B George Clooney Bio: The decade-long career in series TV, generally in forgettable roles, finally paid off for handsome George Clooney when he landed the regular starring role as the charming but troubled pediatrician Doug Ross on the acclaimed NBC medical series "ER" in 1994. This scion of a show business family--his father Nick is a broadcast journalist and on-air host, his aunt Rosemary is a singer and actress and cousin Miguel Ferrer is an actor--grew up on the set of his father's local Cincinnati shows, occasionally serving as a commercial pitchman and sketch player and later working as a floor manager. When Clooney's dream of a career as a professional baseball player came to naught, he headed west to L.A., bunking with his aunt and working as her handyman and chauffeur. His adult acting career began with a slew of unreleased or little seen films (i.e., "Grizzly II-The Predator" 1984; "Return of the Killer Tomatoes" 1988) and fifteen unsold pilots. Ironically, his first regular series role was as a young physician working in an emergency room in the short-lived sitcom "E/R" (CBS, 198485). He had recurring roles as a good-natured carpenter in NBC's "The Facts of Life" (during the 1985-86 season), a womanizing factory manager in ABC's "Roseanne" (during the 1988-89 season), a construction worker in "Baby Talk" (ABC, 1991, which he quit when he clashed with the show's producer) and as a detective in "Bodies of Evidence" (CBS, 1992-93). Clooney stayed with law enforcement but switched to drama as the married detective who falls for Teddy (Sela Ward) during the 1993-94 season of "Sisters" (NBC). Clooney has often said how his peripatetic upbringing and the experiences of both his father and aunt prepared him for the pitfalls of a showbiz career. When he finally achieved a degree of stardom on "ER", he took it in stride. As film offers poured in, Clooney attempted to stretch as an actor, handling roles in diverse genres, although several of his efforts have fallen below expectations. He was alongside Quentin Tarantino battling vampires in the action adventure "From Dusk Till Dawn" and displayed his boyish charm opposite Michelle Pfeiffer in the romantic comedy "One Fine Day" (both 1996). Though the former has acquired some cult status, neither fared well at the box office. Inheriting the franchise from Val Kilmer, Clooney made a mediocre Bruce Wayne/Batman in Joel Schumacher's "Batman & Robin" (1997) and has often joked about his part in the debacle ("I think I've buried that franchise!"), but the true culprits were the confusing script, overblown visuals and an ear-splitting soundtrack. "The Peacemaker" (also 1997) similarly proved to be a disappointing thriller. As Elmore Leonard's sassy but fallible escaped con Jack Foley in Steven Soderbergh's "Out of Sight" (1998), Clooney romanced a federal marshal (Jennifer Lopez) and the critics, earning praise for the easy-going charm and intelligence of his laidback, debonair bank robber, but the film was still little-seen, despite good reviews. After making a cameo appearance as a platoon leader in Terrence Malick's highly-anticipated "The Thin Red Line" (also 1998), his big screen fortunes changed dramatically with David O Russell's "Three Kings" (1999), an uncommonly political, Hollywood action feature set during the Gulf War that delivered a cautionary message about the responsibility accompanying America's role as policeman of the world. Clooney proved his mettle as an action star with his turn as "seen-it-all" career military man Major Archie Gates and the success of what was essentially an independent film in studio clothing reinforced his decision to leave his role as Dr Ross on "ER" in February of that year. Clooney returned to television, executive producing as well as acting in the two-hour live broadcast of "Fail Safe" (CBS, 2000), a black-andwhite homage to the days of live television adapted from the Cold War novel by Harvey Wheeler and Eugene Burdick. Superbly acted and flawlessly produced, this welcome addition amidst the standard small screen fare failed to register with younger audiences weaned on the razzmatazz of MTV. The quality outing was the first real fruit born of his Maysville Pictures' agreement with Warner Bros. to create and produce telefilms and series, though he had previously executive produced and co-written the failed HBO pilot "Kilroy" (1999). Clooney next reteamed with "Three Kings" co-star Mark Wahlberg for Wolfgang Petersen's film adaptation of Sebastian Junger's best selling-novel "The Perfect Storm" (2000), playing Captain Billy Tyne of the doomed Andrea Gail. Anxiously awaited for its tale of men in the grip of nature's fury, "The Perfect Storm" seemed a sure bet to solidify Clooney as a bankable big screen star. He also starred that year in the Coen brothers' Depressionera jail break movie "O Brother, Where Art Thou?", based on Homer's "Odyssey", and produced "Metal God", a black comedy about the world of heavy metal music starring Wahlberg. The astounding success of that movie only added to Clooney's stellar career and he next starred in Steven Soderberh's smash hit "Ocean's Eleven" in 2001. That same year, following the Sept. 11 attacks, Clooney was instrumental in rallying dozens of his Hollywood friends and colleagues to create a televised memorial to the victims of the World Trade Centers, "America: A Tribute to Heroes." In 2002, Clooney had small but memorable role as a crippled crook in "Welcome to Collinwood," and tried his hand behind the camera, in his directorial debut "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind," based on the book by Chuck Barris, the host of TV's "The Gong Show" who claims he was a CIA hitman. Clooney also had a supporting role in the film, which was written by Charlie Kaufman and starred Clooney pal Sam Rockwell. Sometimes aping a Soderberg style fused with Clooney's off-kilter sense of humor, the film garnered many admirers but also had its flaws, including a nudge-nudge- wink-wink demeanor. Clooney also co-starred with Natascha McElhorne in the thriller feature "Solaris," a sci-fi remake of a 1972 Russian film which reunited the actor yet again with Steven Soderberg. "Interesting" was about all critics and moviegoers had to say about the box-office impaired metaphorical meditation on life and death, which was produced by James Cameron. The spotty track record of Section Eight Productions, the company launched by Clooney and Soderberg responsible for most of the pair's product in 2002, did little to tarnish either's reputations, and Clooney remained among the most in-demand A-list leading men in Hollywood. Although he's the opposition counsel, Miles is smitten by the man-eating, churn 'em-and-burn 'em Marylin and makes his interest known to her. (She marries wealthy men and quickly disposes of them to get half their fortunes; she also has a way of getting them to forsake pre-nup agreements.) Although enchanted by Marylin, Miles is out to win; he ends up humiliating her in court. Vexed that Miles foiled her get rich scheme, Marylin sets her sights on revenge ... even if it means marrying Miles to accomplish it! Trouble is, Miles has undergone a change of heart and fallen for this dangerous beauty. Will love win out over cynicism and greed? That's the question this dark comedy asks. Miles has become bored with success; there are no more worlds left to conquer, you could say. That leaves only love, the realm of emotion, all those positive life elements that his vocation has required he forsake. I can't say exactly why Miles falls for the duplicitous Marylin the way he does. He's obviously smitten with her "win at all costs" attitude; does she remind Miles of himself? Perhaps Miles is like a Film Noir protagonist who can't help but fall for the femme fatale despite his better judgment. B. Catherine Zeta-Jones Bio A native of Wales, Catherine Zeta-Jones debuted on the British stage, starring in the musical 42nd Street, but made a name for herself in the early '90s, when she starred in the Yorkshire Television comedy-drama series The Darling Buds of May. Based on a series of novels by H.E. Bates, the show was a smash hit and made Zeta-Jones one of the United Kingdom's most popular television actresses. Dark-haired and brown eyed, Zeta-Jones has an exotic look that enables her to play a wide variety of interesting roles. Following the demise of her first series, she returned to the stage and then starred in the miniseries Catherine the Great. She had made her film debut in Philip de Broca's Scheherazade (1990). It was de Broca who discovered Zeta-Jones while she was performing on stage. She subsequently played supporting roles in several films, including Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992) and a larger part as the seductive Sala in The Phantom (1996), before landing her first co-starring stint playing the fiery Elena opposite Anthony Hopkins and Antonio Banderas in The Mask of Zorro (1998). A talented singer, Zeta-Jones has occasionally performed with the English National Opera. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide The gorgeous, raven-haired Welsh actress Catherine Zeta-Jones first came to prominence in the United Kingdom with her co-starring role as the eldest daughter in a boisterous farm family in the British TV series "The Darling Buds of May" (Yorkshire TV, 1991-93). A head-turner who balanced her stately beauty with an appealing working class bluntness, Zeta-Jones had begun her career as a child performer on the musical stage, starring as the wholesome heroine "Annie" and as the most sophisticated Tallulah in the stage musical "Bugsy Malone". Her biggest stage break came when she headlined the West End production of "42nd Street", portraying chorus girl-turned-star Peggy Sawyer. French director Philippe de Broca tapped the exotic actress for the title role in "Sheherazade" (1990). Zeta-Jones subsequently portrayed the explorer's wife in "Christopher Columbus: The Discovery" (1992) and a reckless young woman desperate to be a duchess in the comedy "Splitting Heirs" (1993). She was well-cast as Eustacia Vye, the willful woman thought to be a witch, in the "Hallmark Hall of Fame" adaptation of "The Return of the Native" (CBS, 1994), opposite Clive Owen and Ray Stevenson. After playing Chloe, the girlfriend of a surfer torn between the waves and a commitment to her, in the unusual British film "Blue Juice" (1995), Zeta-Jones was finally tapped by Hollywood to portray the villainous aviatrix Sala in "The Phantom" (1996). She continued to make in-roads in the USA portraying a woman jeopardizing her future by having a shipboard affair with an old flame in the CBS miniseries "Titanic" (1996). In 1998, Zeta-Jones landed the high profile role of a seductress opposite Antonio Banderas in "The Mask of Zorro" and made headlines in the trades when she won the female lead opposite Sean Connery in the romantic thriller "Entrapment" (1999). While the actress' onscreen May-December match-up with Connery captured much attention, it was nothing compared to the talk surrounding her real-life romance with actor-producer Michael Douglas, a Hollywood heavyweight 25 years her senior. The two became parents and subsequently married in 2000, in a highly publicized ceremony. Prior to the nuptials, Zeta-Jones played a playful, mysterious beauty in the 1999 remake of "The Haunting", and had a memorable cameo as the glamorous, free-wheeling former girlfriend of John Cusack's central character in "High Fidelity" (2000). She would next be seen to good effect playing the unwitting wife of a drug lord (Steven Bauer) in the roundly acclaimed feature "Traffic" (also 2000). Though the film co-starred Douglas, the two were in no scenes together, due to the thematicallylinked three-part storyline. In 2001, Zeta-Jones was featured in "America's Sweethearts", a romantic comedy about a high-profile Hollywood couple, an experience not far from her own. Surely she hoped that life didn't imitate art in this case, as the pair in question are in the midst of a bitter break up on the movie set, much to the chagrin of the film's publicist. In 2002, Zeta-Jones wowed audiences and critics with her heretofore undisplayed singing and dancing chops when she starred as the murderess Velma Kelly in the film version of the hit Broadway musical "Chicago." Her dazzling performance earned Zeta-Jones an Academy Award as Best Supporting Actress, as well as a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical.