Cage decided to become an actor after watching James Dean's performance in East of Eden, and was able to relate to Dean's character who was constantly trying to please his father. Cage then enrolled in the Young Conservatory (part of the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco), where he stayed for one summer.

After Cage's parents divorced when he was 12 years old, he lived with his father in San Francisco, where he spent summers with his uncle Francis before his parents' divorce. He refers to the summers he spent with his uncle and cousin Sofia as his best memories.

It's hard to believe that Cage was a social outcast in high school -- awkward and too shy to ask girls out -- especially when associating him to the characters he has portrayed in movies such as The Rock and Face/Off.

Cage's first film role was in his uncle's film Rumble Fish in 1983. After being taunted by envious cast members who would refer to famous movie lines from his uncle's films, Cage decided to change his last name. He toyed with different last names and finally chose Cage in honor of comic-book superhero Luke Cage and the composer John Cage. His first audition as Nicolas Cage was for the movie Valley Girl, his follow-up role to Rumble Fish.

In 1984, he starred in his first dramatic role in Birdy, as a Vietnam veteran. That same year, Cage also appeared in Racing With the Moon and The Cotton Club. Two years later, Cage starred opposite Kathleen Turner in Peggy Sue Got Married, also directed by Coppola. His role as a 50's rocker was not well received by critics since Cage adapted his role and distorting it by adding a high-pitched voice to the character. Cher, on the other hand, was impressed by his performance and thought he would be perfect for what was to be Cage's first blockbuster film, Moonstruck. His role as the tormented lover earned him a Golden Globe nomination.

Cage's role in Raising Arizona that same year received critical acclaim, and it was the first time Cage revealed his comedic side in what is one of his most loved film roles. He is remembered for his dark and quirky role in 1989's Vampire's Kiss, where he faced his fear of insects and ate a live cockroach in one scene.

Vegas must be Cage's lucky place. In 1992, he starred in the romantic comedy Honeymoon in Vegas with James Caan and Sarah Jessica Parker in his first mainstream movie role, marking a turning point in his career. After roles in unsuccessful films such as Amos and Andrew and Guarding Tess, Cage finally received the recognition he deserved for his dark role as an alcoholic in the alternative film Leaving Las Vegas. His intense role, which was helped by the fact that he had just recently broken up with his fiancée, Kristen Zang, earned him an Oscar for Best Actor.

After his Oscar win, Cage wanted to take on more of a superhero role and starred opposite Sean Connery in the 1996 summer blockbuster The Rock, also starring Vanessa Marcil as his wife. The trend of summer blockbusters started at this point with Cage's role in 1997's Con Air and Face/Off, where Cage and John Travolta switch identities.

His next film roles were not as successful and ended up being box-office disappointments. He co-starred with Meg Ryan in the romantic film City of Angels and starred in Snake Eyes the same year. 8 MM and Bringing Out The Dead, a role for which Cage rode in ambulances with paramedics to research his role, were equally disappointing.

Cage has been married to actress Patricia Arquette since 1995 and they live with their sons, each from previous marriages.

He will be seen in this summer's action thriller Gone in 60 Seconds, co-starring Angelina Jolie, as well as a WWII drama with Spanish beauty Penelope Cruz.

All this re-enforces the idea that it takes many years to become an "overnight" success. He always wanted his work to speak for itself, even changing his name from Coppola to Cage to escape the shadow of his famous uncle, Francis Ford.

One flick of his eyebrow or a flash of his crooked smile is enough to get his female fans gushing. Nicolas has earned his reputation as a charmer because of the uncanny ability he has to convince those around him to do his will. Actually we don't call that charm, we can call it being smart.

Some critics sarcastically remark that Nicolas Cage thinks his middle name is Talent. We sarcastically reply, "when is the last time you were in the role of a vampire that forced you to convince the audience that you were also trying to save mankind?" Critics... who needs them?

Mike Tyson might still toss him around a boxing ring like a little girl, but Nick can hold his own. We wouldn't venture getting him to prove it though.

Whether it's the dopey eyes or the seemingly empty soul, he draws women. Damn him and his sensitive guy act, he makes the rest of us look like inconsiderate jerks.

The hot buzz around his career after his Oscar winning performance for Leaving Las Vegas and subsequent hits The Rock, Con-Air and Face/Off, has cooled off. Part of the reason has been his recent box office flops, the other part has been his choice of roles, that might fulfill him as an artist but are definitely not filling movie studio coffers.

One of our favorite Nicolas Cage moments came from his movie Face/Off with John Travolta, when he first appeared coming out of a car, slicked up in Versace. That was a defining moment because rarely in movies had cool so eloquently been captured on film.

He has a penchant for suits, though he wears the most boring suits in the world. How many times do you have to wear a black suit with an open collar, before moving on to the next outfit?

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