Here’s Everything You Should Know About Brad Pitt’s Younger Years and Career Beginnings
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Often people are in awe of great performers and wish they had what it takes to be like them. But each of these larger-than-life personalities was born as a normal person and experienced the usual struggles with career entry like everyone else. One of these people that many look up to is Hollywood icon Brad Pitt, who is now a household name with over 92 prestigious awards in his collection.

Like everyone else, actor Thelma & Louise (1991) had a normal childhood. He went through the same path as everyone else who wanted to make a career in the film world, but there is a little twist in the way he went about it. Read about Brad Pitt’s younger years and the early success he had in his career.

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Brad Pitt’s Fact Card

How Old is Brad Pitt and Where was He Born?

Brad Pitt, whose birth name is William Bradley Pitt, was born a week before Christmas on December 18, 1963, in Shawnee, Oklahoma. A few years after his birth, his family moved to Springfield, Missouri, where he eventually spent most of his childhood. The young man, along with his two younger siblings Douglas and Julie, was raised in the Southern Baptist faith by his mother Jane Etta (née Hillhouse), and his father William Pitt. The older Pitt earned his living as the owner of a trucking company, while his wife worked as a school counselor.

Here’s Everything You Should Know About Brad Pitt’s Younger Years and Career Beginnings

Brad, who was remarkably hyperactive as a growing child, attended Horace Mann Elementary School before enrolling in Kickapoo High School, both in Missouri. At Kickapoo High School, he was known for participating in numerous extracurricular activities. He was a member of the tennis, golf, and swimming teams and also participated in school debates and musicals.

Why He Dropped Out of College To Pursue Acting

After finishing high school in 1982, Brad Pitt enrolled at the University of Missouri where he studied journalism with a focus on advertising. As expected, he was very popular in school and was a member of the Sigma Chi Brotherhood.

As he studied to get his degree, Brad Pitt’s interest in movies grew, both in the acting part of the film and the way they were made. Unfortunately, no films were made in his home state, so he had to go all the way to Los Angeles, California, to learn more about it.

Brad Pitt Career

Brad Pitt, who looked up to people like Sean Penn, Mickey Rourke, and Gary Oldman, didn’t care that he was only two weeks away from graduation when he packed his bags and left for Hollywood. It was said that he had lied to his parents that he wanted to attend an art design school in Los Angeles. After he arrived in Los Angeles, he enrolled in various acting classes and worked in various odd jobs at the same time to make ends meet.

Success in Brad Pitt’s Younger Years As An Actor

Brad Pitt’s decision to give up school finally paid off, but it was not an overnight success. While he had different odd jobs he brought himself under the direct guardianship of the actor and acting coach Roy London.

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While he was still learning his craft, he was lucky enough to land unrewarded roles in four films released in 1987. His talent seemed to have attracted the attention of some producers, as he received his first recognized role in the middle of the same year. This came in the NBC soap “Another World”, in which his character appeared in two episodes.

Here’s Everything You Should Know About Brad Pitt’s Younger Years and Career Beginnings

Brad Pitt’s excellent performance in the role earned him a guest appearance in the ABC sitcom “Growing Pains” in November 1987. His role here was quickly followed by the role of Randy, the very romantic friend of Shalane McCall (in the role of Charlie Wade) in the CBS soap opera Dallas from December 1987 to February 1988.

As expected, Brad Pitt’s younger years as an actor were full of ups and downs. While the work for him was steady, it took several years before he was able to land his groundbreaking role. This finally came in 1994 in the gothic horror drama film Interview with the Vampire, a film adaptation of Anne Rice’s novel of the same name. In addition to an ensemble cast that included actors such as Tom Cruise, Kirsten Dunst, Christian Slater, and Antonio Banderas, Pitt played the role of the protagonist Louis de Pointe du Lac and received his very first prize for his performance, although he failed to impress the critics.

What followed next was for Pitt, who was born in Missouri, an announcement of his talent to the world. He did so by playing a role in Edward Zwick’s Legends of the Fall (1994), where he received his first Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actor in a critically acclaimed performance, while the rest became history