Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Bloom (born January 13, 1977) is an English actor. He had his break-through role in the early 2000s as the elf-prince Legolas Greenleaf in The Lord of the Rings and blacksmith Will Turner in the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy of films, and subsequently established himself as a lead in Hollywood films, including Troy, Elizabethtown, and Kingdom of Heaven. Bloom's most recent releases are the sequel Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest and Haven.
He's 30!
Bloom was born in Canterbury, Kent. His mother, Sonia Constance Josephine Copeland, was born in Calcutta, India, the daughter of Betty Constance Josephine Walker and Francis John Copeland, a physician and surgeon. Bloom's maternal grandmother's family has lived in Tasmania, Australia and India, and are of English descent, some of them having originally come from Kent. Bloom had thought that his father was South African-born Jewish lawyer Harry Saul Bloom, but during his younger years and after Harry's death, Bloom's mother revealed to him that his biological father was actually Colin Stone, a family friend. Bloom, who is named after the 17th century composer Orlando Gibbons, has one sister, Samantha Bloom, who was born in 1975.
Bloom managed to struggle through St Edmund's School in Canterbury despite his dyslexia. In 1993, he moved to London and joined the National Youth Theatre, spending two seasons there and earning a scholarship to train at the British American Drama Academy.
Bloom began acting professionally with a television role in an episode of Casualty, and subsequently made his film debut in Wilde (1997), opposite Stephen Fry, before entering the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, where he studied acting, sculpture and photography. In 1998, he broke his back in a three story fall, and it was briefly feared that he would not regain the ability to walk. However, he made a complete recovery and was able to walk out of the hospital on crutches within twelve days. Bloom had steel plates inserted into his backbone to support it, which have since been removed, except for a single screw. He regularly practices yoga and Pilates to strengthen his back.
His first appearance on the screen was a small role as a rent boy in the 1997 film Wilde. Shortly after graduating in 1999, Bloom was cast in his first major role, playing Legolas Greenleaf in The Lord of the Rings (2001–2003). He had originally tried out for the part of Faramir, who doesn't appear until the 2nd movie. The director, Peter Jackson, said he tried to pick the most perfect beings to be the elves. While shooting a scene, he broke a rib after falling off a horse, but fully recovered and continued shooting. The success of the trilogy transformed Bloom from an unknown actor into one of world's best-known celebrities. In 2002, he was chosen as one of the Teen People "25 Hottest Stars Under 25" and was named People's hottest Hollywood bachelor in the magazine's 2004 list.
Personal Life:
Orlando is a Manchester United fan and lives in London. During filming in Morocco for Kingdom of Heaven, Bloom rescued and adopted a dog, Sidi (a black Saluki mix with a white mark on his chest).
Bloom met American actress Kate Bosworth outside a coffee shop in 2002, where he was introduced to her by a mutual friend, soon after he met her again at the premiere of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers later in that year. The two actors dated from 2002 until splitting up temporarily in 2005. However, on September 6, 2006, sources reported that the couple had separated again.
In 2004, he became a full member of Soka Gakkai International, a lay Buddhist association affiliated with the teachings of Nichiren.
He has on his right wrist a tattoo of the Elvish word for "nine", a reference to his involvement in the Lord of the Rings and the fact that his character was one of the nine members of the Fellowship of the Ring. The other actors of "The Fellowship" (Sean Astin, Sean Bean, Billy Boyd, Ian McKellen, Dominic Monaghan, Viggo Mortensen, and Elijah Wood) got the same tattoo with the exception of John Rhys-Davies who sent his stunt double to get the tattoo. He covers the tattoo up with armbands or sleeves in other films, however it is possible to catch a glimpse of it during Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. He also has a tattoo of a sun-like image to the bottom-left of his navel.
Other January 13th Birthdays:
Julia Louis-Dreyfus-Comic Actress 46
Richard Moll-Actor/TV's Night Court-the Bald Bailiff 64
Charles Nelson Reilly-TV Personality-Match Game 76
Published 1/13/07 by
Allie Is Wired
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Comments (4)
i love you so mach
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ORLANDOOO
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ORLANDOOO
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ORLANDOOO
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ORLANDOOO
QEE CUMPLA MUCHOS MAS Y QEE SIGA ASI DE GUAPOO
I LOVE ORLANDO
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ORLANDOOO
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ORLANDOOO
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ORLANDOOO
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ORLANDOOO
QEE CUMPLA MUCHOS MAS Y QEE SIGA ASI DE GUAPOO
I LOVE ORLANDO