Christopher Reeve

Background

Christopher Reeve was born in New York City, New York, on September 25, 1952, to Barbara Pitney and Franklin D’Olier Reeve. His mother was a journalist, and his father held positions as a teacher, author, poet, and scholar. He had a younger brother called Benjamin. His parents separated when he was quite young. Reeve and his brother relocated with their mother in 1959 when she got married to Tristam B. Johnson. Reeve went to Princeton Day School. He was academically strong, an accomplished actor, and also exceptionally talented at soccer, baseball, tennis, and hockey. Reeve discovered his interest in acting at the age of nine when he was cast in an amateur production of “The Yeomen of the Guard.” In 1967, he was an apprentice at the Williamstown Theatre Festival in Massachusetts. The next year, he was offered a professional position with the “Harvard Summer Repertory Theatre Company.” In 1970, he graduated from Princeton Day School.

After graduating, Reeve performed in Boothbay, Maine. However, he wanted to return to New York City to pursue a career in the theater. Nevertheless, at his mother’s urging, he applied to college and received an offer from Cornell University. At Cornell, Reeve maintained his enthusiasm for drama and theater. He performed in a variety of plays, including “Waiting for Godot,” “Life Is a Dream,” “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead,” and “The Winter’s Tale.” Stark Hesseltine, a powerful agency, offered to launch Reeve’s acting career and represent him after being impressed by his acting abilities. Reeve found employment in a production of “Forty Carats” through monthly trips to New York City and talks with casting agents and producers. Reeve quickly secured a full-season contract with the San Diego Shakespeare Festival as a result of his artistic talent. Reeve portrayed significant characters in several plays, including “Richard III,” “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” and “Love’s Labour’s Lost.”

After Superman IV had done badly at the box office, he starred in “Switching Channels” which also did not do well, and his career seemed to have reached its lowest point. Reeve believed his cinematic career was over, and he spent the following few years primarily performing in plays. In the late 1980s, Reeve focused his efforts on other endeavors. He took horseback riding lessons, joined many environmental groups, joined government councils, participated in political activities, and so on. Reeve returned to the big screen in 1990 with the Civil War picture “The Rose and the Jackal.” Next, he starred in the iconic film “The Remains of the Day.” The movie was nominated for eight Academy Awards due to its immense popularity. In addition to films, he also appeared in several television programs, including “Bump in the Night.”