Mickey Rourke Celebrates 61st Birthday, A Look Back At His Career

Mickey Rourke is celebrating his 61st birthday today and to mark the occasion The Inquisitr looks back at the American actor’s career.

Born in New York on September 16, 1952 Rourke is an award winning actor and boxer, who has starred in mostly thrillers and dramas, with the occasional love story.

Many remember his performance alongside Kim Basinger in the 1986 erotic film 9 1/2 Weeks, which was not a big hit in the US, but did very well overseas, especially in Canada, Australia, and the UK.

The film tells the story of John Gray played by Rourke and Elizabeth McGraw portrayed by Basinger and their short but steamy relationship characterized by graphic experiments in the bedroom.

This is one of Rourke’s most well known roles of his career, not necessarily because of the great acting, but because of the explicit sex scenes him and Basinger had during the film

Mickey Rourke received critical praise during the eighties for other films, proving his acting talents. Barfly and Angel Heart earned him positive comments from movie critics.

He also had supporting roles in several other films including, Buffalo ’66, The Rainmaker, The Pledge, Get Carter, and others.

In 1991 Rourke took a break from movies and became a professional boxer for almost 10 years.

He made his comeback in 2005 for the film Sin City alongside Bruce Willis, Clive Owen, and Jessica Alba and received several awards for his performance.

Mickey Rourke as King Hyperion in Immortals

His big hit was in The Wrestler, in which he plays a past-his-prime boxer, a story line of which Mickey Rourke knew much about, and he was also rewarded with one of the top honors in movies, the Golden Globe. He also received a BAFTA and an Academy Award nomination.

Mickey Rourke was back and could still act.

In 2010 he had supporting roles in the action films Iron Man and The Expendables. He played the ruthless King Hyperion in the Greek mythology action film Immortals.

Mickey Rourke was awarded a Hollywood star in 2011, shortly after the premiere of Immortals, cementing his perseverance and unlikely comeback to the movie scene.

Joe Cocker singing the 9 1/2 Weeks song “You Can Leave Your Hat On”