Matthew McConaughey

'''Matthew David McConaughey''' (born November 4, 1969 in Uvalde, Texas) is an American actor. After a series of minor roles in the early 1990s, he came to fame after starring in several successful films, including ''A Time to Kill'' and ''U-571''. He is known for having played the leading man in several hit romantic comedies, including ''The Wedding Planner'' (2001), ''How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days'' (2003) and ''Failure to Launch'' (2006).

Biography

Early life

McConaughey, the youngest of three boys, was born in Uvalde, Texas on November 4th, 1969; he is of "Scotch-Irish" ancestry (the surname ''McConaughey'' means "son of Duncan" in Gaelic). McConaughey had what he describes as a conservative Christian upbringing. His late father, James Donald McConaughey, ran a Texaco gas station, worked as a truck driver, and was a former professional football player (for the Green Bay Packers, drafted in 1953). His mother, Mary Kathlene "Kay" McCabe, was a substitute schoolteacher. His parents divorced and re-married several times (to each other), in what he describes as a "loving, but unstable relationship".

McConaughey moved to Longview, Texas in 1980 and, after graduating from Longview High School in 1988, where he was voted the most handsome, Matthew lived briefly in Australia. He had relative academic success in high school, and went to college. He studied film direction at the University of Texas at Austin and was a member of Delta Tau Delta Fraternity, graduating in 1993.

Career

McConaughey got his start working in television commercials and was cast in his first role in the film ''Dazed and Confused'' (1993), after meeting casting director Don Phillips at a bar near the University of Texas at Austin. After appearing in some additional small parts in ''Angels in the Outfield'', ''Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation'', ''Boys on the Side'', and the television series ''Unsolved Mysteries'', McConaughey's big break came as the lawyer "Jake Brigance" in the 1996 film ''A Time to Kill'', based on the John Grisham novel of the same name. In 1997, McConaughey won an MTV Movie Award for best breakthrough performance for the role. He has also twice been nominated for a Blockbuster Entertainment Award.

McConaughey gained renown and was cast in leading roles in many more movies: ''Contact'', ''Amistad'', ''The Newton Boys'', ''Edtv'', and ''U-571''. By the early 2000s, he was frequently cast in romantic comedies, including ''The Wedding Planner'' and ''How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days'', both of which were successful at the box office. During this time period, he appeared in the low-budget film, ''TipToes'', where he played a firefighter opposite Kate Beckinsale with a buried family secret and ''Two For The Money'' where he plays a protege to Al Pacino's gambling mogul.

McConaughey starred in the feature film, ''Sahara'' (budgeted at $130 million), along with Steve Zahn and Penélope Cruz. Prior to the release of the movie, he promoted it by repeating some trips he took in the late 1990s, including sailing down the Amazon River and trekking to Mali. In 2005, ''People'' magazine named him their "Sexiest Man Alive". In 2006, he co-starred with Sarah Jessica Parker in the romantic comedy, ''Failure to Launch'', which was a success at the box office.

Personal life

On October 25, 1999, McConaughey was arrested at his home in Austin, Texas; the charges included possession of marijuana and resisting arrest. The police were responding at 2:37 a.m. to a disturbance call after a neighbor complained of loud music from the house next-door. They arrived to "easily hear very loud music," bongo drum playing and clapping coming from McConaughey's residence. According to official police reports, McConaughey was found dancing around naked and playing bongo drums with a friend, actor Cole Hauser, a co-actor in ''Dazed and Confused'' (1993). The drug charges were dropped, but McConaughey pled guilty for violating the city's noise ordinance and paid a USD $50 fine.

An avid University of Texas at Austin football fan, McConaughey is often seen at Longhorn games. In addition to his home in Austin, he also owns a 1,600 acre ranch in Texas. He has dated actress Sandra Bullock, as well as Penelope Cruz. The two had been together since 2004, soon after Cruz broke up with Tom Cruise in January 2004. In June 2006 ''People'' reported that he and Cruz have decided to split due to their busy work schedules. He was last seen with Jamie A. Garcia.

In July 2006, McConaughey's latest foibles in real life were documented via "McConaughey's Lost Weekend.", a blog with photographs of a "three-day bender in Costa Rica."

Selected filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
rowspan="4"
2007	''The Widow Claire''	TBA
''Ghosts of Girlfriends Past''	TBA	Just Announced
''Hammer Down''	TBA	Just Announced
''Dear Deliah''	TBA	Just Announced
rowspan="2"
2006	''We are...Marshall''	Coach Jack Lengyel
''Failure to Launch''	Tripp
rowspan="2"
2005	''Two for the Money''	Brandon Lang
''Sahara''	Dirk Pitt
2003	''How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days''	Benjamin 'Ben' Barry
rowspan="3"
2002	''Reign of Fire''	Denton Van Zan
''Thirteen Conversations About One Thing''	Troy
''Frailty''	Fenton Meiks
2001	''The Wedding Planner''	Steve Edison
2000	''U-571''	Lt. Andrew Tyler, Executive Officer
1999	''Edtv''	Ed 'Eddie' Pekurny
1998	''The Newton Boys''	Willis Newton
rowspan="2"
1997	''Amistad''	Baldwin
''Contact''	Palmer Joss
rowspan="3"
1996	''A Time to Kill''	Jake Tyler Brigance
''Lone Star''	Buddy Deeds
''Glory Daze''	Rental Truck Guy
1995	''Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation''	Vilmer	limited release
1994	''Angels in the Outfield''	Ben Williams
1993	''Dazed and Confused''	David Wooderson

References

Footnotes

Interviews

*Cosmopolitan interview (November, 2005)
*About.com interview (October, 2005)
*CrazedFanBoy.com interview (March, 2005)
*MovieHole interview (February 6, 2003)
*Well Rounded Entertainment interview (February 1998)
*FinalArticles interview (August, 1996)

Web sites

*The Matthew McConaughey Web Site
*Matthew McConaughey - just keep livin
*McConaugheyFan.com
*Matthew McConaughey fan site
*A Matthew McConaughey Ressource!

For more information about Matthew McConaughey, please visit: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_McConaughey

Biography courtesy of the brilliant Wikipedia!

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