Don Cheadle Biography
Summary
"Donald Frank Cheadle" (born November 29, 1964) is an Academy Award-nominated and Golden Globe Award-winning American actor.
Biography
Early life
Cheadle was born in Kansas City, Missouri, the son of Betty, a bank manager and a teacher, and Donald Cheadle, a child psychologist. He has a sister, Cindy, and a brother, Colin. Cheadle graduated in 1982 from East High School in Denver, Colorado with Rap Pioneer Lorenzo C. Rowland Jr., better known as MC Clayskee. Cheadle went on to graduate from the California Institute of the Arts.
Career
Cheadle got his film breakthrough playing the role of 'Rocket' in the 1988 movie "Colors". He can be noticed in the opening minutes of the film when he shoots a rival gang member. In 1989, he appeared in a video for Angela Winbush's #2 hit single 'It's The Real Thing', performing dance moves in an orange jump suit, working at a car wash.
Cheadle first received widespread notice for his portrayal of Mouse Alexander in the film Devil in a Blue Dress, for which he won Best Supporting Actor awards from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and the National Society of Film Critics, and was nominated for similar awards from the Screen Actors Guild and the NAACP Image Awards. His fame spread with a recurring role as the district attorney on the television series "Picket Fences". Since then he has appeared in films including "Rosewood", "The Family Man", "Boogie Nights", a cameo appearance in the film "Abby Singer", "Out of Sight", "Traffic", and "Ocean's Eleven" (2001). These last three were directed by Steven Soderbergh. In 2005, Cheadle was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Paul Rusesabagina in "Hotel Rwanda", a story about a Hutu hotel manager in Rwanda who sheltered hundreds of Tutsis and other refugees from murderous militias during the Rwandan genocide in mid-1994. He also starred in, and was one of the producers of "Crash", which won the 2005 Academy Award for Best Picture.
Cheadle was to make his directorial debut with the adaptation of Elmore Leonard's "Tishomingo Blues". In a July, 2007 interview he stated, "Tishomingo' is dead...'
Cheadle has also appeared in NFL commercials promoting the Super Bowl from 2002 to 2005. He so regularly appeared for the NFL in its Super Bowl advertising that in 2006, in a drive to have fans submit their own advertising ideas, the NFL sought his permission to reference his previous commercials to portray themselves as having no new ideas -- 'he quickly signed off on the idea and found it funny.' Abe Sutton (along with Etan Bednarsh), one of the finalists in this NFL contest, played on this commercial by proposing an ad where an entire team of football players are comprised of Don Cheadle.
Although he loves acting, Cheadle struggles with balancing his career with his family life. Ideally he would want a less time-consuming career, such as writing or producing, until after his children turn 18.
Personal life
Cheadle has been in a relationship with actress Bridgid Coulter, now his wife, since the early 1990s. They have two daughters, Ayana and Imani.
In 2007 the book "Not On Our Watch: The Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond" was published, which Cheadle co-wrote with John Prendergast, a humanitarian with much experience in Africa with the International Crisis Group. Cheadle is also behind Not On Our Watch, an organization that focuses global attention and resources to stop and prevent mass atrocities as in Darfur, along with George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, and Jerry Weintraub.
According to Brett Ratner, director of the film "After the Sunset", Cheadle is an expert player of the game of Go, and advised Pierce Brosnan and Salma Hayek for a scene in the film in which they play it.
According to the episode of the 'National Heads-Up Poker Championship' aired on NBC on 15 April 2007, Cheadle defeated noted poker champion Phil Ivey in the first round of the tournament. The two met in the 'Hearts & Diamonds' bracket. Cheadle, as an amateur player, was considered a significant underdog against the professional Ivey, notorious for his stone-cold 'poker face'. On the episode aired April 29, 2007, in the second round of the tournament, Cheadle was defeated and knocked out of the tournament by Vegas poker pro Scott Fischman.
At the 2007 World Series of Poker, Cheadle and poker player Annie Duke organized a charity poker tournament, 'Ante Up for Africa'. Many Hollywood actors are expected to play in the tournament, which will have a $5,000 buy-in. Money finishers are encouraged to donate part of their winnings to The International Rescue Committee or The ENOUGH Project.
Filmography
"Moving Violations" (1985)
"Hamburger Hill" (1987)
"Colors" (1988)
"Roadside Prophets (1992)
"The Meteor Man" (1993)
"Lush Life" (1993) (TV movie)
"Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead" (1995)
"Devil in a Blue Dress" (1995)
"Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault" (1996) (TV movie)
"Volcano" (1997)
"Rosewood" (1997)
"Boogie Nights" (1997)
"Out of Sight" (1998)
"The Rat Pack" (1998)
"Bulworth" (1998)
"A Lesson Before Dying" (1999) (TV movie)
"Traffic" (2000)
"Mission to Mars" (2000)
"Fail Safe" (2000) (TV movie)
"The Family Man" (2000)
"Things Behind the Sun" (2001)
"Manic" (2001)
"Swordfish" (2001)
"Rush Hour 2" (2001) (uncredited)
"Ocean's Eleven" (2001)
"Abby Singer" (2003) (cameo)
"The United States of Leland" (2003)
"Ocean's Twelve" (2004)
"The Cookout" (2004)
"After the Sunset" (2004)
"The Assassination of Richard Nixon" (2004)
"Hotel Rwanda" (2004)
"Crash" (2005)
"Reign Over Me" (2007)
"Talk to Me" (2007)
"Ocean's Thirteen" (2007)
"Darfur Now" (Out Nov. 2, 2007)
"Toussaint" (2008) (pre-production)
"Traitor" (2008)
Television series
"Fame" 2 episodes (1986)
"L.A. Law" (1986)
"Hill Street Blues" (1987)
"The Bronx Zoo" (1987)
"Night Court" (1988)
"Hooperman" (1988)
"Booker" (1989)
"China Beach" (1990)
"The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" (1990)
"Hangin' With Mr. Cooper" 2 episodes (1992)
"The Golden Palace" (1992-1993)
"Picket Fences" (1993-1995)
"The Simpsons" in episode: 'Faith Off' (2000)
"The Bernie Mac Show" (2002)
"ER" 4 episodes (2002)
"MAD TV" 2 episodes (2002-2003)
"The Colbert Report" 1 episode (2006)
"The Henry Rollins Show" 1 episode (2007)
The Office
External links
(European edition of Don Cheadle's book Not on Our Watch (published by Maverick House 2007))
(10 Questions for Don Cheadle) on Time.com (a division of Time Magazine)
(Not On Our Watch: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, Jerry Weintraub)
Credit
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article about Don Cheadle.
