Morgan Freeman

Morgan Freeman is one of the most respected actors in the world today. Freeman was born June 1, 1937 in Memphis, Tennessee from a mother who was a teacher and a father who was a barber.  Any Morgan Freeman biography must include his starring roles as well as his supporting roles over the years. His distinctive speaking voice has made him a natural for dozens of programs and documentaries that he has narrated. Once Freeman decided what his true dream in life was, he devoted himself to his goals and eventually reached great success.

Morgan Freeman BiographyFreeman’s entrance into acting first happened accidentally when he pulled a chair out from under a girl in junior high school. His punishment was to perform in the school play, which he did. This was Morgan Freeman’s first success on the stage because he was the hit of the play.

There was a bigger dream that he held in his heart throughout high school, and that was to be a fighter pilot. After graduating from high school, Freeman turned down a partial drama scholarship to join the U.S. Air Force. Unfortunately, most of his time was spent on the ground as a mechanic during the four years of his service between 1955 and 1959. Freeman decided that his real, true dream was to become an actor.

When he left the Air Force, Morgan Freeman moved to Hollywood, California. His first job there was as a clerk typist, not as an actor. He took acting classes and looked for work without much success. After a while, Freeman moved to New York City where he made his Broadway debut in Hello Dolly! After that, he appeared in another drama, The Nigger Lovers. Although he did well, work was hard to find so he took a job on a popular children’s program entitled, The Electric Company. In the meantime, his personal life was suffering. He was not happy with television, his marriage was failing, and Freeman began to drink too much. He got divorced and followed his dream to be in movies, which begins the next part of the Morgan Freeman biography.

In 1980, Freeman won a part in Brubaker, a film starring Robert Redford. No further movie parts came around, so he took a role in a television soap opera, Another World.  Freeman never quit trying out for movie roles in between his Broadway and television careers, and he finally won another role in 1984 with Paul Newman in the film, Harry and Son. Around this time, he was also the narrator for a television series, The Atlanta Child.

After many years perfecting his acting, success finally came for the actor with his part in Street Smart in which Freeman played a street pimp. His role earned an Oscar nomination, and he won a second nomination for playing a chauffeur in 1989 in Driving Miss Daisy.

The 1990s were some of the best and most successful times for the actor. He was beginning to have bigger roles in movies such as Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves, The Power of One, and Unforgiven with Clint Eastwood. He later appeared in other films – The Shawshank Redemption, and in 1995 Seven, followed by the 1998 film, Deep Impact. In 2005, Freeman won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in Million Dollar Babywith Clint Eastwood. He also appeared in Batman Begins in 2005 as well as its sequel. Freeman’s latest film was Invictus in 2009 when he played the role of Nelson Mandela, South African President in his old age.

Freeman speaks fluent French, has his pilot’s license, and has done charity work such as raising money for Hurricane Katrina victims. He also has a yacht in the Caribbean and loves boating, but his busy schedule leaves little time for to spend on vacation.