Sean Connery, Chuck Norris, Sylvester Stallone If Clint Eastwood Over the years, they have earned the label of on-screen tough guys. As it turns out, history their lives are as fascinating as their movie roles.

Steve McQueen miraculously escaped death

Readers of Ranker magazine recently took part in voting to name the most masculine men in cinema history. In 10th place was the most famous cowboy in cinema, John Wayne, who only began playing seriously after his football career collapsed. In 1925, John Wayne even received an athletic scholarship to the University of Southern California, where he played for the first two years. Unfortunately, one day when he was going surfing with his friends, apparently he dislocated his right shoulder. The tough guy acted as if nothing had happened, but over time the pain became unbearable and the injury could not be repaired in time. When John Wayne lost his scholarship, he took a job as an extra and prop man. He makes contacts that soon earn him a leading role in a film.

He ranked 9th Steve McQueen, known actor, among others, from the cult detective novel “Bullit”. His story, told by the actor’s first wife, actress Neile Adams, goes beyond what we sometimes see on screen. It turns out that Steve McQueen, known for his many adventures, was invited to the party. Sharon Tate on the fateful night of August 8, 1969. According to the actor’s wife, Steve “he bumped into a cane and decided to leave with her“That’s the only reason he didn’t go to the party where Charles Manson’s group killed Roman Polanski’s wife and several other people.

He came in 8th place Keanu Reeves. The star of the “Matrix” trilogy earned a spot on the list thanks to… an unusual nanny. “I grew up in Toronto and lived on a street called Hazleton, where there was a recording studio called Nimbus 9, and my mother was a costume designer. She played rock and roll, she had friends and Alice Cooperas I was told, he took care of me. I mean, I don’t know how it could have happened, but it did,” the “John Wick” star said in 2017.

Alice Cooper, a musician known for, among other things, biting off the heads of chickens during concerts, confirmed this information, adding that he took care of “Kee”, living next to “the Hawaiian grandmother and that black-haired kid.”

Chuck Norris “kicked me in the side. It hurt”

He came in 7th place Sean Connery, considered by many fans of the genre to be the best interpreter of the role of James Bond. He initially did not make a good impression on the show’s creators, appearing at the meeting in a rumpled shirt. Apparently, at the end of dinner, he charmed the crew because he “moved…like a jungle cat.” According to interviews, Sean was simply bored of the role of 007.

The low 6th position of the hero of countless jokes and memes may be somewhat surprising. It turns out that in his private life Chuck Norris He became famous primarily for breaking two of a television show host’s ribs. After the show where the actor was a guest, they became friends and Chuck Norris decided to teach Bob Barker his fighting style.

“Chuck was at my house and we were arguing. He kicked me in the side. It hurt and it hurt” – Barker recalled his encounter with an actor who killed at the rotunda.

When Barker finally visited his doctor, it turned out that He has two cracked ribs on both sides of his torso..

In 5th place was the famous Rocky Balboa, i.e. Sylvester Stallone. Its tragic history is associated with its characteristic pronunciation. It turns out that the actor’s mother was too poor to give birth in a hospital. So she gave birth to a son in a charitable institution in New York. The complications led to nerve damage, which in turn left young Stallone paralyzed on the left side of his face. When Stallone tried to enter the acting world, he found that no one would give him a chance. She wrote the “Rocky” project for herself and it definitely went down in cinema history.

Place 4 belongs to Burt Reynolds, a well-known actor, among others, from the films “The Master of the Wheel Runs Away”. He often played a tough guy on the screen, but the participants of the survey only talked about the actor… a poker game with Frank Sinatra, during which he was supposed to oppose the famous singer suspected of having ties to the mafia.

He came in 3rd place Charles Bronson, actor known, among others, for “The Dirty Dozen”. Born in Pennsylvania, Charles Buchinsky was the son of Lithuanian immigrants who grew up in real poverty. As he said years later, 11 out of 15 people children In his family wore used clothes.

“Because the children in the family were only older than me, sometimes I had to wear my sisters’ hand-me-downs. I remember wearing a dress to school. And my socks, when I came home, I sometimes had to take them off and give them to my brother to wear in the mine,” the actor recalled years later.

Clint Eastwood survived a plane crash

He came in 2nd place Sam Elliott, an actor most often cast as cowboys and ranchers, including in hits such as “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and “Tombstone.” He has surrounded himself with “tough guys” since his childhood.

“I spent a lot of time outside in my life. With my father and his friends who were there real men, people of nature. They all had an incredible work ethic and were all good people. I think they taught me what kind of person I want to be when I grow up,” the actor recalled years later.

“Dirty Harry” came in first place in the readers’ poll. As it turns out, Clint Eastwood in his private life, he also experienced an adventure worthy of a film. While serving in the military, Clint Eastwood boarded a United States Navy plane to visit his family. He was the only passenger on the flight from Fort Ord, California, to Seattle, Washington, and by some accounts he would later be a Hollywood star. he was traveling in the luggage compartmentbecause the plane was not suitable for accommodating passengers.

Unfortunately, shortly after takeoff, one of the engines failed and Clint Eastwood and the pilot landed in the water. There were no major injuries, but as night fell, Eastwood lost sight of his friend.

“I didn’t know if he was alive or where he was. I didn’t want to scream because it wastes a lot of energy. I swam through schools of jellyfish and it was like a science fiction movie. “You know, hallucinations form in the mind,” the actor and director recalled years later. Fortunately, they both managed to reach the shore. They met at a relay station on a cliff in California.