Richard Gere Biography

Early Life and Education of Richard Gere

Richard Gere was born Richard Tiffany Gere on 31st August 1949 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Gere is American as per the nationality and as far as his ethnicity is concerned, he is White.

His parents, Doris Ann (1924-2016) and Homer George Gere (was an insurance agent for the Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company) raised him along with his siblings Henry Januszewski, Joanna Gere, David Gere, Susan Gere, and Laura Gere. Gere’s great-grandparents changed their surname from Geer to Gere. His ancestors include John Billington, Pilgrims Francis Eaton, Degory Priest, William Brewster, and Richard Warren.

In 1967, Gere graduated from North Syracuse Central High School, where he outshined in music (playing trumpet) and gymnastics. Later, he attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst on a gymnastics scholarship to earn a degree in philosophy but left the college after two years.

Richard Gere's Career

Richard Gere at the very initial stage of his acting career, performed in stage shows and theater. Some of the plays include, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead at the Seattle Repertory Theater and Province Playhouse, Grease, Bent by Broadways. Gere earned a Theater World Award for his amazing performances.

In 1974, Gere was selected for the role in The Lords of Flatbush but was replaced after the fight with the lead actor, Sylvester Stallone. A year later, he starred in the movie, Report to the Commissioner opposite Michael Moriarty, Susan Blakely, Yaphet Koto, Hector Elizondo and William Devane among others.

Gere appeared in numbers of movies and TV series including The Cotton Club, An Officer and a Gentleman, Arbitrage, I’m Not There, Runaway Bride and Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer among others.

Gere, however, is best known for his role in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, Days of Heaven, Pretty Women, and Chicago.

As of 2017, Gere worked in American drama thriller film, The Dinner (featuring- Lauren Linney, Steve Coogan, Rebecca Hall, and Chloe Sevigny among others) and American drama film, Three Christs (directed by Jon Avent)

Richard Gere's Awards and Nominations

Richard Gere won nominations for various prestigious awards for his brilliant performances. Among them, Gere won some of them including:

• In 1979= David di Donatello Award for Days of Heaven.
• In 1997= National Board of Review Freedom of Expression Award for Red Corner.
• In 2003= Broadcast Film Critics Association Award, Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild Award for Chicago.
• In 2008= Independent Spirit Robert Altman Award for I’m Not There.

Gere was also honored with Medal of Gratitude in 2012 by Albanian President, Bamir Topi and George Eastman Award in 2012 by George Eastman Museum.

Richard Gere's Activist

Richard Gere is also a humanitarian activist and a longtime follower of Buddhism. He co-founded Tibet house and became the chairman of the International Campaign for Tibet. He also established a Gere Foundation to support human rights and supports Dalai Lama.

Gere devoted most of the time to political and social causes for which was he was honored with several awards. He also involved in awareness programs in several places related to AIDS.

Richard Gere's Personal Life

Richard Gere, a leading Hollywood actor is currently in a relationship with Alejandra Silva, a Spanish publicist and a businesswoman, since 2015. The couple met for the first time at the Taormina Film Festival and eventually began dating. Despite their age differences, the couple is happy together.

Recently, in an event of the Rais Foundation in Madrid, Silva was spotted with a diamond ring. The engaged couple got married in early April 2018.

They chose a super private ceremony at their Bedford, New York home to tie the knot. As per August 2018, the couple is expecting their first child together.

He gave a surprise declaration of his love to his wife as he took the stage at the 2019 Golden Globe Awards to present the award for Best Actor in Drama Motion Picture category.

He said,

"Alejandra, I love you! You can go to sleep now."

The 69-year-old star is best known among his fans and media to keep his personal life under the radar and this time, he definitely surprised his fans and, of course, his lovely wife.

Richard Gere gave his wife Alejandra Silva the best kind of shout out at the #GoldenGlobes - permission to go to sleep! pic.twitter.com/uLV2ZPSfx3

— Access (@accessonline) January 7, 2019

Before this, Gere has been married twice. In 1991, he married Cindy Crawford, American model, and actress. Some years later, the couple separated for some unknown reason.

Carey Lowell, American actress is his second wife, married in 2002 after dating for several months. The couple together shares a baby named, Homer James Jigme Gere. Their marriage was counted as one of the most successful marriages in Hollywood. But that did not last long after they filed for a divorce secretly in 2013.

In 2016, they ended their decade of relationship. Besides these, Gere had an affair with Priscilla Presley, Kim Basinger, and Penelope Milford.

In 1999, People’s magazine named him as Sexiest Man Alive and was also known as a sex symbol.

Richard Gere's Net Worth

Richard Gere, 69, who began his career from theaters, as of now, has an impressive net worth of $100 million as per the Richest and $120 million as per Celebrity Net worth.

Gere’s films are his major source of income from where he makes a good amount. Some of his movies that made a good collection at the box office include:

• American Gigolo = $52.7 million
• An Officer and a Gentleman = $131 million
• Breathless = $19,910,002
• Pretty Woman = $463.4 million
• Somersby = $140,081,992
• First Knight = $127.6 million
• Primal Fear = $102.6 million
• The Jackal = $159.3 million
• Runaway Bride = $309.4 million
• Autumn = $90.7 million
• Unfaithful = $119,137,784
• Chicago = $306.8 million
• Shall We Dance = $170.1 million
• The Second Best Exotic = $86 million
• Night in Rodanthe = $84,375,061

Gere has appeared in the commercial of Fiat too. Gere endorsed Hillary Clinton for president and donated $2700.

He owned a house in New York which he sold for $33 million to Matt Lauer. Gere also owns Audi RS6 worth $245,116.