Happy 74th birthday to Kurt Russell! His career has spanned seven decades and began in 1962 when he was just 12 years old. You know him from such hits as Tombstone, Backdraft, The Hateful Eight, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Furious 7, The Fate of the Furious, F9, Guardians of the Galaxy, Executive Decision, Death Proof, Miracle and The Christmas Chronicles film series.
Russell comes from a family of actors which includes his father Bing Russell who acted from the 1950s to 1990s. Bing Russell acted in many Western TV shows such as the popular Bonanza and Gunsmoke. Kurt grew up around the industry and loved baseball like his dad. Kurt’s first credit is Dennis the Menace in 1962, and he quickly moved to star in a Western show named The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters in 1963. By the late 1960s, he had been starring in Disney projects and had signed a 10-year contract with the studio. In the 1960s alone, Russell worked in the following hit TV shows, including The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Virginian, The Fugitive, Gilligan’s Island, Lost in Space, and The F.B.I. Russell served in the California Air National Guard in the 146th Tactical Airlift Wing from 1969 to 1975 in Van Nuys.
Russell and his partner, Goldie Hawn, another Hollywood icon, have continued their acting lineage with their children Wyatt Russell, Oliver Hudson (stepson to Kurt) and Kate Hudson (stepdaughter to Kurt). Hawn’s career has also spanned seven decades and started in 1966. She is known for her work in Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, The Sugarland Express, Private Benjamin, The First Wives Club and Overboard. Wyatt Russell has worked as an actor most recently in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Lodge 49, and What if…?. Oliver Hudson has worked on Rules of Engagement, Nashville and The Cleaning Lady. Kate Hudson has had a great career and worked on Almost Famous, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Glee and Deepwater Horizon. Kurt Russell has acted alongside Goldie, in Overboard, and Kate, in Deepwater Horizon.
61st Annual Academy Awards, 1989. Photo courtesy of Alan Light and Wikimedia Commons.
Kurt Russell’s career took further flight in the 1970s with roles in Disney films such as The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes, The Barefoot Executive and Now You See Him, Now You Don’t. He had a baseball career in the 1970s as well. He played in the minor leagues in the early 1970s for the California Angels and an injury during a baseball game led to an early retirement. He then went back to full-time acting. His role as Elvis Presley in Elvis marked his transition to adult stardom. The 1980s and 1990s involved multiple collaborations with Director John Carpenter in Escape from New York, The Thing and Big Trouble in Little China. He acted in star-focused films such as Tequila Sunrise, Tango & Cash, Backdraft, Tombstone and Stargate.
Russell broke into the 2000s acting in the Tom Cruise thriller Vanilla Sky and starred in the Disney film Miracle about the 1980 US Olympic Hockey team’s victory over the Soviet Union at the Olympic Games. He eventually came to work with Quentin Tarantino in Death Proof. He has further collaborated with Tarantino in The Hateful Eight and Once Upon in Hollywood in the 2010s. He appeared in the documentary about his dad and baseball titled The Battered Bastards of Baseball. His father owned a minor league ball club. He is an avid hunter, gun rights and a licensed FAA pilot. We Are The Mighty wishes him continued success for him and his family.
