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Sean Connery Facts
| Sign | Virgo |
| Born |
Aug 25, 1930 Edinburgh, UK |
| Age | 96 |
| Total Facts | 105 |
In 1998, he received a Tony Award for co-producing the play "Art" by Yasmina Reza.
In 1999 he called on the Scottish parliament to ban all handguns in the country.
Injured his shoulder in a fall while playing golf. (June 2008).
Is one of four Scottish actors to have received an Academy Award nomination. The others in chronological order are Deborah Kerr, Mary Ure and Tom Conti. As of 2011 he is the only one to have won an Academy Award (for his performance in The Untouchables (1987)).
Is the first (and as of 2006 the only) actor that played "James Bond" to win an Oscar.
Major contributor to the Scottish National Party (SNP). This was stopped for a while when the ruling Labour government said people living outside of the United Kingdom would not be allowed to donate money to British political parties.
Measured at exactly 6' 2.4" back in his body-building days, he is still the tallest actor to have played James Bond to date, George Lazenby and Timothy Dalton both being exactly 6' 2".
Noted to be one of James Bond's favorite actors in the novel "Scorpius." Connery previously played James Bond in seven films.
Of his career choices in the '90s (pretty much his last decade in film), The Rock (1996) and Entrapment (1999) are the films he liked the most. On the other hand, The Avengers (1998) was a film he regretted doing at all.
Of the six actors who have played James Bond, he is the only one who, like Bond, served in the Royal Navy.
Older brother of Neil Connery.
Once worked as a bricklayer.
Panama's President Mireya Moscoso presented him with a Manuel Amador Guerrero award, named after the country's first president. She said he was given the award for his "talent and versatility." Sir Sean was on a trip to Panama to visit various humanitarian programs conducted by the government. (10 March 2003)
Parodied on "Saturday Night Live" (1975) by Darrell Hammond, most famously as a bumbling contestant on the TV game show "Jeopardy!" (1984).
Played James Bond in Thunderball (1965). 18 years later, he reprised the role in the film's remake, Never Say Never Again (1983). He is the only Bond actor to appear in both an official and non-official EON production.
Premiere Magazine ranked him as #36 on a list of the Greatest Movie Stars of All Time in their Stars in Our Constellation feature (2005).
Presented with the American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award by his Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) co-star Harrison Ford, who told him, "John Wayne gave us the old West. James Stewart gave us our town. You gave us the world." (8 June 2006)
Presented with the Marrakech International Film Festival Award in Morocco by his friend and Just Cause (1995) co-star Laurence Fishburne. (8 December 2004)
Pulled out of a seven-figure deal for a planned autobiography for the second time, in March 2005. The actor signed a deal in 2004 with ghostwriter Hunter Davies to produce an account of his life from Edinburgh milkman to international film superstar. Six months prior to his hook-up with Davies, Connery also canceled a similar deal with Scottish writer Meg Henderson, who said later: "He isn't the man I thought he was."
Ranked #14 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list. [October 1997]
Received a Bafta Scotland Lifetime Achievement Award at the Cineworld complex in Edinburgh, Scotland. (25 August 2006).
Received a lifetime achievement award at the opening night of the Festa del Cinema, Rome's inaugural film festival. Connery was presented with the Marco Aurelio award in recognition of "his numerous cinematic endeavours over the years". (13 October 2006).
Received the Freedom of the City of Edinburgh in 1991.
Received the honorary degree of DLitt from St Andrews University in 1988.
Recipient of 22nd Annual Kennedy Center Honors for lifetime contribution to arts and culture, presented by President Bill Clinton in Washington, D.C. on December 5, 1999.
Said his favorite memory from A Bridge Too Far (1977) was working with Dirk Bogarde, whom he had long admired.
Said in an interview that during the filming of Never Say Never Again (1983), he was taking martial arts lessons and in the process angered the instructor who in turn broke his wrist. Connery stayed with the wrist broken for a number of years thinking it was only a minor pain... the instructor was Steven Seagal.
Shares his birthday with American director Tim Burton.
Started smoking when he was nine years old.
The Edinburgh Filmhouse rejected a proposal to rename itself "The Sean Connery Filmhouse" in November 2005 following complaints over Connery's status as a tax exile.
The extraordinary success of Goldfinger (1964), which was released in December 1964, and of 1965's Thunderball (1965) propelled Connery to the top of Quigley Publications' annual Top Ten Money Making Stars poll in 1965. He remains the only British male star to be the #1 box office star in America.
Took dancing lessons for 11 years. His teacher was the Swedish dancer Yat Malmgren.
Turned down Patrick McGoohan's role as King Edward I in Braveheart (1995) because he was filming Just Cause (1995).
Turned down Richard Chamberlain's role in "Shogun" (1980) because he would not act on television.
Turned down the role of Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings series (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002), and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)) because he didn't want to film down in New Zealand for 18 months, and could not understand the novels.
Turned down the role of John Hammond in Jurassic Park (1993). Coincidentally, his Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) co-star, Harrison Ford, was offered the role of Dr. Alan Grant. Not to mention, it would've reunited both of them with director Steven Spielberg.
Turned down the role of Simon Gruber in Die Hard: With a Vengeance (1995) due to the diabolical nature of the character. Director John McTiernan, who directed Connery in The Hunt for Red October (1990), said he was the very first choice for that role.
Turned down the role of the Architect in The Matrix Reloaded (2003) and The Matrix Revolutions (2003).
Turned down the title role in the original The Thomas Crown Affair (1968), which he later admitted was a huge mistake on his part.
Underwent surgery at a New York hospital to remove a tumour from his kidney in January 2006. Connery's brother Neil said, "As far as I'm led to believe the tumour was benign. He seems to be quite upbeat about it."
Used to live in Marbella, Spain, near a golf course where he played daily when not filming. He left following disagreements with the local press, and now resides in the Bahamas where he plays golf much less frequently.
Voted 'Sexiest Man of the Century' by People Magazine. [1999]
Voted Best British Actor of all time in a poll for Sky TV [Feb 2005].
Was a good friend of Sir Michael Caine and the late Richard Harris.
Was delighted to be honored with the American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award, which he will receive on June 8 2006 in Los Angeles, as he was honored despite his reputation as a harsh critic of the movie industry. "It means a tremendous amount, especially because of some of the things I have said about Hollywood."
Was offered the role of Robert Elliott by Brian De Palma in Dressed to Kill (1980) and was enthusiastic about it, but declined on account of previously acquired commitments.
Was once stopped for speeding by an officer named Sergeant James Bond.
Was paid a huge sum to return as James Bond for Diamonds Are Forever (1971), setting a record. It was donated to his Scottish charity.
Was seriously considered for the role of King Philip of Macedonia in Oliver Stone's Alexander (2004).
Was the original choice to play Sybock in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989). The words in the film "Sha Ka Ree" are a play on his name.