Nicolas Cage

His father was of Italian descent. His maternal grandfather was of approximately three quarters German and one quarter British Isles (English, Scottish) ancestry. His maternal grandmother was of Polish descent.

2000: Filed divorce papers in February, withdrew them in April.

October 1997: Ranked #40 in Empire magazines "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list.

Was engaged to Kristen Zang.

Nephew of Francis Ford Coppola and Talia Shire.

Got Johnny Depp his first acting job.

Close friend of Tom Waits , Crispin Glover and Rush drummer Neil Peart.

Stage name taken from comic book character Luke Cage.

Owns a Lamborghini that used to belong to Prince Ali-Reza Pahlavi , the former prince of Iran.

Younger brother of Marc Coppola and Christopher Coppola.

Grandson of Carmine Coppola.

Proposed to Patricia Arquette on the day he met her in the early 1980s. Arquette thought he was a bit strange but played along with his antics by creating a list of things Cage would have to fulfill to win her. When he started to work his way through the list, Arquette got scared and avoided him. They met again many years later and later went on to marry.

1997: He lived in a fake castle on the outskirts Los Angeles. He wants to import an authentic one from overseas.

Loves to improvise, ocassionally to the annoyance of other cast members.

Collects comic books and sees them as being todays equivalent of mythology.

The Wild at Heart movie poster lists his name as both "Nicolas Cage" and "Nicholas Cage".

Ranked #37 in Premieres 100 most powerful people in Hollywood in 1998.

1984: Listed as one of 12 "Promising New Actors of 1984" in John Willis Screen World, Vol. 36.

Tim Burton cast Cage in his doomed Superman project. Cage even did fittings of the costume.

On his upper back he has a tattoo of monitor lizard with a top hat.

2001: Announced that he is dating Lisa Marie Presley , daughter of the late Elvis Presley. They later married.

Cousin of Robert Schwartzman , who changed his name to Robert Schwartzman-Cage inspired by Nicolas.

May 2001: Awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts by California State University, Fullerton and also spoke at the commencement.

Father, August Coppola , was formerly a professor at Cal State Long Beach and Dean of Creative Arts at San Francisco State University.

During an A&E Biography on him, the host explained that Cage was director Sam Raimi s first choice to play Norman Osborn/Green Goblin in the movie Spider-Man . Apparently this was before he met Willem Dafoe.

Graduated UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television.

Cousin of Sofia Coppola , Jason Schwartzman and Roman Coppola.

On "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" , he told Jay that he took the name "Cage" from a comic book character named Luke Cage, the "first black superhero." This is not accurate; the first black superhero in mainstream comics was Marvels Black Panther, introduced in 1966. Luke Cage, introduced in 1972, was also preceded by: Marvels Falcon, introduced in 1969; the black western hero, Lobo, from Dell Comics in 1965 (the first black character to star in his own title); the title character of "Waku, Prince of the Bantu," an African chieftain, introduced as part of the Atlas Comics anthology title "Jungle Tales" in 1954. When asked which of the powers he would prefer to have, he said flight was his desire.

One of three actors (with Lee Marvin [ Cat Ballou ] and Peter Sellers [ Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb ]) with an Oscar nomination for playing multiple characters in a film (in Adaptation. , he plays two characters, Donald and Charlie). Marvin is the only one who actually won one for a double role.

Former cousin, by marriage, of director Spike Jonze.

Met his future wife, Alice Kim Cage , at a sushi bar where she was a waitress. When they married she was only 20 years old.

Went to the same high school as Angelina Jolie , Michael Klesic , Lenny Kravitz , David Schwimmer , Jonathan Silverman , Gina Gershon , Rhonda Fleming , Jackie Cooper , Rob Reiner , Antonio Sabato Jr. , Pauly Shore , Michael Tolkin , Betty White , Corbin Bernsen , Elizabeth Daily , Albert Brooks and Crispin Glover.

Ate a real cockroach in the film Vampires Kiss , it reportedly took three takes. He once said about the experience, "Every muscle in my body didnt want to do it, but I did it anyway."

Attended Justin-Siena High School in Napa, CA, during the early 80s.

His is (along with his cousin Sofia Coppola ) the third generation of Oscar winners in the Coppola family. His uncle, Francis Ford Coppola and his grandfather, Carmine Coppola , are the other two generations. They are the second family to do so, the first family is the Hustons - Anjelica Huston , John Huston and Walter Huston.

Became a father for the 2nd time at age 41 when his 3rd wife Alice Kim Cage gave birth to their son Kal-el Coppola Cage on October 3, 2005. Just as Nick was named after a comic book character, "Luke Cage", so he has named his son after the comic book character "Kal-el" (aka Superman).

Trains in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Royce Gracie Nicolas Cage also trains in Wing Chun, Karate, & Jeet Kune Do.

Referred to as the "Jazz musician of acting" by David Lynch.

Former stepfather of Patricia Arquette s son Enzo Rossi , Riley Keough and Benjamin Keough.

July 2006: Bought Schloss Neidstein, a mini castle in the Bavarian village of Etzelwang.

After his first film role (in Fast Times at Ridgemont High ), he adopted the stage name of Cage, because he wanted to assure himself that any success he had was based on his own merits, not the fame of his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola.

Was a very close friend of late Johnny Ramone.

Big fan of Elvis Presley.

Considered "Blue" before settling on "Cage" as his surname.

2006: He purchased a home on the former property of John Wayne in Newport Beach, CA, for a record-setting $24 million.

Said in a Readers Digest interview that his wife, Alice, is into designing jewelry and has no interest whatsoever in being an actress.

Offered the role of Green Goblin/Norman Osborn in Spider-Man .

Was originally considered for the role of Brad Hamilton in Fast Times at Ridgemont High , but after his audition the studio thought his performance was too dark and the role went, instead, to Judge Reinhold. Additionally, Cage was 17 at the time and could not work as many hours as actors over 18. In this film, he is credited under the name Nicolas Coppola for the first and only time.

1999: Was among the guests at the wedding of Spike Jonze and Sofia Coppola. Others were George Lucas , Jason Schwartzman , Bo Barrett , Kirsten Dunst and Tom Waits.

Auditioned for the role of Joel in Risky Business , which eventually went to Tom Cruise and helped launch his career.

He said he realized that all great movie stars, such as Spencer Tracy , had had recognizable voices, so he has stylized his to be distinctive.

Great-grandson of Francesco Pennino.

Owns a home in New Orleans.

Devoted Elvis Presley fan that he is, in Wild at Heart he performed the Elvis classic "Love Me" with uncanny aplomb.

Former son-in-law of Elvis Presley and Priscilla Presley.

2007: Bought Midford Castle (though not an actual castle) near Bath, England for an estimated price 5 million (about $10 million).

In 2006, he donated $2 million to Amnesty International for a fund to help child soldiers.

Owns homes in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, New Orleans, New York City and in one in Middletown, Rhode Island, which he purchased in 2007.

Owns the rights of the original The Courtship of Eddies Father movie, which he bought from Ted Turner , with the intention of turning it into a movie.

While making an appearance on "Late Show with David Letterman" for the film Knowing , he mentioned that he is fascinated with hang-gliding.

Is an alumnus of the childrens theatre group MET2 along with Adam Lambert , Sofia Coppola , Matt McFarland, Kylie Tyndall , Keaton Tyndall , Vivian Bayubay , Nathan Norton , Derek Klena , Lauren Klena , & Roma Watkins.

The historic LaLurie House on the corner of Royal and Gov. Nicholls St. in New Orleans, which Cage bought for $3,450,000 in 2007, is reputed to be haunted by the many slaves tortured and killed by Delphine LaLurie in the 1830s.

(16 April 2011) When Cage was arrested in New Orleans and charged with alleged domestic violence against his wife, Alice, and disturbing the peace. The $11,000 needed to bail him out was posted by Duane Dog Chapman , better known as "Dog the Bounty Hunter".

Ex-girlfriend Christina Fulton hit Cage with a $13 million lawsuit in 2009, regarding a property transfer. They negotiated a settlement in June 2011.

Despite playing her father in Peggy Sue Got Married , Cage is 1 year younger than Helen Hunt.

He named his five favorite films as East of Eden , A Streetcar Named Desire , 2001: A Space Odyssey , A Clockwork Orange and The Wizard of Oz .

Was originally cast as "Randy The Ram Robinson" in The Wrestler . However, Cage dropped out of the film because he felt he didnt have time to bulk up for the part and director Darren Aronofsky s heart was set on Mickey Rourke. Mickey would go on to win a Golden Globe and be nominated for an Oscar for his performance.

March 2009 - Sold Schloss Neidstein, a castle in the Bavarian village of Etzelwang.

On Reddit, he has an entire community devoted to him called "One True God.".

Stated that the reason he owned so many pieces of property in the past--including multiple castles, mansions, and an island--was to protect his money without buying stock or relying on a bank, believing that real estate was the most trustworthy way to accomplish this. However, after the real estate bubble collapsed, he sold most of his property at a loss and rescinded on his belief. He now owns a modest amount of property: a house in Las Vegas near his friends and a small cottage near Glastonbury, England.

Became a father for the 1st time at age 26 when his girlfriend Christina Fulton gave birth to their son Weston Cage on December 26, 1990.

(October 2008) Hes selling the sprawling Gray Craig estate in Middletown, Rhode Island.

(January 2011) Filming Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance in Turkey.

(August 2007) Bought the sprawling Gray Craig estate in Middletown for $15.7 million, a purchase price that ranks among the highest ever for a home in Rhode Island.

(November 2011) Anchorage, AK, USA: acting in The Frozen Ground .

Became a grandfather for the 1st time at age 50 when his son Weston Cage welcomed a son, Lucian Augustus Coppola Cage on July 1, 2014.

Once woke up in his house at Orange County in the middle of the night to find a naked man eating a fudgesicle in front of his bed. The man was arrested by police but Cage pressed no charges.

Was to have starred in Superman Lives to be directed by Tim Burton but Warners canceled it.

His birthday is one day before Elvis Presley s, of whom he is a fan.

In American Horror Story, Season 3, Episode 1, whilst taking a tour of The LaLaurie Mansion on Royal Street in New Orleans, Madison Montgomery (Emma Roberts), asks "Wasnt this house owned by the guy in Face/Off? The tour guide replies, "Correct! The actor Nicolas Cage, was a previous owner". Cage did in-fact purchase the house in 2007. The house is considered by many, to be the most Haunted House in America.

Is fond of the vibrant, multicultural city of New Orleans and frequently makes films there.

Mentioned in an interview that hes a massive fan of Quentin Tarantino and expresses great interest in working with him in the future.

Nicolas Cage separated from wife of 12 years, Alice Kim, on 26th June, 2016. They share 10 year-old son, Kal-El.

Nicolas Cage and wife, Alice Kim, secretly separated in early January, 2016, after 11 years of marriage. They would have celebrated their 12th wedding anniversary, in August, 2016.

Frequently stars in films set in Las Vegas ("Honeymoon In Vegas", "Con Air", "Next", "The Trust", "Leaving Las Vegas").

Reserved a permanent tomb for himself in saint Louis cemetery New Orleans.

To be a good actor you have to be something like a criminal, to be,willing to break the rules to strive for something new.

I needed to change my name just to liberate myself and find out I could,do it without walking into a Hollywood casting office with the name,Coppola.

What happens is, you become different people in your path as an actor.

(1996) If I thought about awards, I would not have been able to do a,movie like Leaving Las Vegas, because the word around town was that,Mike [Figgis] and I were making the most unreleasable movie in,Hollywood. I had some fear that the movie would not get released.

(1998, Movieline Magazine) I did not want to be in,Peggy Sue Got Married (1986) . I turned it down three times.

Superman is an American myth. Like the English have Shakespeare.

What I would suggest is to put a frame on it. Tape your audition. Put,your performance in a frame so they can see it, and then go into the,office. But I would send the tape. If you are genuinely talented, you,are to be doing things that are special. So put a frame on it.

I try to pick ans choose my material based on what I can do to challenge,myself and make myself uncomfortable. Always stay a student, never be a,maestro.

Actors, their greatest tool, their greatest resource is imagination. You can take things, power objects, you can recruit your dreams, you can access your memories and get there. So the idea is not to act but to just be.

You can choose your family sometimes. You can choose people, it could be a teacher, it could be a professor, it could be someone you work with that actually genuinely cares about you and wants you to succeed.

At a young age, I was interested in comic books, which was really how I learnt to read. The name Cage came from a comic book character called Power Man.

How do you rebel in a family of rebels?,To be a good actor you have to be something like a criminal, to be willing to break the rules to strive for something new.

Every great story seems to begin with a snake.

I care about the connection with the audience. Film is such a powerful medium. Movies can change the way people think.