Date of Birth

Date of Death

Nickname

Height

Mini Biography

Christopher Reeve was born September 25, 1952, in New York City. At age four, his parents (journalist Barbara Johnson and writer/professor Franklin F.D. Reeve) divorced. His mother moved sons Christopher and Benjamin to Princeton, New Jersey, and married an investment banker a few years later. After graduating from high school, Reeve studied at Cornell University, while at the same time working as a professional actor. In his final year of Cornell, he was one of two students selected (Robin Williams was the other) to study at New York's famous Juilliard School of Performing Arts, under the renowned John Houseman. Although Christopher is best known for his role as Superman (1978), a role which he played with both charisma and grace, his acting career spans a much larger ground. Paralyzed after a horse riding accident, he died suddenly at age 52, after several years of living and working with his severe disability.

Spouse

Trivia

5/27/95: Paralyzed in a horseback-riding accident near Charlottesville, VA.

Children, with Gae Exton: Matthew Reeve (b. 1979) and Alexandra Reeve (b. 1982).

1992: Son, with Dana Reeve, Will Reeve born.

Was a licensed pilot.

Attended Cornell University, where he lived in Risley Hall, as a member of the class of 1974, leaving for Juilliard after his junior year.

August 2000: Broke his leg after falling out of his wheelchair during a workout.

Turned down the lead role in American Gigolo (1980) which went to Richard Gere. Turned down the role of Fletcher Christian in The Bounty (1984) which went to Mel Gibson. Turned down the lead role in Body Heat (1981) which went to William Hurt. Turned down the role of Mason Verger in Hannibal (2001) which went to Gary Oldman. In 1976, turned down the role of Mark Harris in "The Man from Atlantis" (1977) which went to Patrick Duffy. Turned down the role of Jack T. Colton in Romancing the Stone (1984) which went to Michael Douglas, who also served as one of the film's producers.

Gained 30 pounds for the role of Superman.

Wrote an autobiography, "Still Me." The book was a bestseller, and he was working on another book at the time of his death.

Was offered numerous roles, such as the lead in The Running Man (1987) and Total Recall (1990) (both of which went to Arnold Schwarzenegger). He turned them down to take on more challenging ones.

5/3/02: He and wife Dana Reeve opened a center devoted to teaching paralyzed people to live more independently in Short Hills, NJ. Known as the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Resource Center, the facility operates a website, publishes "Paralysis Resource Guide" and houses the largest U.S. collection of paralysis-related publications. The Reeve Family Foundation has also distributed grants to paralysis researchers totaling some $22 million.

The last character he played before his riding accident was a paralyzed individual in Above Suspicion (1995), which was released six days before the accident.

Attended the Supergirl (1984) premiere with Helen Slater.

At the time he was paralyzed, he had been doing a film on horseback-riding safety.

Jane Seymour's son was named after him.

Hal Ketchum's "Hang in There, Superman" was written about him.

He is the tallest out of the six actors who have played Superman, the others being Kirk Alyn, George Reeves, Dean Cain, Tom Welling, and Brandon Routh.

Son of F.D. Reeve.

Died at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mount Kisco, New York, after suffering heart failure while being treated for a severely infected pressure wound (common among paralyzed people).

Brother: Benjamin Reeve (b. 1953). Half-brothers: Jeff Johnson and Kevin Johnson.

Said that after he was paralyzed, it was his wife's support that kept him from choosing death over living on a respirator.

Was roommate with Robin Williams at Juilliard. They remained close friends for the remainder of his life. Williams helped pay his medical bills during his final years and dedicated his Cecil B. DeMille lifetime achievement award to Reeve.

After the critical and box-office failure of Superman III (1983), he was reluctant to do a fourth Superman film, especially if it was going to be treated as a farce. He eventually agreed to do it when the producers promised him story input and that they would finance a longtime pet project of his, the gritty crime drama Street Smart (1987), in which he played an amoral reporter.

His weight trainer for Superman (1978) was British weight-lifting champion David Prowse, who played Darth Vader in Star Wars (1977), Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983).

Along with Margot Kidder, Jackie Cooper, and Marc McClure, he is one of only four actors to appear in the first four Superman films: Superman (1978), Superman II (1980), Superman III (1983), and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987).

His friend Jane Seymour used to call him Superfoot because of his tendency to step on her toes while filming their dance scenes from Somewhere in Time (1980).

After he died, a number of memorial cartoons to commemorate his death were Superman-themed. Many artists drew Reeve as Superman flying away from the wheelchair. In one picture, Superman came to Reeve's grave with flowers. In another picture, a grief-stricken Superman reads the news of Reeve's death in The Daily Planet newspaper and says to the reader, "He was my hero." In another, Captain America, Spider-Man, and Batman come to Reeve's grave with Batman, commenting, "He really was a super man." In another, a young boy in a wheelchair tells the reader, "He was the Man of Steel. He had incredible vision. He used his powers to save people. Nothing could stop him. And I think before that he acted in some Superman movies." Some pictures depicted Reeve arriving in heaven dressed as Superman; in one, he says to Gabriel, "You can keep the wings." In another, dressed as a regular angel, he declines the wings by saying, "No thanks, I'd rather walk.".

Took some criticism for his portrayal of Clark Kent (Superman's alter ego) as a weak, bumbling nerd. This characterization (which he said was based on a younger Cary Grant), in Reeve's opinion, was necessary because he felt that there had to be some kind of a difference between Superman and Clark Kent, otherwise "it's just the same guy in glasses."

At the time of his death, he had regained partial movement in his fingers and toes, and said he could feel a pin prick anywhere on his body as well as differentiate hot and cold temperatures.

Starred opposite Michael Keaton in Speechless (1994). Keaton and Reeve portrayed DC Comics' two most iconic characters, Batman and Superman respectively.

The character he portrayed on "Smallville" (2001), Dr. Swann, was named after longtime Superman artist Curt Swann.

Made his Broadway debut starring opposite Katharine Hepburn in a production of "A Matter of Gravity" in 1976. Hepburn became very fond of him, both as an actor and as a person, and teased him that he would take care of her when she retired. Ironically, Reeve's reply was "Miss Hepburn, I don't think I'll live that long."

5/18/05: Was posthumously awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Letters after his death by Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, in New Brunswick, and an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree at Stony Brook University's commencement on 5/20/05. His degree was accepted by Stony Brook graduate student Brooke Ellison, whose life and struggle against paralysis was the subject of a made-for-TV movie directed by the late actor just before his death in 2004.

Attended Julliard with actor Kevin Conroy, who later went on to provide the voice of Batman for the animated Bruce W. Timm series.

Was slated to direct a fifth Superman film featuring a new actor in the lead role if the fourth film was successful. Since the fourth film did poorly at the box office, the fifth film never materialized.

His Doctor of Humane Letters degree was accepted by Stony Brook graduate student Brooke Ellison, whose life and struggle against paralysis was the subject of a made-for-TV movie directed by the late actor just before his death in 2004.

His last theatrical film, John Carpenter's Village of the Damned (1995), paired him with Mark Hamill, who provided the voice of the Joker in the animated "Batman" (1992).

The "Smallville" (2001) episode "Thirst" was dedicated to his memory, with the caption at the end of the credits reading: "He made us believe a man could fly."

A picture of him as "Superman" appears at the end credits of European Vacation (1985).

Wore nearly 25 different Superman costumes for Superman (1978), some of which were specifically for walking and others that were for flying, and some of which were turquoise for blue screen shots (in order to balance out the blue of the uniform).

January 2004: He was decorated by the Chilean government for his humanitarian work, with the Bernardo O'Higgins Order, by the Chilean chancellor in his home in New York.

He went to Chile in 1987 during the military dictatorship to support about 80 Chilean artists (actors and directors) whose lives were threatened by the death squads of dictator Augusto Pinochet.

A Superbowl XXXIV commercial for a medical company, set in the future, portrayed Reeve as being able to walk, via computer animation. The next day, the company was flooded with phone calls from people asking how they had cured him.

Was not given first billing in any of the Superman films until Superman III (1983). As a relatively unknown actor at the time, he was given third billing behind Marlon Brando and Gene Hackman in the Superman (1978), then given second billing behind Hackman in Superman II (1980) before achieving top billing in the third film.

Was a fan of "Law & Order" (1990). He claimed that watching it helped him through his physical therapy.

Was only 24 years old when he was cast by Richard Donner in Superman (1978), making him the youngest actor ever to play the part of Superman.

Winner of a Grammy Award in the "Best Spoken Word Album" category for "Still Me" (1998)

While Reeve was filming Somewhere in Time (1980), the local theater decided to show his breakout hit Superman (1978). Many "Somewhere" cast members joined locals for the event. Early into the screening, the sound went out. Reeve, who was seated next to co-star Jane Seymour, stood up in the audience and delivered all the lines.

1979: After meeting Reeve at the Academy Awards, John Wayne turned to Cary Grant and said, "This is our new man. He's taking over.".

At the height of his popularity as Superman, a group of children who recognized him in a park purposefully threw their Frisbee over a fence and then asked him to fly after it. Trying hard not to hurt their feelings, Reeve replied he couldn't fly after the Frisbee because his cape was in the washer, so they settled for him just reaching over the fence and handing it back to them.

Godfather of Christopher Keach, Jane Seymour's son.

Following Superman (1978), he was offered a number of scripts for action films, one of which he claims was a script for a film about the Viking Eric the Red. He turned them down because he felt they didn't require much in the way of acting. Instead, he chose Somewhere in Time (1980) as his first post-Superman film, against the advice of his agent, because he liked the script and the character.

Was a descendant of the prominent D'Olier family of France. Descendant of Humphrey Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Gloucester, younger brother of the famous King Henry V of England.

Was the very first caller into Dr. Frasier Crane's radio show on the TV sitcom "Frasier" (1993).

Was a licensed hang glider pilot. This proved useful during the making of Superman (1978), as his knowledge of how flying works allowed him to create distinctive movements for Superman during the flight scenes.

Was offered Richard Gere's role in Pretty Woman (1990). When he went in to do a reading, he was not given actress Julia Roberts to read with, but the casting director, giving a half hearted effort at best. Reeve felt this was extremely unprofessional and chose not to do the film.

Personal Quotes

Either you decide to stay in the shallow end of the pool or you go out in the ocean.

What makes Superman a hero is not that he has power, but that he has the wisdom and the maturity to use the power wisely. From an acting point of view, that's how I approached the part.

A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.

[talking about Robin Williams' visiting him in the hospital shortly after the accident] There was this guy wearing a blue scrub hat and a yellow gown and with a Russian accent, being some insane Russian doctor . . . I laughed for the first time, and I knew that life was going to be okay.

I have seen first-hand how Superman actually transforms people's lives.

Christopher Reeve by Philip Abraham

US actor Christopher Reeve, ...