Born:
April 10, 1951
in
Lansing, Michigan
Best Known For:
Under Siege.
Early-life:
Steven Frederic Seagal was born on April 10, 1952, in Lansing, Michigan. He's the son of a medical technician and a maths teacher. He began studying karate at a young age, later moving on to aikido. He moved to Japan to further his martial arts training in the early 1970s. He was instructing wealthy clients in Los Angeles when he came to the attention of Michael Ovitz, one of the most powerful men in Hollywood. Ovitz thought he would be perfect as the next big action star and kick-started Seagal's movie career.
Career:
Seagal worked as a martial arts supervisor on several films before making his leading man debut in 1988's Nico, aka Above the Law, and followed it up with a string of relatively low-budget action thrillers, including Hard to Kill, Marked for Death and Out for Justice. In 1992, Under Siege became one of his biggest hits, and gave him enough authority to star in and direct 1994 thriller, On Deadly Ground. Despite being savaged by the critics, he pressed on with Under Siege 2, Executive Decision, The Glimmer Man, The Patriot, Exit Wounds and Half Past Dead. An accomplished musician, he's a member of the band Thunderbox and can be seen in reality show Steven Seagal: Lawman as a real-life deputy sheriff. After a number of direct-to-video releases, he returned to the big screen in 2010 with the film Machete.
Quote:
"Try to find the path of least resistance and use it without harming others. Live with integrity and morality, not only with people but with all beings."