Clooney, George Timothy (1961– )

US actor, director, and screenwriter. He rose to fame with a starring role in the US television drama ER (1994–99). Known for his traditional good looks, charm, and wit, he successfully made the transition from television to film, starring in a variety of films from the late 1990s. He has frequently collaborated with Steven Soderbergh, for example in Out of Sight (1998) and Ocean's 11 (2001), and with the Coen brothers, for example in O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) and Intolerable Cruelty (2003). He won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in the action thriller Syriana in 2005.

He appeared in several sitcoms, including The Facts of Life and Roseanne, before landing the role of commitment-shy heartthrob Dr Doug Ross in Michael Crichton's award-winning ER. His roles in often satirical films have exhibited his subtle wit and smooth timing. Other major films include Quentin Tarantino's vampire

thriller From Dusk Till Dawn (1996), Joel Schumacher's Batman sequel Batman and Robin (1997), and Wolfgang Petersen's popular adaptation disaster film The Perfect Storm (2000). He made his directorial debut with Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002), by US screenwriter Charlie Kaufman, and directed and starred in the critically-acclaimed historical drama Good Night, and Good Luck (2005).

Clooney was born in Lexington, Kentucky. After appearing on his father's talk show, The Nick Clooney Show, as a child, he pursued a career in baseball, but after he failed to get into the team of his choice he returned to acting. His father's sister was the actress/singer Rosemary Clooney.

Other films include One Fine Day (1996), The Peacemaker (1997), The Thin Red Line (1998), Three Kings (1999), Solaris (2002), and the Ocean's 11 sequels Ocean's 12 (2004) and Ocean's 13 (2007).