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Roman Polanski
Age: 76
Height: 5' 5"
Birth Place: Paris, France
Born: Aug. 18th, 1933
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Roman Polanski's Main TV Roles
NOTE: Complete List of Works can be found at
IMDB
BIOGRAPHY: Roman Polanski's parents returned to Poland from France just two years before the World War II began: both were taken later to concentration camps where his mother eventually died. Young Roman managed to escape the ghetto and learned to survive wandering through the Polish countryside and living with the different Catholic families. Though local people usually ignored cinemas where mostly German films were shown, Polanski seemed not very much concerned about patriotism and frequently went to the movies. In 1945, he reunited with his father who sent him to technical school, but young Polanski seemed to have already made his choice.
In the 1950s, he took up acting, appearing in Andrzej Wajda's Pokolenie (1955) before studying at the Lodz Film School. His early shorts such as Dwaj ludzie z szafa (1958), Le gros et le maigre (1961), and Ssaki (1962) showed his taste for black humor and interest in bizarre human relationships. His feature debut, Nóz w wodzie (1962), was the first Polish post-war film not associated with the war theme. Though being already a major Polish filmmaker, Polanski yet chose to leave the country and headed to France. Being down-and-out in Paris, he befriended young scriptwriter, Gérard Brach, who eventually became his long-time collaborator. The next two films, Repulsion (1965) and Cul-de-sac (1966), made in England and co-written by Brach, won respectively Silver and Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festivals.
In 1968, Polanski went to Hollywood, where he made the psychological thriller Rosemary's Baby (1968). However, after the brutal murder of his wife Sharon Tate (I) by the infamous Manson gang in 1969, the director decided to return to Europe. In 1974, he again appeared with a US release of Chinatown (1974). It seemed the beginning of the promising Hollywood career, but after his conviction for the statutory rape of a 13-year old girl, Polanski fled from America to avoid prison.
After Tess (1979), which was awarded several Oscars and Cesars, his work became intermittent and rarely approached the level of his better known films. The director also stretched his talents to include occasional work in theatre. He still likes to act in the films of other directors, sometimes with interesting results as it was in Una pura formalità (1994).
TRIVIA:
- Is portrayed by 'Marek Probosz' (qv) in _Helter Skelter (2004) (TV)_ (qv).
- In 1969, while he was on out-of-town business, his wife, actress 'Sharon Tate (I)' (qv) was brutally murdered by members of Charles Manson's cult family; though Manson only ordered the killing and was not present during the murders. She was eight-months pregnant with their first child at the time. He has said that his life's biggest regret was not being present at the house on Cielo Drive, Beverly Hills the night his wife 'Sharon Tate (I)' (qv) and four others were brutally murdered.
- In November 1989 he was approached by Warner Bros to adapt and direct 'Mikhail A. Bulgakov' (qv)'s novel The Master and Margarita. The project was subsequently dropped by Warners due to budgetary concerns and the studio's belief that the subject matter was no longer relevant due to the fall of the Berlin wall. Polanski has described his script as the best he has ever adapted.
- Two children with 'Emmanuelle Seigner' (qv): Morgane and Elvis.
- Received his first best director Oscar for the movie _The Pianist (2002)_ (qv) five months after the awards ceremony. His friend, 'Harrison Ford (I)' (qv), flew to France to present Polanski the award, since the director would be immediately arrested and incarcerated due to outstanding warrants stemming from his fleeing the US after his 1978 statutory rape conviction to avoid imprisonment. [8 September 2003].
- Won the Best Director Oscar in 2003 for _The Pianist (2002)_ (qv) at the age of 69 years and 7 months, making him the oldest person ever to win that award to that point in time. Polanski eclipsed the record previously held by 'George Cukor' (qv), who was 65 when he won for directing _My Fair Lady (1964)_ (qv). This record was beaten in 2005 when 'Clint Eastwood' (qv) won at the age of 74 for _Million Dollar Baby (2004)_ (qv).
- Was offered the chance to direct _King Kong (1976)_ (qv) but turned it down.
- He was convicted of the statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl and fled to Europe to escape incarceration.
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