Robert De Niro » Trivia

Spouse: Grace Hightower (17 June 1997 - present) 1 child; Diahnne Abbott (1976 - 1988) (divorced) 1 child

Drena De Niro is his daughter through adoption, being Diahnne Abbott's daughter from a previous marriage.

His wife Grace Hightower gave birth to their son, Elliot De Niro, on March 18, 1998.

After being caught up in a Paris prostitution ring investigation, he, denying any involvement, vowed never to return to France again (1998).

Father of actor Raphael De Niro.

Son of Robert De Niro Sr., an abstract expressionist, and Virginia Admiral, a painter.

In his 1980 Oscar acceptance speech he thanked Joey LaMotta (brother of Jake LaMotta), who was at the time suing United Artists for the portrayal of him in Raging Bull (1980).

He formed his production company, TriBeCa Productions, in 1989.

Although he is commonly referred to as an Italian-American actor, De Niro is actually one-quarter Italian in ancestry. His father was half-Irish and half- Italian. His mother was of French, Dutch and German ancestry. He was, however, quite close to his Italian paternal grandfather, whom Robert visited frequently in Syracuse, NY when he was young. De Niro has stated that he identifies "more with (his) Italian side".

Was offered but turned down the role of Sal the pizza shop owner in Do the Right Thing (1989).

He is the second actor to win an Oscar for portraying Vito Corleone. He and Marlon Brando are the only two actors to win an Oscar for playing the same character.

He first discovered his love for acting at age 10 when he portrayed The Cowardly Lion in a local production of "The Wizard of Oz." He dropped out of high school to join a gang.

In 1993 he was tapped to star as Enzo Ferrari in the film "Ferrari", which was budgeted at $65 million (U.S.) and had Michael Mann attached as director. The project fell through.

He organised the first Tribeca Film Festival in May 2002. He intended to revitalise the Lower Manhattan area after September 11th attacks.

Has said that Meryl Streep is his favorite actress to work with.