Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Cage (born Nicolas Kim Coppola on January 7, 1964 in Long Beach, CA) is an American actor known for his prolific career in numerous films, playing several charismatic characters over the years and having a "reputation for excess" (in the words of 'The Guardian') both on screen and off. His huge interests in cars, comic books, and rock n roll are almost as well-known as his acting. Cage pursued acting as a career at an early age, making his debut on television as a teenager in 1981. Cage's most prominent performances have also been "bad boy" roles, with the actor winning many awards. In 1989, he received a prestigious Independent Spirit Award, and, over the years, he's also received an Academy Award for Best Actor for his lead role in 'Leaving Las Vegas' and a Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor in 2002 for 'Adaptation'. Having roles in dozens upon dozens of movies, some of Cage's most famous films are Face/Off (1997), National Treasure (2004), and Ghost Rider (2007). Cage has been married three times: to Patricia Arquette, Lisa Marie Presley, and to his current wife, Alice Kim Cage. Cage's father, August Coppola, was a professor of literature, while Cage's mother, Joy Vogelsang, is a dancer and choreographer; Cage's parents divorced in 1976. Cage's mother is of German descent and his father is of Italian descent (his paternal great-grandparents were immigrants from Bernalda, Basilicata). His paternal grandparents were Carmine Coppola, a composer, and Italia Pennino, an actress. Through his father, Cage is the nephew of director Francis Ford Coppola and actress Talia Shire, as well as the cousin of directors Roman Coppola and Sofia Coppola, late film producer Gian-Carlo Coppola, and actors Robert Carmine and Jason Schwartzman. Cage's two brothers are Christopher Coppola, a director; and Marc "The Cope" Coppola, a New York radio personality. Cage, who attended Beverly Hills High School (the same high school as fellow entertainers Albert Brooks, Angelina Jolie, Lenny Kravitz, Slash, Rob Reiner, Richard Dreyfuss, Bonnie Franklin and David Schwimmer), aspired to act from an early age. Cage also attended UCLA School of Theatre, Film, and Television. His first non-cinematic acting experience was in a school production of Golden Boy. He is also good friends with fellow actor Johnny Depp, whom he advised to get into acting. Nicolas was director Sam Raimi's first choice to play Norman Osborn/Green Goblin in the movie Spider-Man. He has created a comic book, with his son Weston, called Voodoo Child, which is published by Virgin Comics. Cage was close friends with Ramones guitarist Johnny Ramone. His enthusiam of classic cars is well known; in 1997 via telephone bid, he broke the auction record for Lamborghini when he placed a bid on a rare Miura SVJ for US$490,000. He has also been a fan and collector of painter and underground comix artist Robert Williams. He has written introductions for Juxtapoz magazine and purchased the painting Death On The Boards. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.