Trivia

An accomplished pianist and music writer; in fact, he composed and performed the piano solo featured in Pretty Woman (1990).

Became a father for the first time at age 50 when his girlfriend [later wife] Carey Lowell gave birth to their son Homer James Jigme Gere on February 6, 2000.

Some of his earliest photos, known as "head shots" were taken by boyhood friend and struggling photographer Herb Ritts. The people handling Gere were so impressed with the photos that they began hiring Ritts for other assignments, and he is now a top photographer.

Turned down the role of Gordon Gekko in Wall Street (1987). Has since said that is the role he regrets passing on the most.

Agreed to a small role in the HBO film And the Band Played On (1993) despite the prevalent belief in the film industry it would be detrimental to his career. Subsequently, stars like Steve Martin, Alan Alda, Phil Collins and Anjelica Huston were willing to appear.

Trained for five months for the tap-dance scene in Chicago (2002).

Gere's middle name, Tiffany, is from his mother's maiden name.

In the three films that made him a star--Days of Heaven (1978), American Gigolo (1980) and An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)--his role had been turned down by John Travolta.

Counts Julie Christie as the cinematic crush of his youth.

A Buddhist for over a decade, he was banned from the Oscars once after making anti-China comments on the air at the 1993 ceremony.

Was a member of his high school's student council, gymnastics team, lacrosse team and ski team.

Co-owner, with wife Carey Lowell, of the "Bedford Post Inn" in Bedford, NY. The Inn has eight rooms, two restaurants, a yoga studio a meditation center.

When the Chinese government invited him to one of its film festivals, he agreed to go with two conditions: that he was allowed to bring his own interpreter and that he would stay in Taipei, Taiwan, during his visit. The government agreed and Gere went to the festival.

Though he's been nominated multiple times for a Golden Globe and once for a Screen Actors Guild Award (two common indicators for an Academy Award nomination), he has never been nominated for an Oscar.

Jodie Foster said of him, "A lot of actors think acting is a girl's job, but Richard finds something sensuous in acting".

Turned down the lead role in Die Hard (1988) which went to Bruce Willis.

A guitar aficionado since his youth, he is an avid collector of electric and acoustic guitars. Some of the ones he has are a 1958 Gibson Flying V Prototype (formerly owned by Albert King), 1935 John D'Angelico Exel (formerly owned by James D'Aquisto), 1931 Martin D-28, 1953 Fender Telecaster, 1960 Gibson ES-335 TD, 1954 Fender Stratocaster.

President of The Gere Foundation, founded in 1991. The non-profit organization focusing on international humanitarian issues, with emphasis on Tibet.

His first break came in 1973 as "Danny Zuko" in the British stage version of "Grease".

Received a gymnastics scholarship to the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, where he majored in philosophy; he dropped out in 1969 to pursue acting.

On an episode of The Graham Norton Show (2007), he recounted a trip he made to Borneo to visit the Dayak tribe. It was in the desolate part of the jungle with a treacherous drop-off from the plane. When he arrived, they excitedly greeted him by exclaiming "Officer, gentleman!" repeatedly.

By the age of 14 he was a great trumpet player and gymnast.

He has English and small/distant amounts of Scots-Irish/Northern Irish, Welsh, Dutch, Scottish, German, and French ancestry. He has deep roots in the state of Pennsylvania, and is also a Mayflower descendant, with American roots going back to Massachusetts of the 1600s.

Frequently works opposite Diane Lane. They have starred in three films to date: The Cotton Club (1982), Unfaithful (2002), and Nights in Rodanthe (2008).

He didn't get along with his leading lady Debra Winger during the making of the hit film An Officer and a Gentleman (1982). She publicly called him a "brickwall", while he said there was "tension" between them. He played the title role, had top billing, had more screen time and earned a larger salary than her, while hers was just a love interest role. Still, he reacted badly when he realized that she was stealing every scene; she was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar while he wasn't nominated at all. Thirty years later they patched things up when she presented him with an award at the Rome Film Festival.

Named his son: Homer James Jigme. "Jigme" means "fearless" in Tibetan.

Became a father for the second time at age 69 when his third wife Alejandra Silva gave birth to their son Alexander Gere in early February 2019.

Has twice played a fame-hungry lawyer based in Chicago, first in Primal Fear (1996) as Marty Vail, then again in Chicago (2002) as Billy Flynn.

In 1993 "People" Magazine didn't name a "Sexiest Man Alive", but named he and his then-wife Cindy Crawford as "Sexiest Couple'.

On the November 16, 2007, episode of Live with Kelly and Mark (1988) (aka "Live with Regis & Kelly"), he cleared up the fact he is not vegetarian but has not eaten red meat for 30 years.

Ex-wife Cindy Crawford used to collect the clothes he wore in his early films and bought the white naval uniform he wore in An Officer and a Gentleman (1982) at a celebrity auction.

Is very active in AIDS fundraising.

Mentioned (apparently because of his pro-Tibetan, anti-Chinese activism) in the song "Freedom of Speech Won't Feed My Children" by Manic Street Preachers.

Was accused of having affairs with Priscilla Presley and Kim Basinger in tell-all books penned by Presley's ex-boyfriend Michael Edwards and Basinger's ex-husband Ron Snyder.

Family friend of the Thurmans, i.e.: Robert Thurman, with whom he founded New York City's Tibet House (a nonprofit institution devoted to preserving the living culture of Tibet) in 1987, Uma Thurman, etc.

For his role as Clifford Irving in The Hoax (2006), he shaved back his hairline, got a perm and even altered the appearance of his nose to fit the part.

He appeared in the music video and sang in the choir on the song "Voices That Care."

Susan Sarandon said of him, "Richard has been in a lot of good films, but he's never been in a great one".

In 1999 was named "People" Magazine's Sexiest Man Alive.

Attended the University of Massachusetts. Dropped out to pursue acting.

He has appeared in one film that has been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: Days of Heaven (1978).

He and ex-wife Cindy Crawford had a mansion in Malibu, an apartment in Manhattan and a ranch in Connecticut.

Visited Kosovo's fugitives in F.Y.R.O.M., during the Kosovo crisis in 1999.

Worked with Nina van Pallandt in American Gigolo (1980), and then played her lover Clifford Irving in The Hoax (2006), in which she was played by Julie Delpy.

Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Theatricals' 2006 Man of the Year

Was listed as one of 12 "Promising New Actors of 1977" in "John Willis' Screen World", Vol. 29.

In a "London Evening Standard" interview to promote Chicago (2002), he claimed to have brought a 750cc Triumph T140V Bonneville from Triumph's Meriden factory with his first paycheck while touring with the stage production of "Grease". He also rode the same updated model, a 1978 T140E, in An Officer and a Gentleman (1982) and an even earlier model, a 1960s 650cc T120R Bonneville. in Mr. Jones (1993).

Is referenced in the 2001 hit song "Crying at the Discothéque" by Swedish dance group Alcazar.

Dated Diane von Fürstenberg, Barbara Carrera, Penelope Milford, Tuesday Weld, Diana Ross, Loree Rodkin, Barbra Streisand, Carole Mallory, Dawn Steel, Dalila Di Lazzaro, Tina Chow, Vicki Sue Robinson, Sylvia Martins, Laura Bailey and Padma Lakshmi.

Older brother of UCLA professor David Gere.