biography of Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Kim Coppola

 (born January 7, 1964)  known professionally as Nicolas Cage, is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for two BAFTA Awards. Known for his versatility as an actor, Cage's work across diverse film genres has gained him a significant cult following. 

Born into the Coppola family, Cage began his career in films such as Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) and Valley Girl (1983), as well as various films by his uncle Francis Ford Coppola such as Rumble Fish (1983), The Cotton Club (1984), and Peggy Sue Got Married (1986). He received critical success for his roles in Moonstruck and Raising Arizona (both 1987), before earning an Academy Award for Best Actor for the dramatic film Leaving Las Vegas (1995). He was Oscar-nominated for playing twins Charlie and Donald Kaufman in the comedy-drama film Adaptation (2002).

Cage established himself in mainstream action films, such as The Rock (1996), Con Air (1997), Face/Off (1997), Gone in 60 Seconds (2000), the National Treasure film series (2004–2007), the Ghost Rider film series (2007–2011), and Kick-Ass (2010). He also took on dramatic roles in City of Angels (1998), Bringing Out the Dead (1999), The Family Man (2000), Matchstick Men (2003), and The Wicker Man (2006). He has voiced characters in The Ant Bully (2006), Astro Boy (2009), The Croods film series (2013–2020), Teen Titans Go! To the Movies and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (both 2018). He earned renewed critical recognition for his starring roles in Mandy (2018), Pig (2021), The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (2022), Dream Scenario (2023) and Longlegs (2024). 

Cage owns the production company Saturn Films and has produced films such as Shadow of the Vampire (2000) and The Life of David Gale (2003), and has directed Sonny (2002). For his contributions to the film industry, he was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1998. He was ranked No. 40 in Empire magazine's The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time list in 2007 and was placed No. 37 in Premiere's 100 Most Powerful People in Hollywood in 2008. Nicolas Cage was also voted one of the 50 greatest actors of all time in a 2022 readers' poll by Empire magazine. 

Cage was born in Long Beach, California, to August Coppola, a professor of literature, and Joy Vogelsang, a dancer and choreographer. He was raised in a Catholic family. His father was of Italian descent and his mother was of mainly German and Polish descent with some English and Scottish ancestry on her father's side.  His paternal grandparents were composer Carmine Coppola and actress Italia Pennino, and his paternal great-grandparents were immigrants from Bernalda, Basilicata. Through his father, he is a nephew of both director Francis Ford Coppola and actress Talia Shire, and a cousin of directors Roman Coppola and Sofia Coppola, film producer Gian-Carlo Coppola, and actors Robert and Jason Schwartzman. 

Cage is the youngest of three sons. His two brothers are New York radio personality Marc "The Cope" Coppola and director Christopher Coppola. He attended Beverly Hills High School,  which is known for its many alumni who became entertainers. He aspired to act from an early age and also attended UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. His first non-cinematic acting experience was in a school production of Golden Boy.  He said he started acting because he "wanted to be James Dean. I saw him in Rebel Without a Cause, East of Eden. Nothing affected me—no rock song, no classical music—the way Dean affected me in Eden. It blew my mind. I was like, 'That's what I want to do'." 

At age 15, he tried to convince his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola, to give him a screen test, telling him "I'll show you acting." His outburst was met with "silence in the car." By this stage of his career, Coppola had already directed Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Gene Hackman and Robert De Niro. Although early in his career Cage appeared in some of his uncle's films, he changed his name to Nicolas Cage to avoid the appearance of nepotism as Coppola's nephew. His choice of name was inspired by the Marvel Comics superhero Luke Cage and composer John Cage.

Nicolas Cage

 (born January 7, 1964, Long Beach, California, U.S.) is an American actor, perhaps best known for his performances in action films and big-budget summer blockbusters. He received an Academy Award for his work in Leaving Las Vegas (1995).

Cage made his acting debut in the 1981 television pilot The Best of Times, which was never picked up by ABC. His film debut followed in 1982, with a minor role as an unnamed co-worker of Judge Reinhold's character in the coming-of-age film Fast Times at Ridgemont High, having originally auditioned for Reinhold's part His experience on the film was marred by cast members endlessly quoting his uncle's films, which inspired him to change his name. Cage's first starring role came opposite Deborah Foreman in the romantic comedy Valley Girl (1983), in which he played a punk who falls in love with the titular valley girl, a plot loosely inspired by Romeo and Juliet.  The film was a modest box office success and has been branded a cult classic.  He auditioned for the role of Dallas Winston in his uncle's film The Outsiders, based on S.E. Hinton's novel, but lost to Matt Dillon. Cage, however, would co-star in Coppola's adaptation of another Hinton novel, Rumble Fish, in that year. 

In 1984, Cage appeared in three period films, none of which fared well at the box office. In the drama, Racing with the Moon (1984), Cage featured opposite Sean Penn as friends who are awaiting deployment to the United States Marine Corps.  In Coppola's crime drama The Cotton Club he portrayed a fictionalized version of mob hitman Vincent "Mad Dog" Coll, earning praise from critic Paul Attanasio for "artfully [using] his few moments to sketch a brawny, violent thug." His final release of the year was Alan Parker's drama Birdy, in which he starred with Matthew Modine. Cage lost weight for the role and had two of his front teeth pulled out to appear disfigured. Despite massively underperforming at the box office, the film, and Cage and Modine's performances, received positive reviews, with The New York Times critic Janet Maslin writing, "Mr. Cage very sympathetically captures Al's urgency and frustration. Together, these actors work miracles with what might have been unplayable." 

In 1986, Cage starred in the little-seen Canadian sports drama The Boy in Blue and his uncle's fantasy comedy Peggy Sue Got Married (1986) as the husband to Kathleen Turner's character. He then starred in the Coen brothers' crime comedy Raising Arizona (1987) as a dim-witted ex-con.  Cage's biggest breakthrough came in 1987 with the romantic comedy Moonstruck, in which he starred alongside Cher as a hot-tempered baker.  The film was a hit with critics and audiences alike, earning Cage a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy^[34] In his retrospective review, Roger Ebert wrote that he felt Cage's performance was worthy of an Oscar. 

In 1989, Cage starred in the black comedy Vampire's Kiss as a man who falls in love with a vampire and soon begins to believe himself as a vampire. The film was a major box office flop but has developed a cult following largely due to Cage's surrealistic and over-the-top performance appearing in internet memes. Critic Vincent Canby felt the film was "dominated and destroyed by Mr. Cage's chaotic, self-indulgent performance." After filming the Italian drama Time to Kill (1989) in Zimbabwe, he starred in David Lynch's romantic crime film Wild at Heart (1990) with Laura Dern. Cage was drawn to the project because he was "always attracted to those passionate, almost unbridled romantic characters" and it allowed him to impersonate one of his heroes, Elvis Presley, in scenes in which he sung Wild at Heart received mixed reviews upon release, despite controversially winning the Palme d'Or at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival.  Cage would reunite with Lynch and Dern for the avant-garde concert performance Industrial Symphony No. 1. 

Also in 1990, he starred as a helicopter pilot in the action film Fire Birds, which was panned by critics and negatively compared to Top Gun (1986).  Cage's next film, the erotic thriller Zandalee (1991), was released direct-to-video in the United States, where it did not receive a theatrical release.  His "goofy 'everyman'" performance in the romantic comedy Honeymoon in Vegas (1992) garnered some positive critical notices,  including from Roger Ebert, who defended Cage amidst some critics finding his acting "excessive" and earned Cage his second Golden Globe nomination  He hosted an episode of the variety show Saturday Night Live to promote the film, his only time hosting the show 

None of Cage's three films in 1993—Deadfall (directed by his brother Christopher), Amos & Andrew and Red Rock West—performed well at the box office. The comedy Guarding Tess (1994) paired Cage with Shirley MacLaine as a Secret Service agent protecting a former First Lady; however, it was dismissed as being derivative by some critics.  He next starred alongside Bridget Fonda in the romantic comedy It Could Happen to You as a cash-strapped police officer who offers to share his lottery winnings with a waitress and then the much-criticized box office flop Christmas comedy Trapped in Paradise with the Saturday Night Live actors Jon Lovitz and Dana Carvey. According to Lovitz, Cage directed portions of the film because its director, George Gallo, offered little direction.

trivia : 

• Proposed to Patricia Arquette on the day he met her in the early 1980s. Arquette thought he was rather strange but played along with his antics by creating a list of things Cage would have to fulfill to win her. When he started to work his way through the list, Arquette got scared and avoided him. They met again many years later and later went on to marry.
• He said he realized that all great movie stars, such as Spencer Tracy, had had recognizable voices, so he has stylized his to be distinctive.
• After his first film role (in Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)), he adopted the stage name of Cage, because he wanted to assure himself that any success he had was based on his own merits, not the fame of his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola.
• Johnny Depp was his neighbor at the Fontenoy Tower apartments in 1984. At the time Johnny was a guitar player in the band Rock City Angels and was struggling financially. They both lived on the 6th floor. It was only after repeated suggestion and an introduction to Cage's agent that Depp chose to become an actor and quit his band.
• Once woke up in his house at Orange County in the middle of the night to find a naked man eating a fudgesicle in front of his bed. The man was arrested by police but Cage pressed no charges.
• Was originally considered for the role of Brad Hamilton in Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), but after his audition the studio thought his performance was too dark and the role went, instead, to Judge Reinhold. Additionally, Cage was 17 at the time and could not work as many hours as actors over 18. In this film, he is credited under the name Nicolas Coppola for the first and only time.
• Stage name taken from comic book character Luke Cage.
• Loves to improvise, ocassionally to the annoyance of other cast members.
• Ate a real cockroach in the film Vampire's Kiss (1988), this reportedly took three takes. He once said about the experience, "Every muscle in my body didn't want to do it, but I did it anyway.".
• One of the reasons he divorced Lisa Marie Presley was because her first husband Danny Keough lived in a guest house on their property and Cage found that highly inappropriate.
• In 2006, he donated $2 million to Amnesty International for a fund to help child soldiers.
• Collects comic books and sees them as being today's equivalent of mythology.
• When Cage was arrested in New Orleans and charged with alleged domestic violence against his wife, Alice, and disturbing the peace. The $11,000 needed to bail him out was posted by Duane 'Dog' Chapman, better known as "Dog the Bounty Hunter".
• His is (along with his cousin Sofia Coppola) the third generation of Oscar winners in the Coppola family. His uncle, Francis Ford Coppola and his grandfather, Carmine Coppola, are the other two generations. They are the second family to do so, the first family is the Hustons - Anjelica Huston, John Huston and Walter Huston.
• Every time he's been nominated for an Oscar, it's been for playing a screenwriter.
• Stated that the reason he owned so many pieces of property in the past--including multiple castles, mansions, and an island--was to protect his money without buying stock or relying on a bank, believing that real estate was the most trustworthy way to accomplish this. However, after the real estate bubble collapsed, he sold most of his property at a loss and rescinded on his belief. He now owns a modest amount of property: a house in Las Vegas near his friends and a small cottage near Glastonbury, England.
• Mentioned in an interview that he's a massive fan of Quentin Tarantino and expresses great interest in working with him in the future.
• Nephew of Francis Ford Coppola and Talia Shire.
• The historic LaLurie House on the corner of Royal and Gov. Nicholls Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, which Cage bought for $3,450,000 in 2007, is reputed to be haunted by the many slaves tortured and killed by Delphine LaLurie in the 1830s.
• He named his five favorite films as The Wizard of Oz (1939), A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), East of Eden (1955), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) and A Clockwork Orange (1971).
• Referred to as the "Jazz musician of acting" by David Lynch.
• Former son-in-law of Elvis Presley and Priscilla Presley.
• Became a grandfather for the first time at age 50 when his son Weston Cage welcomed a son, Lucian Augustus Coppola Cage on July 1, 2014.
• Received Johnny Depp his first acting job.
• Owns the rights of the original movie The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1963), which he bought from Ted Turner, with the intention of turning this into a movie.
• 1997: He lived in a fake castle on the outskirts Los Angeles. He wants to import an authentic one from overseas.
• On American Horror Story (2011), whilst taking a tour of the LaLaurie Mansion on Royal Street in New Orleans, Madison Montgomery (Emma Roberts), asks "Wasn't this house owned by the guy in Face/Off?" The tour guide replies, "Correct! The actor Nicolas Cage, was a previous owner." In truth, Cage did purchase the house in 2007. The house is considered by many, to be the most Haunted House in America.
• Met his future wife, Alice Kim Cage, at a sushi bar where she was a waitress. When they married she was only 20 years old.
• Trains in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Royce Gracie. Nicolas Cage also trains in Wing Chun, Karate and Jeet Kune Do.
• Offered the role of Norman Osborn/Green Goblin in Spider-Man (2002), which went to Willem Dafoe.
• Was originally cast as Randy "The Ram" Robinson in The Wrestler (2008). However, Cage dropped out of the film because he felt he didn't have time to bulk up for the role and director Darren Aronofsky's heart was set on Mickey Rourke. Mickey would go on to win a Golden Globe and be nominated for an Oscar for his performance.
• Became a father for the first time at age 26 when his girlfriend Christina Fulton gave birth to their son Weston Cage on December 26, 1990.
• Became a father for the second time at age 41 when his third wife Alice Kim Cage gave birth to their son Kal-El Cage on October 3, 2005. Just as Nick was named after a comic book character, Luke Cage, so he has named his son after the comic book character Kal-El (aka Superman).
• 2007: He bought Midford Castle (though not an actual castle) near Bath, England for an estimated price £5 million (about $10 million).
• Despite playing her father in Peggy Sue Got Married (1986), Cage is one year younger than Helen Hunt.
• Attended the same high school as Angelina Jolie, Michael Klesic, Lenny Kravitz, David Schwimmer, Jonathan Silverman, Gina Gershon, Rhonda Fleming, Jackie Cooper, Rob Reiner, Antonio Sabato Jr., Pauly Shore, Michael Tolkin, Betty White, Corbin Bernsen, Elizabeth Daily, Albert Brooks and Crispin Glover.
• Reserved a permanent tomb for himself at Saint Louis Cemetery in New Orleans, Louisiana.
• On his upper back, he has a tattoo of monitor lizard with a top hat.
• Considered "Blue" before settling on "Cage" as his surname.
• Owns a Lamborghini that used to belong to Prince Ali-Reza Pahlavi, the former prince of Iran.
• 2001: Announced that he is dating Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis Presley. They later married.
• Cousin of Sofia Coppola, Jason Schwartzman and Roman Coppola.
• Nicolas Cage separated from his wife of 12 years, Alice Kim, on June 26, 2016. They share 10 year-old son, Kal-El.
• Filed for an annulment in Las Vegas from Erika Koike just four days after they married in Las Vegas, claiming that they were "drinking to the point of intoxication" to understand what they were doing. The Blast reports that Koike agrees the marriage was a mistake as well, and will not contest the annulment or a divorce. Cage also claims fraud because Koike didn't disclose to him the extent of another relationship she was in, and an on-going criminal matter.
• In a huge fan of Elvis Presley. In Wild at Heart (1990), he performed the Elvis Presley classic "Love Me" with uncanny aplomb.
• Was to have starred in 'Superman Lives' to be directed by Tim Burton but Warner Bros. canceled the project. Cage even did fittings of the costume.
• Was very close friends with the late Johnny Ramone.
• Bought Schloss Neidstein, a mini castle in the Bavarian village of Etzelwang.
• Father, August Coppola, was formerly a professor at Cal State Long Beach and Dean of Creative Arts at San Francisco State University.
• On Reddit, he has an entire community devoted to him called "One True God".
• During an A&E Biography on him, the host explained that Cage was director Sam Raimi's first choice to play Norman Osborn/Green Goblin in the movie Spider-Man (2002). Apparently, this was before he met Willem Dafoe.
• Close friends with Tom Waits, Crispin Glover and Rush drummer Neil Peart.
• 2006: He purchased a home on the former property of John Wayne in Newport Beach, CA, for a record-setting $24 million.
• One of three actors (with Lee Marvin [Cat Ballou (1965)] and Peter Sellers [Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)]) with an Oscar nomination for playing multiple characters in a film (in Adaptation. (2002), he plays two characters, Donald and Charlie). Marvin is the only one who actually won one for a double role.
• Attended and graduated from UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television.

  sourse : imdb ......... wikipedia ........ britannica