Friday, November 9, 2012

Hi, my name is Will Smith, and I'm an Actor

I figured I would start each section with just some info about the actor. I'll try and mix in some random facts along with the boring stuff.




Will Smith's actual name is Willard Christopher Smith Jr. Yeah...Willard...who knew? He was born 25 September 1968 in Philadelphia. He was the second of four kids (Pam and the twins Ellen and Harry). His mom, Caroline, was a school board employee and his dad, Willard Sr., was the owner of a refrigeration company. The Fresh Prince is of both African American and Native American descent. He went to Overbrook High School, where he got the nickname "Prince" because of the the way he charmed his way out of trouble.

He met Jeffrey A. Townes at a party and they started performing as the duo 'DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince." Will Smith didn't exactly have financial skills down yet, so he basically went bankrupt in his early twenties. Thank goodness for the sitcom called "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" based on his life. I'm sure most people have heard of the show and probably get the theme song stuck in their head if I even mention the words 'In West Philadelphia...' so I won't mention them...Oooops.

During the six years that Fresh Prince was running, Will Smith started exploring movie options. He was noticed after the film 'Six Degrees of Separation' released in 1993 (which I will hopefully be getting from Netflix to watch, since I haven't seen it). After 'Bad Boys' was released in 1995, his career was basically off the starting blocks. Then came the long list of films that Will Smith has starred in, some of which I will be watching and sharing my thoughts.

Where the Day Takes You (1992)


Made in America (1993)

Six Degrees of Separation (1993)

Bad Boys (1995)

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990-1996)

Independence Day (1996)

Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child (1997)

Men in Black (1997)

Enemy of the State (1998)

Wild Wild West (1999)

The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000)

Ali (2001)

Men in Black II (2002)

Bad Boys II (2003)

I, Robot (2004)

Shark Tale (2004)

Hitch (2005)

The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

I Am Legend (2007)

Hancock (2008)

Seven Pounds (2008)

Men in Black 3 (2012)

Coming Soon: After Earth (2013), Winter's Tale (2013), Hancock 2, Bad Boys 3, I Robot 2 (2015)

He was married to Sheree Fletcher on 9 May 1992 and had one child, Willard Smith III (Trey Smith). They divorced on 10 December 1995. He then married Jada Pinkett Smith on 31 December 1997 and had two children with her. Most have heard of Jaden Smith and Willow Smith, who now both have careers of their own. He met Jada when she tried out for the role of his girlfriend on 'The Fresh Prince,' even though she didn't get the role, she obviously made an impact.


Okay, here are some random facts about Will Smith:

He received the first ever Grammy for Best Rap Performance for the song 'Parents Just Don't Understand' in 1989.

He enjoys playing chess and speaks fluent Spanish.

He turned down the role of Neo in 'The Matrix.'

Incorporates the line "Aw, hell no!" into all his movies as a running catch phrase.

Gained a place in the Guinness World Records for most public appearances in 12 hours by attending three red carpet premieres for 'Hitch' on 22 February 2005 (which also happens to be my birthday!).

He has been at his adult height of 6'2" since he was 13.

Also has the nickname "Mr. July" by the media because most of his summer movies are released in July.

He and his daughter Willow both released movies on 2 July, 2008: 'Hancock' and 'Kit Kittredge: An American Girl'.

He has solved Rubik's cubes in both 'The Fresh Prince' and 'The Pursuit of Happyness', a talent that he actually has and has shown on live television that he can solve one in under 55 seconds.

President Obama has stated that if someone ever made a film about his life, he would want Will Smith to play his part, because "he has the ears".



Okay, so that's my Will Smith bio. I'm not sure if anyone cares about any of this, but I will do a short bio for the actor that I choose, and then I will watch their movies and do some sort of review. I'll try not to make them too boring, but there will obviously be spoilers. So if you want to watch any of these movies before they are 'ruined', do so before you read any of my posts!

A couple of my favorite Will Smith quotes: "I really believe that a man and a woman together, raising a family, is the purest form of happiness we can experience." "Too many people spend money they haven't earned to buy things they don't want to impress people they don't like."

And one from his grandmother: "Don't let failure go to your heart, and don't let success go to your head."

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