Happy Birthday, Ben Kingsley!

Today, we're celebrating the 68th birthday of Academy Award-winning actor Ben Kingsley. He got his acting start in the mid-1960s, appearing in television shows and movies, but he didn't his theatrical feature-film debut until 1973's Fear Is the Key. It wasn't until 1982 that he made his second theatrical appearance, but his turn as the titular character in Gandhi nabbed him his single Oscar statuette and set his career into overdrive. He worked steadily throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, where he made early appearances in critically-acclaimed films like 1991's Bugsy (for which he scored his second Oscar nomination) and 1993's Schindler's List. Kingsley would add two more Oscar nominations: for his supporting role in 2001's Sexy Beast and his leading role in 2003's House of Sand and Fog. Most recently, audiences have seen Kingsley play cinematic legend Georges Méliès in 2011's Hugo, and they'll next be able to see him in a slew of 2012 films, including The Dictator, A Doll's House and A Common Man. And so, as a tribute to his acting legend, I've listed my five favorite Kingsley performances and have supplied videos where I could. Once again, happy birthday, Ben Kingsley!

5. Man in the Yellow Suit
Tuck Everlasting (2002)

*****

4. Georges Méliès
Hugo (2011)

*****

3. Itzhak Stern
Schindler's List (1993)


*****

2. Behrani
House of Sand and Fog (2003)


*****

1. Mahatma Gandhi
Gandhi (1982)