however, was in Sir Richard Attenborough’s epic biopic “Gandhi” (1984), in which he played the title role of one of the 20th Century’s most revered and influential figures.

BIOGRAPHY

Despite his pretty boy looks and movie star charisma, actor Brad Pitt spent most of his career trying to avoid bloated box office leads, in favor of riskier, lower profile roles.

Morgan Freeman was in serious condition after being involved in a car accident Sunday night in Mississippi. Him and a female passenger were airlifted to a hospital in Memphis after the actor's car flipped several times. Although the "jaws of life" were used to extract him from the car, Freeman was said to be in good spirits, conscious and even making a few jokes as people crowded around to see the star.