Thanks to his casual, off-hand charm and self-deprecating comic timing, British actor Pierce Brosnan firmly established himself as a commanding presence with his first introduction to American audiences as the sophisticated, but often inept con man-turned-private investigator, “Remington Steele” (NBC, 1982-87). Almost immediately, there were calls in the media for Brosnan to assume the mantle of James Bond from fading star Roger Moore.

Despite being the son of James Brolin, stepson of Barbra Streisand and husband of Diane Lane, actor Josh Brolin struggled like any actor trying to forge a career – but unlike most others – he forged his in the shadow of three formidable talents. In fact, ever since his debut in the kiddie adventure comedy, “The Goonies” (1985), Brolin languished for years in roles that were well below his station. He did, however, reserve the right to be picky, often passing on projects other actors would opt to take.

Almost from his debut performance as an orphan from New York City who finds a new life in Nebraska in the PBS period drama "Home at Last" (1988), Adrien Brody has garnered critical kudos and made audiences sit up and take notice. The lanky, angular-featured, dark-haired actor seemed to be poised on the verge of stardom after landing the coveted role of Corporal Fife, the authorial stand-in in Terrence Malick's highly-anticipated filming of James Jones' World War II novel "The Thin Red Line" (1998). Unfortunately, his part was edited down to little more than a cameo, an insult only compounded by the amount of advance press his starring role had received. Still, the young actor persevered, and made a name for himself with subsequent portrayals that showcased his talent and classically compelling screen presence.

The thinking man’s nerd, Adam Brody so inhabited the charm of the neurotic Seth Cohen on “The O.C.” (Fox, 2003-07), that many believed he was simply playing a version of himself, so completely did he nail the character. Fans of both sexes admired the actor’s unmistakable cool vibe, but they also worshipped his knowledge of the underground music scene and comic books. The idea of “geek” suddenly became “chic,” with Brody the crown prince of a new idea of teen spirit.

A boyishly affable, stage-trained lead since the 1980s who has displayed gifts for both comedy and drama, Matthew Broderick became established in NYC theater before scoring a big screen success as a young computer wiz caught up in nuclear intrigue in "WarGames" (1983). He has enjoyed significant collaborations with two major playwrights--Neil Simon, who provided the young actor with memorable comic roles, and Horton Foote, who allowed him to hone his dramatic skills. Broderick debuted on stage at age 17 in a workshop production of Foote's "On Valentine's Day" with his late father James Broderick and went on to win acclaim for his portrayal of David, the adopted gay son of drag queen Arnold Beckoff (Harvey Fierstein) in the Off-Broadway production of "Torch Song Trilogy".

Actor Jim Broadbent rose from the ranks of British theater to become an internationally acclaimed player, recognized for excessive theatrical romps like “Topsy Turvy” (1999) and “Moulin Rouge” (2001), as well as subtle character-based dramas “Life is Sweet” (1991) and “Iris” (2001). Considered by many to be the quintessential British character actor, Broadbent was unafraid of throwing himself into eccentric art house characters, mannered Victorian fare, and screwball comedies alike, and was a favorite of high caliber directors including Mike Leigh, Mike Newell, Stephen Frears, and Terry Gilliam, whose repeated castings of the actor served as a testament to the actor’s versatility and down-to-earth professionalism. Broadbent received many accolades in his career, but his role as Horace Slughorn in “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” (2008) would likely provide his largest international audience yet.

A versatile child actor who quickly amassed a substantial resume that performers three times his age, Cameron Bright emerged as a young star to watch.
Bright (who was initially credited as Cameron Crigger) started his acting career appearing in several major commercials in both Canada and the United States. He quickly moved to a number of TV series, including Fox's "Dark Angel," Warner Brothers' "Night Visions," and Fox Family Channel's "Higher Ground," in which he played a young Joe Lando.

To call Jeff Bridges "the most underappreciated great actor of his generation," as did Janet Maslin in her The New York Times review of "American Heart" (1992), became something of a cliché in contemporary film criticism. Hailed for his relaxed, naturalistic performance style, Bridges remained an A-list leading man for over four decades without the benefit of ever having been a box-office champ. Furthermore, Bridges accomplished this feat without ever having to resort to the broad self-parody of such contemporaries as Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson and Robert De Niro. Basically a character actor with leading man looks, Bridges built his reputation with a wide assortment of parts in various genres. Much like the late, great Spencer Tracy, however, Bridges’ greatest talent was his ability to take on complex, morally ambiguous characters with such ease that people accused him of playing himself.

A two-time Emmy and Golden Globe winner, this amiable character actor and eldest son of actor Lloyd Bridges and brother Jeff Bridges began his career as a child, appearing in such films as "Force of Evil" (1948) and Lewis Milestone's "The Red Pony" (1949). Graduating into more adult roles in the late 1960s, Bridges became known for his convincing everyman roles on both the large and small screens – in contrast to his younger brother, Jeff, who almost exclusively appeared in features. A diversely talented actor, Bridges comfortably fit into a number of genres – drama, comedy, historical biopics; even science-fiction. Showing no sign of slowing down, Bridges continued to be a ubiquitous presence in television well into the new millennium on the big screen as well.

A fan favorite on one of the longest-running TV sensations of the 1990s, Brian Austin Green grew up, literally, in front of America as the less-than-cool but still in-the-in-crowd musician wannabe, David Silver, on Fox's saga of adolescent crisis, "Beverly Hills, 90210" (1990-2000). It was on this iconic show that Green's Silver attempted to both launch a rap music career, as well as almost deflower longtime love interest Donna Martin, played by real life boss Aaron Spelling's daughter, Tori Spelling.

An intense black character player and occasional lead, Andre Braugher gained considerable critical attention for his portrayal of Detective Frank Pembleton on the acclaimed series "Homicide" before he left the show to pursue a film acting career. Braugher studied theater at Stanford and later at Juilliard, acting with the New York Shakespeare Festival (NYSF) in plays including "King John" and "The Rehearsal" while attending the latter.

Handsome, with chiseled, smooth looks and deep olive skin, Benjamin Bratt became known to TV viewers in 1995 when he joined the hit NBC series "Law & Order" in its sixth season, creating the role of Reyaldo 'Rey' Curtis, whose mestizo ancestry--mixed Latino-Indian and German background--matched Bratt's own. His character on the series, a family-oriented younger cop with conservative values, provided a marked contrast to the older, more liberal and cynical Det. Lenny Briscoe (Jerry Orbach). Bratt's insertion into the long-running series went smoothly with no loss of ratings, and audiences stuck by Rey even when he fell into the arms of another woman. After four seasons on the series, however, the actor opted to leave at the end of the 1998-1999 season in order to pursue other interests. He went on a high note, earning a supporting actor Emmy nomination.

An influential, eccentric stage and screen actor--perhaps the most influential and respected of his generation--Marlon Brando first made his name as an exponent of 'The Method', an acting style based on the teachings of Constantin Stanislavsky.
We have a 6 part interview with Larry King - unfortunately commercials have not been edited out, but still great.

Once hailed as the “new Laurence Olivier,” Shakespearean-trained actor and director Kenneth Branagh struggled throughout his career to balance his near-obsessive drive to work with the need for a somewhat normal, settled life. After his directorial breakthrough with his excellent interpretation of The Bard’s “Henry V” (1989), Branagh had what appeared to many to be the picture-perfect life – a beautiful wife in Emma Thompson, a thriving career – thanks to his deft thriller “Dead Again” (1991) – and a reputation replete with an air of seriousness and unerring artistic credibility.

Jesse Bradford’s transition from child star and teen talent to mature actor was remarkably smooth by Hollywood standards – the former Connecticut native endured no career embarrassments, no public humiliations, and retained the qualities that first drew audiences to him in his debut in Ulu Grosbard’s drama, “Falling in Love” (1984). Those qualities – a quick wit, a charming smile, and a knack for both comedy and drama – helped him land adult roles in a wide variety of acclaimed films in recent years
Actor Raoul Bova has enjoyed enormous success and popularity in his native Italy. His debut film, “Una Story Italiana” (1992), was both critically acclaimed and a hit at the box office. But to American audiences, the handsome and talented actor has remained a virtual unknown. With his American film debut, “Under the Tuscan Sun” (2003), directed by Audrey Wells and co-starring Oscar nominee Diane Lane, Bova attempted to achieved the same success he has enjoyed in his homeland.
David Boreanaz made a name for himself playing a blood-sucking vampire with a soul on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (WB, UPN, 1997-2003) and “Angel” (WB, 1999-2004) as well as a former Army sniper who keeps company with decomposing corpses on “Bones” (Fox, 2005-). Onscreen and offscreen, the actor endeared himself to legions of fans pleased to discover that the ripped actor who was no stranger to “Sexiest People” tabloid lists was a dog-loving, down-to-earth guy who cited his Philadelphia weatherman father as one of his biggest influences.
After his classic childhood stint on “The Partridge Family” (ABC, 1970-74), Danny Bonaduce became the pen-ultimate cautionary tale of all the damage early stardom can inflict on a child – particularly on a child lacking a stable, loving home to begin with. Although he eventually found a number of ways to capitalize on his gift for gab – including radio shows and the reality TV show “Breaking Bonaduce” (VH1, 2005- ) – it was ultimately the notoriety of being Danny Bonaduce, former child star run amok, that became his greatest and most recognizable asset.
Had Orlando Bloom’s career stalled after just a few years, the English actor’s place in film history would have still been assured. He was, after all, the second actor to appear in two of three movies to earn over one billion dollars at the box office – namely, “The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King” (2003) and “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” (2006).
A charismatic young performer with an instantly recognizable mane of frizzy hair, actor/singer/dancer Corbin Bleu was launched into global stardom in 2006, thanks largely to his role in The Disney Channel’s pop culture juggernaut, “High School Musical.” Though the TV movie was his highest profile project to date, it certainly was not his first, and judging from the fan reaction to his every move, it definitely would not be his last.
Whether playing the earnest young friend of a mysterious village idiot, a beleaguered Texas high school quarterback, or a reckless wayward drag racer, one thing remained consistent with actor Lucas Black – a no-nonsense honesty, thanks in part to his distinctive Southern drawl and a sincere love of his hometown roots before landing in Hollywood.
Actor Jason Biggs displayed a solid comic timing and likable underdog presence with his 1999 breakthrough role in the teen summer comedy "American Pie" that led to comparisons with offbeat comic turned box office draw Adam Sandler, his short dark hair and vaguely startled expression making the likeness all the more apparent.
While American moviegoers got their first eyeful of Paul Bettany as the frequently naked Geoffrey Chaucer in the cheeky "A Knight's Tale" (2001), British theatergoers were already aware of the tall, handsome blond from his year-long stint at the Royal Shakespeare Company and his work in such West End fare as Stephen Daldry's acclaimed 1992 revival of "An Inspector Calls.”
As a multi-faceted actor, writer and director, Peter Berg moved with ease from theater to film to television and back again. After making a name for himself primarily as an actor first and foremost, especially with his regular series role as Dr. Billy Kronk on the acclaimed drama, “Chicago Hope” (CBS, 1994-2000), Berg furthered his aspirations as a writer-director with the ill-received black comedy, “Very Bad Things” (1998).
A ruggedly handsome, blue-eyed, versatile actor, often in brooding, aggressive roles, Tom Berenger came to attention as the self-effacing Tom Selleck-like TV star in Lawrence Kasdan's "The Big Chill" (1983) and also headlined that year's "Eddie and the Cruisers", a film that subsequently acquired enough of a cult following to warrant a 1989 sequel in which he did not appear.
Arkansas native Wes Bentley solidified his reputation as a rising star with a galvanizing performance as Ricky Fitts, the drug-dealing videographer who romances his neighbor's daughter, in the highly-acclaimed "American Beauty" (1999). While in person the young actor tries to downplay his looks, on screen, the combination of his dark hair, piercing blue eyes and handsome features clearly sets him as a future leading man.
Widely hailed as one of the world's funniest men, this loquacious, rubber-faced comic has been one of Italy's most popular actors for much of the last decade. At age 19, Benigni moved from working as a small-town street performer in his native Tuscany to performing stand-up comedy and acting in "experimental" theater in cosmopolitan Rome.
Raised in a very musical family, contemporary gospel singer/actor Eric Benet seemed destined for a career in song from his early youth. Born in Milwaukee, WI, in October of 1970, Benet's father was a police detective with a fondness for classical music. The youngest of five children, Benet shared his father's affection and formed the vocal group Benet while in his teens.
A fresh-faced young British actor with phenomenal talent, Jamie Bell enjoyed critical praise for his debut performance in the delightful "Billy Elliot" (2000). An accomplished tap and ballet dancer since the age of six, Bell’s performance in “Elliot” earned him numerous awards including Britain’s coveted BAFTA award for Best Actor, a category in which he beat out fellow nominees Russell Crowe and Tom Hanks.
Born on Dec. 19, 1970 in The Bronx, NY, model and reality personality Tyson Beckford rose to prominence as a preeminent face for high-end clothier Ralph Lauren and went on to become the first African-American male supermodel. Beckford moved with his family to Jamaica early in life and lived there until he was seven. Back in upstate New York, he attended top-ranked Pittsford Mendon High School in an affluent suburb of Pittsford, thanks to his participation in a busing program that brought youths from urban areas to suburban schools.
Canadian actor Adam Beach parlayed his success in a string of independent features and television series into major roles in Hollywood productions, culminating in the highly visible Clint Eastwood-helmed WWII drama, “Flags of Our Fathers” (2006). With the exposure provided by such a high profile project and director, Beach’s versatility and appeal made him the most visible Native American actor working in film. This emergence allowed Beach to bring his own experiences and inspiration back to Native American youth living in reservations across the country.