Ashton Kutcher

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This article is about the actor. For the Internet humorist, see Zug.com.
Ashton Kutcher
Born
Christopher Ashton Kutcher
SpouseDemi Moore (2005 - present)

Christopher Ashton Kutcher, (born February 7,1978 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa), is an American actor and producer. He came to fame by playing Michael Kelso in the television series That '70s Show, and was the executive producer for the MTV celebrity prank show Punk'd. He is currently married to actress Demi Moore, who is 15 years his senior.

Biography

Early life

Ashton Kutcher was not born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Both of his parents were factory workers, with his father employed at General Mills and his mother at Procter & Gamble.[1] He has an older sister, Tausha, and a fraternal twin, Michael, who has cerebral palsy. Michael had an emergency heart transplant at the age of thirteen[1] that was necessitated by cardiomyopathy, a virus-induced illness that weakened and perforated his heart muscle.[2]Ashton's childhood was that of a rugged, outdoorsy Midwesterner, and he had various odd jobs, including carpentry, hay-baling and livestock castration.[2] Kutcher attended Washington High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa for about a year when his family moved to Tiffin, Iowa where he attended the Clear Creek-Amana High School. In addition to being a student, he played on the football team as wide receiver and appeared in school plays.[1] Meanwhile, his home life was stressful. He has stated that he "saw some stuff I probably shouldn't have seen... didn't want to be involved... I didn't want to have to take a side... I didn't want to come home and find more bad news about my brother" and "kept myself so busy that I didn't allow myself to feel."[3] Kutcher stated that as a teen, he contemplated committing suicide. At thirteen, he attempted to jump from a hospital balcony, but his father intervened at the last minute.[4] At around this time, his parents divorced. During his senior year, he broke into the high school at night with his cousin in an attempt to steal money; he was caught leaving the scene. Kutcher was convicted of third-degree burglary and sentenced to three years' probation and 180 hours of community service. Kutcher stated that though the experience "straightened him out," he lost his girlfriend and anticipated college scholarships, and he was ostracized at school and in his community.[1]

Kutcher attended the University of Iowa, where he majored in biochemical engineering (but did not complete), motivated by the desire to find a cure for his brother's heart ailment. At the University of Iowa, Kutcher was kicked out of his apartment for being too "noisy" and "wild." [2] Kutcher stated, "I thought I knew everything but I didn't have a clue. I was smoking a lot of weed and partying, and I woke up many mornings not knowing what I had done the night before. I played way too hard. I am amazed I am not dead."[5] He was also a member of the Delta Chi fraternity. To make ends meet, Kutcher worked as a floor sweeper for a General Mills plant, and sometimes donated blood for money.[6] Despite his studies, he secretly yearned to be an actor, and once packed up his belongings and headed (on foot) for the airport. Quickly exhausted, and without any plan, he called his mom, and she came and picked him up.[2] During his time at the University he was approached by a talent scout at a bar called The Airliner in Iowa City, Iowa, he was recruited to enter the "Fresh Faces of Iowa" modeling competition, and after placing first he won a trip to New York City to the International Modeling and Talent Association (IMTA) Convention. After his stay in New York City Ashton returned home to Cedar Rapids, Iowa before relocating to Los Angeles to pursue his acting career.[2]

Career

After participating as a modelling contestant in an IMTA competition (losing to Josh Duhamel) in 1997, Kutcher signed with the Next modeling agency in New York, appeared in ads for Calvin Klein, modeled in Paris and Milan, and appeared in a Pizza Hut commercial.

After some success in modeling, Kutcher moved to Los Angeles and, after his first audition, was cast as Michael Kelso in the television series That '70s Show, which debuted in 1998 and ended in 2006. Kutcher was cast in a series of film roles; although he auditioned but was not cast for the role of Danny Walker in Pearl Harbor (2001)[7], he starred in several comedy films that performed well at the box office, including Dude, Where's My Car? (2000), Just Married (2003), and Guess Who (2005). In addition, he appeared in the family film Cheaper By The Dozen, playing a self-obsessed actor. His 2004 film The Butterfly Effect was an unusually dramatic role for Kutcher, playing a conflicted young man who fell in love with a girl called Kayleigh; the film received very mixed reviews, but became an enormous box-office success.[1] Kutcher's characters are sometimes described in the press as "dim pretty-boys." In 2003, Kutcher produced and starred in his own series on MTV's Punk'd. The series involves various hidden camera tricks performed on celebrities. Kutcher is also an executive producer of the reality television show Beauty and the Geek, which debuted in 2005, and will produce a reality show based around the rap group Three 6 Mafia,[1] as well as another reality series entitled The Real Wedding Crashers.[8] Kutcher's most recent film role is in The Guardian, a film which opened on September 29, 2006. The film co-stars Kevin Costner and Kutcher as United States Coast Guard rescue swimmers. The studio behind the film, Touchstone Pictures, initially hesitated in casting Kutcher in an action film because of his public image as a comic actor; Kutcher underwent eight months of physical training and quit smoking to prepare for the role. Also, in order to be there for filming, Ashton was forced not to renew his contract for the eighth and final season of That 70s Show, though he did appear in the first four episodes of it (credited as a special-guest star) and returned for the show's series finale.[1] Kutcher also voiced a leading character in the animated film Open Season, which opened on the same date as The Guardian.

Personal life

Kutcher has dated actresses January Jones (from 1998 to 2001),(from 2001 to 2002), Monet Mazur (2002) and his Just Married co-star, Brittany Murphy, 2002 to 2003. Following his break-up with Murphy in early 2003, Kutcher began dating Demi Moore; reports in the media frequently commented on the fifteen-year age difference between the two.[8] Moore and Kutcher married on September 24, 2005 in a private ceremony conducted by a rabbi of the Kabbalah Centre; the wedding was attended by about 100 close friends and family of the couple, including Bruce Willis, Moore's ex-husband. Kutcher has described the marriage as an "illogical decision."[9] He also says, "Bruce and I have a friendship of our own."

Both Kutcher and Moore are followers of the Kabbalah Centre, a controversial California-based organization which alleges that it teaches Kabbalah, a form of Jewish mysticism. As part of his involvement in the religion, Kutcher has toured Israel with Demi Moore, as well as taken time off from filming to observe traditional Jewish High Holy Days,[10] and celebrated the Jewish holiday Purim[11]. Kutcher also usually wears the traditional Kabbalah Red string.[12]

Kutcher is best friends with his former That '70s Show co-stars Danny Masterson and Wilmer Valderrama, as well as actor Seann William Scott whom he co-starred with in Dude, Where's My Car. Kutcher has also invested in an Italian restaurant named Dolce[1] (other owners include Masterson and Valderrama) and a Japanese-themed restaurant named Geisha House located in Atlanta and Los Angeles.

Kutcher has said that the only people he will never Punk are his wife, Demi Moore, and his step-daughters Rumer, Scout, and Tallulah. He has stated this is because he doesn't want them to ever doubt him in an emergency situation.

Filmography

Awards

  • Kids' Choice Awards
    • 2004 - Favorite Movie Actor for Just Married, My Boss's Daughter and Cheaper by the Dozen - Nominated
    • 2005 - Favorite TV Actor for That '70s Show and Punk'd - Nominated
    • 2007- Favorite Voice in a cartoon- Nominated
    • 2004 - Favorite Television Actor for That '70s Show and Punk'd
  • Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award
    • 2000 - Sierra Award Best Male Newcomer for Dude, Where's My Car? - Nominated
  • MTV Movie Awards
    • 2001 - Breakthrough Male Performance for Dude, Where's My Car? - Nominated

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "AZCentral". Ashton Kutcher: More than meets the eye?. Retrieved September 23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ a b c d e Meers, Erik (2001). "Dude - He's a star" Papermag.com (accessed October 6, 2006)
  3. ^ "USA Weekend". Profile: Ashton's great balancing act. Retrieved September 23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ "Hollywood.com". Profile: Ashton Kutcher Contemplated Suicide. Retrieved October 6. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ "Cosmopolitan". Profile: Ashton Kutcher on past party days and his rock-solid relationship. Retrieved October 11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ Template:Harvard reference
  7. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0213149/trivia
  8. ^ a b "San Francisco Chronicle". Guardian serves Kutcher very well. Retrieved September 24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ "Chicago Sun-Times". Ashton Kutcher goes the distance. Retrieved September 24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ "FemaleFirst". Ashton Kutcher Joins Kabbalah. Retrieved September 23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ "Yahoo! News". Ashton Kutcher , Demi Moore have a blast on Kabbalah holiday !. Retrieved September 23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ "USA Today". Changing of the 'Guardian'. Retrieved September 30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)

External links

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