Happy Birthday, John Turturro!

Today we're celebrating the 55th birthday of actor John Turturro. Turturro made his first appearance in a feature film in an uncredited role in 1980's Raging Bull, but it wasn't until the 1984 film The Flamingo Kid that he played a credited and named character. He worked consistently through the 1980s, appearing in such iconic films as Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) and Do the Right Thing (1989), but it wasn't until the early 1990s that he truly started to gain recognition. Turturro starred in two Coen brothers films - 1990's Miller's Crossing and 1991's Barton Fink - and these collaborations started a great relationship between the actor and the directing brothers, who have re-cast him in some of their other films, including 1998's The Big Lebowski and 2000's O Brother, Where Art Thou? Since then, Turturro has made appearances in films like 2003's Anger Management opposite Adam Sandler and 2004's Secret Window opposite Johnny Depp, as well as having a recurring supporting role in the Transformers trilogy. Most recently, audiences have seen him in 2011's Transformers: Dark of the Moon, and they'll next be able to see him in 2012's Gods Behaving Badly. And so, to celebrate his birthday, I've listed my five favorite of John Turturro's performances. I hope you enjoy the list! Once again, happy birthday, John Turturro!

5. Chuck
Anger Management (2003)


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4. Jesus Quintana
The Big Lebowski (1998)


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3. Pete
O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)


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2. Barton Fink
Barton Fink (1991)


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1. John Shooter
Secret Window (2004)

Happy Birthday, George Clooney!

If you would have asked me about my feelings towards George Clooney only a few years ago, I probably would've told you that I despised his guts. Nowadays, I couldn't exactly tell you why I thought the way I did - it probably has something to do with my ultra-conservative upbringing that taught me to be wary of actors and their political tendencies - but thankfully, I have broken through that little bit of ignorance. I actually started to watch his work, and I think it was 2008's Burn After Reading that truly gave me a glowing opinion of Clooney. I've since taken in a bit of his work, most of which involves his signature bravado. In the past few years, however, he's started to take on some more vulnerable characters, only increasing his overall brilliance in my eyes. Love him or hate him, it's hard to deny that this Oscar winner is one of the preeminent faces of Hollywood today. As usual, I've listed my five favorite roles below, so I hope enjoy those. So we salute Mr. Clooney as he celebrates the big 5-0. Happy birthday, good sir!

5. Seth Gecko
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)


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4. Ryan Bingham
Up in the Air (2009)


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3. Harry Pfarrer
Burn After Reading (2008)


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2. Jack / Edward
The American (2010)


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1. Everett
O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)