Robert Redford, Possibly the Greatest Actor of All Time, Turns 75

Robert Redford, the legendary actor and producer with a “natural” gift to light up movie screens and captivate an audience, celebrated his 75th birthday today.

Born Charles Robert Redford Jr., Redford got his start in television and on stage in 1959, making guest appearances in programs such as “The Untouchables”, “Whispering Smith”, “Perry Mason” and “The Twilight Zone.”

After making his screen debut in “War Hunt,” a 1962 movie also starring John Saxon, Robert went on to star in a slew of movies. His hits included, “The Great Gatsby,” “The Sting,” “The Great Waldo Pepper,” and “The Natural.”

Not wanting to settle for working on just one side of the lens, Redford also had his hand in directing, and shot his first film “Ordinary People” in 1969 – a drama about the slow disintegration of an upper-middle class family, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Director.

Since then Redford has directed numerous other films, some of which include “The Legend of Baggar Vance,” “A River Runs Through It,” and “Quiz Show.”

With the financial proceeds of his acting success Robert founded the Sundance Film Festival, an annual event held in Park City, Utah, which caters to independent filmmakers across the United States.

According to Wikipedia, the name “Sundance” was borrow from the character Redford played in one of his most famous movies of all time, “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.”

Always busy, Redford is currently directing “The Company You Keep,” a film – scheduled to premiere in 2012 – that sports an all star cast including Shia LaBeouf, Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon.

What better way to celebrate Mr. Redford’s big day than to kick back and watch one of his classics. :

In your opinion, what is the greatest Robert Redford movie of all time?

via CP