Born on August 17, 1943 in New York City, Robert De Niro was the son of Robert De Niro Sr., an abstract expressionist and Virginia Admiral, a painter. He garnered the nickname "Bobby Milk" as a child because of the palor of his face, and his childhood friends included director Martin Scorsese. De Niro is widely regarded as the finest performer of the seventies and the finest example there is of method acting. De Niro learned the art of method acting from Stella Adler & Lee Strasberg, his acting instructors. Some of De Niro's most notable method acting performances came when he put on 60 pounds for Raging Bull in 1980 and The Untouchables in 1987, and working late hours as a cab driver for a month for Taxi Driver in 1976. De Niro made his first dent in Hollywood in the baseball drama Bang the Drun Slowly(1973), which garnered him much critical acclaim and followed up with Mean Streets(1973) the same year, gaining him even more critical accolades. The following year De Niro won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his work in Godfather, Part II. De Niro then never slowed down, leaving a legacy of great and memorable films behind, including The Deer Hunter(1978), Raging Bull(1980) in which he won his first Best Actor Oscar, and Goodfellas(1990) to name a few. In 1993 De Niro would take a shot at directing with A Bronx Tale, in which he also starred.

AWARDS


Academy Awards

1991 "Cape Fear" Best Actor(Nominated)
1990 "Awakenings" Best Actor(Nominated)
1980 "Raging Bull" Best Actor(Won)
1978 "Deer Hunter" Best Actor(Nominated)
1976 "Taxi Driver" Best Actor(Nominated)
1974 "Godfather, Part 2" Best Supporting Actor(Won)


Golden Globes

2000 "Analyze This" Best Actor in a Musical/Comedy(Nominated)
1992 "Cape Fear" Best Actor in a Drama(Nominated)
1989 "Midnight Run" Best Actor in a Musical/Comedy(Nominated)
1981 "Raging Bull" Best Actor in a Drama(Won)
1979 "Deer Hunter" Best Actor in a Drama(Nominated)
1978 "New York, New York" Best Actor in a Musical/Comedy(Nominated)
1977 "Taxi Driver" Best Actor in a Drama(Nominated)