For: Edward Felix Norton

Edward Harrison Norton

Aside from acting, Norton has made his directorial debut in the film Keeping the Faith and is slated to direct the film adaption of the novel, Motherless Brooklyn, set to be released in 2009. He is a member of the trustees Enterprise Community Partners board, a non-profit organization for developing affordable housing, as well as a social activist.

Early life

Edward Norton was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and grew up in Columbia, Maryland. His mother, Robin (née Rouse), an English teacher, died of a brain tumor in 1997; his father, Edward James Norton, Sr., is an environmental lawyer and conservation advocate working in Asia, as well as a former federal prosecutor under the Carter administration. His maternal grandfather was the developer James W. Rouse (founder of The Rouse Company), who developed the city of Columbia, Maryland (where Norton grew up), helped develop Baltimore's Inner Harbor, Norfolk's Waterside Festival Marketplace, and Boston's Quincy Market, as well as co-founded the Enterprise Foundation with Norton's maternal stepgrandmother, Patty Rouse. Norton has two younger siblings—Molly and Jim, with whom he has collaborated professionally. From 1981—1985, along with his brother, he attended Camp Pasquaney, on the shores of Newfound Lake in Hebron, New Hampshire. There, he won the acting cup in 1984 and later returned to the camp's council for two years, directing theater. He maintains close connections with the camp.

Norton graduated from Wilde Lake High School in 1987. He attended Yale University, where he acted in university productions alongside Ron Livingston and Paul Giamatti. He graduated in 1991 with a BA in History. Following graduation, Norton worked in Osaka, Japan, consulting for his grandfather's company, Enterprise Foundation. Norton can speak some Japanese. He also appeared in an ESL textbook, Only in America, used by Nova, a formerly major English language school.

Career

Norton moved to New York City and began his acting career in off-Broadway theater, breaking through with his 1993 involvement in Edward Albee's Fragments at the Signature Theatre Company. His first major film was 1996's Primal Fear. In the film, he took on the role of Aaron Stampler, a sociopathic young man accused of a brutal murder, for which he won a Golden Globe and an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. In 1998, his portrayal of a reformed neo-Nazi in American History X earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. He was also critically acclaimed for his role as a card sharp in 1998's Rounders. He packed on 30 pounds (15 kg) of muscle for his role in American History X but did not maintain the physique after production. One of his more widely known roles is his performance in the adaptation of the cult novel Fight Club by director David Fincher, which co-starred Brad Pitt and Helena Bonham Carter, and has been credited as a factor in expanding Norton's fan base.