A man of few words, Robert De Niro has since the beginning preferred to let his performances do the talking. He has played some of the most remarkable characters in cinema history and won an Academy Award twice – for his role in The Godfather II and Raging Bull.
With over 100 films to his credit in a career spanning 3 decades, this 75-year-old legend is still at it! He has 3 movies in the pipeline and miles to go before he sleeps. On the occasion of his 75th Birthday, Sony Le PLEX HD is paying a tribute to this legend by airing some of his most popular movies such as Analyse This, Analyse That, Wag the Dog, Showtime and 15 minutes all day long on August 17. Here are 10 things you probably didn’t know about your favourite actor but hey, we have got you covered!
1. Robert De Niro's childhood nickname was Bobby Milk
Playing crime bosses in the likes of The Godfather Part II and The Untouchables has given De Niro a fearsome on-screen cred, but he didn’t have quite the same menacing reputation in his younger days. As a child, Robert De Niro was often referred to by kids in the neighbourhood as “Bobby Milk”, because he was as pale as milk and quite thin.
2. Robert and Martin Scorsese knew each other as kids
Well, technically anyway. While they were growing up, De Niro and Scorsese – who went on to make one of the greatest actor-director partnerships in cinema history – lived just streets apart. They were never actually introduced until 1972 at a house party, just before they began making films together, though they’d seen each other around the block plenty of times as kids.
3. Robert gained so much weight for Raging Bull, he developed serious health difficulties
De Niro’s commitment as a method actor is legendary. However, for what’s perhaps his most famous role, as boxer Jake LaMotta in Martin Scorsese’s Raging Bull, De Niro’s dedication reached new life-threatening heights. Having trained for years in the ring to get himself into fighting shape for the first leg of filming, De Niro then quickly gained 66 pounds to transform himself into the older, overweight LaMotta. This led to De Niro having respiratory problems, his breathing becoming such an issue that Scorsese endeavoured to get through the second half of the shoot as quickly as possible.
4. Robert disfigured himself to play Max Cady in Cape Fear
In one of his last efforts practicing the true method style, De Niro went all-out. To play sociopathic killer Max Cady in Martin Scorsese’s Cape Fear, De Niro completely transformed, not just his speech and body, but his pearly whites as well. Robert De Niro paid his dentist $5,000 to make his teeth appear as bad as he possibly could. Once the movie was complete, he paid another $20,000 to have his teeth restored.
5. Robert is one of a handful of people to be given the Medal of Freedom for acting
De Niro has been showered with awards and tributes throughout his career, but the real highlight may have come in 2016, when De Niro – famously a Democrat – was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by then-President Barack Obama. This is the highest award a US head of state can give to a civilian.
6. Robert is the reason Leonardo DiCaprio is a star
One of the biggest movie stars of the age – Leonardo DiCaprio is one of very few actors who can get a movie financed and sold on his name alone. And we have Robert De Niro to thank for even having him around. Back when DiCaprio was just a teenager, De Niro personally chose DiCaprio to feature alongside him in the film This Boy’s Life, giving DiCaprio his first starring role. De Niro then recommended DiCaprio to Martin Scorsese, who went on to make DiCaprio his new regular star and muse.
7. Robert's daughter has co-starred in nine of his films
You might not know it, considering she’s not a famous face like her old man, but De Niro’s daughter Drena, whom De Niro adopted with first wife Diahnne Abbott, has appeared on-screen alongside her father not once, but nine times. Eagle-eyed viewers would spot Drena De Niro in the likes of The Intern, Joy and more.
8. He is a successful restaurant owner
Nobu, TriBeCa Grill, Rubicon, Ago are all owned or co-owned by Robert De Niro. In fact, the artwork at Rubicon restaurant belong to his father who was an expressionist painter. The next time you are in the vicinity of these restaurants, do check them out!
9. From $35,000 to $20 million
Robert De Niro was paid $35,000 for his Oscar performance in Taxi Driver in 1976. 3 decades later, for his role in Little Fockers in 2010, he got $20 million!
10. He’s one of only two actors to win an Oscar for playing the same character
Back before the release of The Godfather Part II, the idea that anyone would have equalled the titanic Marlon Brando – who won an Oscar for his part in The Godfather – in the role of mafia boss Vito Corleone would have seemed absurd. De Niro, however, was more than a match for Brando, in playing the young Vito for Part II. He too won an Oscar for his turn in the role, making him – along with Brando – one of only two actors to win an Oscar for playing the same character.