Billy Bob Thornton

Overview

Billy Bob Thornton was born on 4 August 1955 in Hot Springs, Arkansas, to Virginia Roberta (Faulkner), a psychic, and William Raymond (Billy Ray) Thornton, an educator, high school history teacher, and basketball coach (deceased). He is the older brother of James Donald (Jimmy Don) (born in 1958, deceased) and John David (born in 1969). He has been married six times and has four children: daughter Amanda Brumfield, with Melissa Lee Gatlin (now Parish); sons William and Harry, both with Pietra Dawn Cherniak; and daughter Bella with Connie Angland.

Billy Bob began his artistic career as a musician, playing drums and singing in a band called Tres Hombres, which once opened for Hank Williams Jr.. In 1981, he moved to Los Angeles with childhood friend Tom Epperson to pursue an acting and writing career. On the side, Billy Bob also sought work as a singer and drummer. He and Epperson tried for years to sell their scripts, but no one was buying. During those rough times, Billy Bob neglected his health and subsequently landed in the hospital with heart problems due to malnutrition. In 1992, Billy Bob starred in One False Move (1991), a movie he co-wrote with Epperson. The team finally received attention because of this work, which was very well received in Hollywood. His popularity increased steadily, especially after Sling Blade (1996) which he wrote, directed and in which he starred.
- IMDb mini biography by: Sage Giordano <billybobthorntonfan@bigfoot.com>

Once was told by director Billy Wilder that he was too ugly to be an actor and he should write a screenplay for himself in which he could exploit his less-than-perfect features. Thornton later collected an Oscar for his Sling Blade (1996) screenplay.
His daughter, Amanda Brumfield, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for manslaughter.
Agreed to Ethan Coen's and Joel Coen's The Man Who Wasn't There (2001) without reading the script, out of respect for the Coen brothers' talent.
He and Dwight Yoakam have their own production company and are looking at producing movies and records together. Yoakam appeared opposite Thornton in Sling Blade (1996).
In an interview, Thornton talked about his struggling actor years. At one point, he was so poor all he could afford to eat were potatoes, which he would grill until they stuck to the pan. This consumption led to myocarditis, which led to an intense pain in his chest since he did not have any potassium in his system. He was treated at a hospital, thanks to a kind doctor who was from Arkansas, his home state. At the time, Thornton had no medical insurance and has remained grateful for the doctor's treatment.

[on his Academy Award nomination for Best Actor (Sling Blade (1996)] Getting the nomination is like gravy. Winning would be like whatever is better than gravy.
I was the fattest baby in Clark County, Arkansas. They put me in the newspaper. It was like a prize turnip.
Acting is playing--it's actually going out on a playground with the other kids and being in the game, and I need that. Writing satisfies that part of myself that longs to sit in my room and dream.
I can't sit through plays and musical theatre. I just want to run up onstage and mess up their hair and turn over the furniture.
It's not that I don't understand it. But people think if you speak with an English accent it somehow makes you smarter.