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Joaquin Rafael Phoenix (pronounced "Wah KEEN")
(born October 28, 1974 in San Juan, Puerto
Rico|San Juan, Puerto Rico), also known as Leaf
Phoenix, is an actor in the United States|USA. He
often plays supporting roles as  characters plagued with self doubt.

His Irish people|Irish-Spanish people|Spanish
father, John Bottom, and Bronx-born Jewish mother,
Arlyn Dunitz, joined the Children of God cult and
became missionaries, traveling throughout South
America and adopting the surname "Phoenix". After
leaving the cult and returning to the United
States, they encouraged their children (Joaquin
was the third of five) to develop their creative
instincts. Since his siblings had nature-related
names – "River Phoenix|River", "Rain
Phoenix|Rain" (or "Rainbow"), "Liberty Butterfly",
and "Summer Phoenix|Summer" – Joaquin
changed his name to "Leaf".

The family moved to Los Angeles when he was six
years old. His mother started working as a
secretary for NBC, and his father became a
landscaper. His parents hired an agent, who
eventually got the five children acting work.
Joaquin's first acting jobs were guest appearances
on two television shows with his brother River:
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1982) and
Backwards: The Riddle of Dyslexia (1984).

He made his big-screen debut in Space Camp (1986),
and his first starring role was in Russkies
(1987).  He went on to establish himself as a
child actor in Parenthood (1989), before deciding
to withdraw from acting for a while and move to
Mexico with his father.

Joaquin came back into public view under tragic
circumstances — he was the person who
dialled 9-1-1 when his brother River suffered a
fatal drug overdose outside Hollywood,
California|Hollywood nightclub Viper Room|The
Viper Room. Joaquin was reluctant to re-enter the
world of acting, but he did so at the insistence
of his friends. He changed his name from "Leaf"
back to "Joaquin".

He portrayed a troubled teen in Gus Van Sant's To
Die For, and has earned positive reviews for adult
roles as Commodus in Gladiator (2000
movie)|Gladiator (for which he was nominated for
the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor), a
priest in Quills, the washed-up baseball player
Merrill Hess in M. Night Shyamalan's Signs, and
stoic Lucius Hunt in Shyamalan's The Village
(movie)|The Village.

Phoenix is a strict vegan, and will not wear
costumes made from animal products.  He has
recently admitted himself into rehab to deal with
his increasing alcohol problem. He is also a chain
smoker.

Contrary to popular belief, the scar on his lip is
not the result of a repaired cleft lip or cleft
palate|palate. It is a birth scar. Joaquin Phoenix
has stated in interviews that, his mother, while
pregnant with him, felt a sharp pain one day and
he was born with a scar on his lip.


==Selected filmography==
* Walk the Line (2005)
* Hotel Rwanda (movie)|Hotel Rwanda (2004)
* The Village (movie)|The Village (2004)
* Ladder 49 (2004)
* Buffalo Soldiers (2003)
* It's All About Love (2003)
* Brother Bear (voice) (2003)
* Signs (2002)
* Gladiator (2000)
* Quills (2000)
* The Yards (2000)
* Return to Paradise (movie)|Return to Paradise
(1998)
* Clay Pigeons (1998)
* 8mm (movie)|8mm (1998)
* Inventing the Abbotts (1997)
* U-Turn (1997)
* To Die For (1995)
* Parenthood (1989)
* Russkies (1987)
* Space Camp (1986)

==See also==
*List of famous Puerto Ricans

==External links==
*imdb name|id=0001618|name=Joaquin Phoenix
*http://www.dearjoaquin.com DearJoaquin.com
*http://www.joaquin-phoenix.net Unofficial website
*http://www.westlord.com/joaquin-phoenix/ Joaquin
Phoenix Website - at WestLord