Hulton Archive // Getty Images Most well-known for his film roles of cowboys and cops, audiences first met the tall, taciturn, handsome Clint Eastwood on the small screen, when he played cowboy Rowdy Yates on the hit television Western series “Rawhide.” From there, he was the
inscrutable “Man without a Name” squinting under the sun in Sergio Leone’s Western movies and the scowling San Francisco detective in “Dirty Harry” movies who posed the famous challenge: “Go ahead, make my day.” With the haunting “Play Misty for Me,” Eastwood first demonstrated his talent for directing is just as abundant as acting. Two of his four Oscars are awards for Best Director—for “Unforgiven” and “Million Dollar Baby”—and the other two Oscars are Best Picture awards won by the
same movies. As a director, he is known for sticking to the budget and often finishing ahead of schedule. Actors say they like working with Eastwood for his reserved and supportive style. “He respects the actor,” Morgan Freeman has said. He’s also known for filming minimal takes—one take, or two “if you were lucky,” actor Tim Robbins
said of the director. With decades of work behind him and no sign of slowing down—the nonagenarian is still acting—Stacker took a look at the accomplishments and events of Eastwood’s life and compiled a list of 25 facts that you may not know. To put together the list, Stacker consulted newspaper and magazine articles, biographies, film archives, film recordings and reviews, and fan websites. You may also like: 100 best Western films of all time, according to critics
1 / 25 1930: Born in San FranciscoClinton Eastwood Jr. was born May 31, 1930, in San Francisco, and he has one younger sister, Jeanne. He attended Oakland Technical High School.
 2 / 25 Earl Leaf/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images 1950: Odd jobs and an Army stintAfter high school, Eastwood found work as a logger, hay baler, truck driver, and furnace tender in a steel plant. He was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1950 and stationed at California’s Fort Ord, where he taught swimming lessons on base. After being discharged in 1953, Eastwood attended Los Angeles City College and worked in a gas station.
3 / 25 Authenticated News // Getty Images 1953: Marriage to Maggie JohnsonEastwood married Maggie Johnson, a Los Angeles model, in 1953. They had two children, Kyle and Alison. In 1964, while married to Johnson, Eastwood had a daughter, Kimber, with Roxanne Tunis, an actress and stuntwoman. Eastwood and Johnson divorced in 1984.
4 / 25 1955: Movie debut in monster flickEastwood passed a screen test with Universal Studios, got a 40-week contract, and landed his first roles in the 1955 monster movies “Revenge of the Creature” and “Tarantula” and the comedy “Francis in the Navy.”
5 / 25 John Kobal Foundation/Getty Images) Late 1950s: TV roles and manual labor
6 / 25 Sunset Boulevard // Getty Images 1958: Becoming Rowdy YatesEastwood’s breakout role came in 1958 when he landed the part of Rowdy Yates on the Western television series “Rawhide.” He would go on to play the cowboy for the show’s eight seasons.
7 / 25 United Artists/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images 1960s: Spaghetti WesternsThe actor headed to Italy in the 1960s to star in a series of spaghetti Westerns—“A Fistful of Dollars,” “For a Few Dollars More,” and “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”—all directed by Sergio Leone. The stint in Europe brought Eastwood international attention.
8 / 25 United Artists/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images 1960s: The ‘Man with No Name’Actors James Coburn and Charles Bronson both turned down the role of the “Man with No Name” that Eastwood played in the Sergio Leone Westerns. Eastwood wore the same sarape in each movie and is said to have never washed it.
9 / 25 1967: Establishing Malpaso ProductionsIn 1967 Eastwood set up his own company, Malpaso Productions, which would produce his first Western, “Hang ’Em High,” in 1968. Malpaso Productions was behind more of Eastwood’s cowboy roles in “High Plains Drifter” in 1973, “The Outlaw Josey Wales” in 1976, and “Pale Rider” in 1985, as well as Eastwood’s portrayal of real-life prisoner Frank Lee Morris in the 1979 movie “Escape from Alcatraz.”
10 / 25 1971: Directorial debut
11 / 25 Silver Screen Collection // Getty Images 1971: ‘Dirty Harry’ arrives on screenEastwood first took on the iconic role of hard-edged San Francisco detective Harry Callahan in 1971’s “Dirty Harry,” which led to the sequels “Magnum Force” in 1973, “The Enforcer” in 1976, “Sudden Impact” in 1983, and “The Dead Pool” in 1988.
12 / 25 Sunset Boulevard/ // Getty Images 1975: Relationship with Sondra LockeIn 1975, Eastwood began a 13-year relationship with actress Sondra Locke that would end bitterly. The couple made six films together, although while living with Locke, Eastwood had a son, Scott, and a daughter, Kathryn, with former flight attendant Jacelyn Reeves. In 1989, Locke filed a $70 million palimony lawsuit against Eastwood, seeking damages and an equal division of property. In a private settlement, Locke got money, property, and a directing contract at Warner Bros.
13 / 25 Sunset Boulevard // Getty Images 1978: Comedy with an orangutan costarVenturing into comedy, Eastwood appeared in the 1978 movie “Every Which Way but Loose,” sharing the screen with a charismatic orangutan named Clyde. The pair reunited for a sequel, “Any Which Way You Can,” in 1980. You may also like: 70 celebrities who published a best-seller
14 / 25 MIKE SARGENT // Getty Images 1986: Mayor of CarmelThe life-long Californian was elected mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea in 1986, after running a campaign that promised to bridge the business and residential communities of the 1-square-mile village. He was mayor of Carmel, which has no street addresses or street lights, for a single two-year term and did not seek reelection.
15 / 25 Jim Smeal // Getty Images 1988–1992: Directing prize-winning filmsAdding to his growing list of award-winning directorial efforts, Eastwood made “Bird,” a 1988 biopic about jazz legend Charlie Parker that won him a Golden Globe, followed by the 1992 Western “Unforgiven,” which won Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director. In “Unforgiven,” Eastwood played an aging gunslinger taking on one last job.
16 / 25 Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images 1993: Two Oscars and a babyEastwood had been in a relationship with actress Frances Fisher since the early ’90s, soon after the two appeared together in “Pink Cadillac.” She was also one of his co-stars in the Oscar-winning “Unforgiven,” and in 1993, the couple welcomed a daughter, Francesca.
17 / 25 Sunset Boulevard // Getty Images 1995–2003: Making dramas and romanceEastwood directed and starred in the 1995 love story “The Bridges of Madison County” alongside Meryl Streep as well as the 2000 adventure movie “Space Cowboys” with James Garner, Tommy Lee Jones, and Donald Sutherland. In 2003, he directed the crime drama “Mystic River,” which earned Oscars for stars Sean Penn and Tim Robbins.
18 / 25 ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images 1996: A second marriageEastwood entered into marriage a second time when he wed a California TV news anchor named Dina Ruiz, who was 35 years his junior. The couple welcomed a daughter, Morgan, that same year, and Ruiz went on to appear in two of his films, “True Crime” and “Blood Work.”
19 / 25 Christopher Polk // Getty Images 2004: Hitting it big with ‘Million Dollar Baby’“Million Dollar Baby,” starring Hilary Swank as a boxer and Eastwood as her trainer, earned four Academy Awards: Eastwood received an Oscar for Best Director, the movie won for Best Picture, and Swank and Morgan Freeman were recognized with Oscars for their acting. The movie made a whopping $200 million.
20 / 25 Jon Kopaloff // Getty Images 2006: Two looks at World War IIIn 2006, Eastwood focused on an unusual set of projects—directing two movies about World War II, one from an American point of view and the other Japanese. “Flags of Our Fathers” looks at the men who helped raise the U.S. flag at Iwo Jima, and “Letters from Iwo Jima” drew from battlefield correspondence to explore the experiences of Japanese soldiers. “Letters” was nominated for four Academy Awards, among them Best Picture and Best Director. You may also like: Celebrity stage names vs. their real names
21 / 25 Alexandra Wyman // Getty Images 2008–2016: Continued directorial successAmong Eastwood’s successes as a director were “Gran Torino” in 2008 and “Invictus” the following year, starring Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman. Eastwood also directed the film adaptation of the Broadway hit musical “Jersey Boys,” “American Sniper” about Navy Seal sharpshooter Chris Kyle, and “Sully,” a behind-the-scenes look at pilot Chesley Sullenberger’s daring Hudson River airplane landing.
22 / 25 Michael Kovac // Getty Images for AFI 2012: Talking to an empty chairAt the 2012 Republican National Convention, in support of candidate Mitt Romney, Eastwood appeared on stage next to an empty chair and spoke to an imaginary President Barack Obama. The unconventional convention appearance left many observers wondering why the actor chose to attempt such an odd stunt.
23 / 25 Mark Wilson // Getty Images 2014: A second divorceIn 2014, Eastwood divorced Dina Ruiz, a television anchorwoman 35 years his junior whom he had married in 1996. In 2012, Dina starred in a reality show called “Mrs. Eastwood and Company,” and her famous husband appeared in three episodes of its single season. They separated the following year.
24 / 25 ROBYN BECK // Getty Images 2019: A controversial look at ‘Richard Jewell’Eastwood directed the 2019 movie “Richard Jewell” about the security guard accused of planting a bomb at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. The movie came under criticism for portraying Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter Kathy Scruggs as trading sexual favors with an FBI agent for an inside scoop. The editor-in-chief of the Journal-Constitution and colleagues of the late reporter said the film’s depiction of the respected journalist was offensive.
25 / 25 Axelle/Bauer-Griffin // Getty Images 2018–2020: More directorial projects underwayThe year 2018 saw Eastwood starring in “The Mule,” a true story about a U.S. Army veteran working as a drug mule for a Mexican cartel. In 2020, he started his 42nd project as a director—“Cry Macho,” about a horse breeder who rescues a boy from his alcoholic mother. You may also like: 100 celebrities who grew up in small towns Trending NowWhat was Clint Eastwoods first role?In May 1954, Eastwood made his first real audition for Six Bridges to Cross but was rejected by Joseph Pevney. After many unsuccessful auditions, he was eventually given a minor role by director Jack Arnold in Revenge of the Creature (1955), a sequel to the recently released Creature from the Black Lagoon.
Did John Wayne and Clint Eastwood get along?It just so happens, that Eastwood incurred the displeasure of such a legendary cowboy—none other than John Wayne. Eastwood starred in the 1973 film High Plains Drifter which he also directed. Now a classic, the film was absolutely hated by John Wayne, an iconic figure in the western genre and Eastwood's senior.
Did Eric Fleming and Clint Eastwood get along?There are many more examples of this opinion, and while they no doubt also had their ups and downs, it seems that Eric Fleming and Clint Eastwood were very much good friends.
When did Clint Eastwood get his start?His first roles were bit parts in films like Revenge of the Creature and Francis in the Navy, both released in 1955. In 1958, Eastwood scored his big break with a major part in the TV Western Rawhide.
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How old was Clint Eastwood when he first acted?
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