Woody Harrelson

Infobox actor

---

imagesize = 210px
caption = Woody Harrelson, April 2007
birthname = Woodrow Tracy Harrelson
birthdate = birth date and age|1961|7|23
birthplace = Midland, Texas
othername =
homepage =
academyawards =
goldenglobeawards =
emmyawards = Best Supporting Actor - Comedy Series
1989 "Cheers"
goldenraspberryawards = Worst Supporting Actor
1994 "Indecent Proposal"
sagawards = Best Cast - Motion Picture
2007 "No Country for Old Men"
spouse = Laura Louie (1998-present)
Nancy Simon (1985-1986)

Woodrow Tracy "Woody" Harrelson (born July 23 1961) is an American Emmy Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated actor. He is probably best known for his role in the classic sitcom "Cheers" as Woody Boyd. Notable film roles include Roy Munson in "Kingpin", Mickey Knox in "Natural Born Killers", Larry Flynt in "The People vs. Larry Flynt", Dusty in "A Prairie Home Companion" and Carson Wells in "No Country for Old Men".

Biography

Early life

Harrelson was born in Midland, Texas, the son of Diane Lou (née Oswald) and Charles Voyde Harrelson, who divorced in 1964; he has two brothers, Jordan and Brett, the latter of whom is a professional motorcycle racer. In 1979, in San Antonio, Federal Judge John H. Wood, Jr. was shot and killed by rifle fire by Charles Harrelson, who was a free-lance contract killer.cite news |title=Woody Harrelson's Father Dies in Prison |work=Associated Press |publisher=ABC News |date=2007-05-21 |url=http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=2969564&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds0312 ] He was convicted and eventually died during his life sentence in maximum security prison.

Harrelson grew up in Lebanon, Ohio, with his mother. Harrelson attended Lebanon High School and later Hanover College in Indiana, becoming a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity, and receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Theater Arts and English in 1983.

Career

After graduation, Harrelson moved to New York City. In 1985, he was cast as the naive but genial Midwestern bartender Woody Boyd on the classic television series "Cheers", and won an Emmy for the role. His first film was 1986's "Wildcats" with Goldie Hawn. Harrelson became friends with Wesley Snipes and starred with him in the box-office hits "White Men Can't Jump" and "Money Train". He appeared in mostly minor roles until he starred in Robert Redford's "Indecent Proposal" in 1993, a role which helped open doors for Harrelson in the film industry.

In 1994 Harrelson starred in arguably his best known role to date, Mickey Knox in Oliver Stone's "Natural Born Killers". During this time he also starred in the Farrelly brothers cult classic "Kingpin". In 1996, he starred in the title role of the controversial film "The People vs. Larry Flynt", for which he received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. Following this performance Harrelson went to star in films such as "Wag the Dog", "EDtv", "The Thin Red Line" and "Palmetto".

More recently, he had a fairly long run on the NBC sitcom "Will & Grace" as Grace's love interest Nathan and played FBI agent Stan in 2004's "After the Sunset". His most recent films are "A Prairie Home Companion", "A Scanner Darkly", and "No Country for Old Men" which were released in June and July 2006 and November 2007, respectively.

Personal life

In 1985, Harrelson married Nancy Simon, daughter of playwright Neil Simon, in Tijuana. The two intended to divorce the following day, but the storefront marriage/divorce parlor was closed when they had returned to it, and the two remained married for ten months.cite web |date=2007 |url = http://www.hollywood.com/celebrity/Woody_Harrelson/196697|title = Woody Harrelson|format = HTML |publisher = [http://www.hollywood.com/ hollywood.com] | accessdate = 2007-09-09 | last= |quote=whimsically married in Tijuana in 1985 intending to divorce the following day, but when the couple returned to the storefront marriage/divorce parlor, they found it closed because it was Sunday; marriage lasted 10 months; Harrelson would later tell USA TODAY's Tom Green, "We had to get a summary dissolution through Jacoby and Meyers. I think at the time Neil was a little bit worried I might try to go after her money.]

On January 11, 1998, Harrelson married Laura Louie, his former assistant of two years and a co-founder of Yoganics, an organic food delivery service.cite web |date=2007 |url = http://au.movies.yahoo.com/Woody+Harrelson/biography/122689/family/|title = Woody Harrelson|format = HTML |publisher = yahoo| accessdate = 2007-09-09 | last= |quote=wife Laura Louie: born c. 1965; co-founded Yoganics, an organic food home delivery service in 1996; worked as Harrelson's assistant for over two years (1987 to c. 1990)] The couple, who have been together since 1990, have three daughters, Deni Montana (born February 28, 1993), Zoe Giordano (born September 22, 1996), and Makani Ravello (born June 3, 2006). When announcing Makani's birth, the couple referred to the three as their "goddess trilogy".cite web |date=MONDAY JUNE 05, 2006 07:15 PM EDT|url = http://people.aol.com/people/articles/0,19736,1201131,00.html|title = Woody Harrelson, Wife Welcome Daughter|format = HTML |publisher = [http://people.aol.com PEOPLE] | accessdate = 2007-09-09 | last= |quote=We are proud to announce the completion of our goddess trilogy with the birth of our third daughter, Makani Ravello, born on June 3rd]

Activist work

in the US.cite web |date=2007 |url = http://www.e-stoned.com/rec/79-Woody-Harrelson/|title = Woody Harrelson - Cannabis activist and personal freendom supporter|format = HTML |publisher = [http://www.e-stoned.com/ e-stoned.com] | accessdate = 2007-09-09 | last= |quote=among other prominent activists opposed to marijuana prohibition. He has consistently lent his celebrity status to the cause of reforming marijuana laws.Harrelson Backs Medical Pot Grower in California] On June 1, 1996, he was arrested in Kentucky after he symbolically planted four hemp seeds to challenge state law that failed to distinguish between industrial hemp and marijuana. Harrelson won the case.

Harrelson is also an environmental activist. He once scaled the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco with members of North Coast Earth First! group to unfurl a banner that said, "Hurwitz. Aren't ancient redwoods more precious than gold?" in protest of PALCO CEO Charles Hurwitz, who once stated, "He who has the gold, makes the rules".cite web |date=2007 |url = http://www.northcoastearthfirst.org/|title = No Compromise in Defense of Mother Earth! Earth First|format = HTML |publisher = northcoastearthfirst| accessdate = 2007-09-09 | last= |quote=With the help of actor Woody Harrelson, a group of NCEF! activists hung a huge banner from the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, which said, "Charles Hurwitz, Aren't Ancient Redwoods More Precious Than Gold?"] Harrelson, an ethical vegan and raw foodist, has also denounced animal experiments in the cosmetics industry.

He has travelled the American West Coast on a bike and domino caravan with a hemp oil-fueled biodiesel bus (the subject of the independent documentary, "Go Further") and has narrated the documentary "Grass". Harrelson briefly owned an oxygen bar in West Hollywood called "O2". He is also a peace activist and has often spoken publicly against the 2003 invasion of Iraq.Woody Harrelson lives in San Jose, Costa Rica

Filmography

References

External links

*imdb|0000437
* [http://www.voiceyourself.com/ VoiceYourself]
*tvtome person|893
* [http://www.myspace.com/woodyharrelson Woody Harrelson myspace.com]
* [http://www.nocountrymovie.com No Country for Old Men] Official Canadian site