Robert Duvall, though thin and baldish, has been delivering
fascinating character portraits since his debut in 1962
in TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. He first gained great fame as
the family lawyer in THE GODFATHER. He received a Best Actor
Oscar for his performance in TENDER MERCIES. Duvall received
another Oscar nomination for his portrait of a fiery minister
in THE APOSTLE, a film he directed and financed.
Off screen Robert Duvall loves to dance, particularly the
tango.
Duvall's solid, assured performance in THE
RAIN PEOPLE (1969) marked the beginning of a relationship
with director Francis Ford Coppola, for whom he played cool
Mafia mouthpiece Tom Hagen in both THE GODFATHER (1972)
earning an Oscar nomination, and THE GODFATHER, PART II
(1974), and a crazed colonel in APOCALYPSE
NOW (1979), getting another Oscar nomination.
Many critics felt that Duvall's finest part
was that of a washed-up country singer in TENDER MERCIES
(1983, for which he wrote and performed his own songs);
members of the Motion Picture Academy agreed, and finally
voted him a Best Actor Oscar for his performance.
Duvall's other notable credits include...
