'''Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson''' (born January 3 1956) is an Academy Award winning American actor, director, and producer. Between 1968 and 1985 he resided in Australia. After establishing himself as a household name with the ''
Mad Max'' and ''
Lethal Weapon'' series, Gibson went on to direct and star in 1993's ''The Man Without a Face'' and 1995's Academy Award-winning ''
Braveheart''. In 2004, he directed and produced the controversial blockbuster, ''
The Passion of the Christ''. Gibson's direction of ''
Braveheart'' made him only the sixth actor-turned-filmmaker to garner an Oscar for Best Director.
[http://www.filmsite.org/aa95.html 1995 Academy Awards] He was also the first person ever awarded ''People'' magazine's "Sexiest Man Alive".
Early life
Gibson was born in Peekskill, New York, the sixth of ten children born to Hutton Gibson and Anne Reilly Gibson. The family also adopted a child, bringing the total number of children in the family to eleven. One of Mel's younger brothers, Donal, is also an actor.
Gibson's first name comes from a 5th-century Irish saint, Mel, founder of the diocese of Ardagh containing most of his mother's native county, while his second name, Columcille is also linked to an Irish saint.
[Michael Dwyer, The Irish Times film critic, interviewed on RTÉ Radio 1's ''This week'' programme, 6 August 2006.] Columcille is the name of the parish in County Longford where Anne Reilly was born and raised.
Although Gibson always maintained his United States citizenship, Gibson's father relocated the family to Australia in 1968, after his father won a work related injury lawsuit against New York Central after a seven day trial on February 14, 1968 where the jury awarded him $145,000.
[Mel Gibson: Living Dangerously, Wensley Clarkson, Thunder's Mouth Press, New York, 1993, page 30.] The family moved when Gibson was twelve. This move was in protest of the Vietnam War for which Gibson's elder brothers risked being drafted. It is also because Gibson's father believed that changes in American society were immoral. Early Gibson films feature a distinct, noticeable Australian accent.
Film career
Gibson graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney in 1977, and his acting career began in Australia with appearances in television series, including ''The Sullivans'', ''Cop Shop'' and ''Punishment''.
He made his Australian film debut as the leather-clad post-apocalyptic survivor in George Miller's ''
Mad Max'', which later became a cult hit and launched two sequels. His international profile increased through Peter Weir's ''
Gallipoli''. Gibson's boyish good looks made him a natural for leading male roles.
In 1984, he made his U.S. film debut as Fletcher Christian in ''
The Bounty''. Reportedly,
