Born in New York in 1916, the son of illiterate Russian immigrants, Issur Danielovitch became Kirk Douglas, and established a fabulous career as a star of the Broadway stage, the silver screens of motion pictures and television, and a noted movie producer.

Douglas attended St. Lawrence University on a wrestling scholarship, competing as Isadore Demsky, and worked as a janitor to meet school expenses. He credits wrestling for the discipline and physical fitness necessary to perform his vigorous acting roles.

He earned three Academy Award nominations and his independent company produced such memorable films as Paths of Glory, The Vikings, Spartacus, Lonely Are the Brave and Seven Days in May. Author of an autobiography and two novels, he has traveled the world to speak on the meaning of democracy and freedom.

Douglas' credits include nine Broadway plays, 73 films, 11 television movies and several books. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1981 and the American Film Institute Life Achievement Award in 1991. He has been elected to the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and has been named an Officer of the French Legion of Honor.

Other honors include the New York Film Critics Award, the Hollywood Foreign Press Award, the George Washington Carver Award of Merit, and the Cecil B. DeMille Award.