Colonel Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Fury is a fictional World War II army hero and present-day super-spy in the Marvel Comics Universe. Created by artist Jack Kirby and writer Stan Lee, Fury first appeared in Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #1 (May 1963), a World War II combat series that portrayed the cigar-chomping Fury as leader of an elite U.S. Army unit.

The modern-day Fury, initially a CIA agent, debuted a few months later in Fantastic Four #21 (Dec. 1963). In Strange Tales #135 (Aug. 1965) the character was transformed into a James Bond-like spy and leading agent of the fictional espionage agency S.H.I.E.L.D. The character makes frequent appearances in Marvel comic books as the former head of S.H.I.E.L.D. and as an intermediary between the U.S. government or the United Nations and various superheroes. It is eventually revealed that Fury takes a special medication called the Infinity Formula that halted his aging and allows him to be active despite being nearly a century old.

Nick Fury appears in several Marvel comic series set in alternate universes, as well as multiple animated films, television shows, and video games based on the comics. The character is portrayed by David Hasselhoff in the 1998 television movie Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. and by Samuel L. Jackson in the 2008 film Iron Man, its 2010 sequel Iron Man 2, the 2011 films Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger, and the film The Avengers,^[1] the first five of a nine-film commitment as the character for the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise.^[2] The Ultimate Marvel version of the character was based on Jackson's appearance and screen persona, well before he was cast in the role.^[3] In 2011, Nick Fury was ranked 33rd in IGN's Top 100 Comic Book Heroes.^[4]

Publication history[link]

Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos[link]

Fury initially appeared in the World War II combat series Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos, as the cigar-chomping NCO who led a racially and ethnically integrated elite unit. The series ran 167 issues (May 1963 - Dec. 1981), though only in reprints after issue #120 (July 1974). Following several issues by creators Lee and Kirby, penciller Dick Ayers began his long stint on what would be his signature series; John Severin later joined as inker, forming a long-running, critically acclaimed team. Roy Thomas succeeded Lee as writer, followed by Gary Friedrich, for whom this also became a signature series. Annuals featured the "Howlers" called back to fight in the Korean War and Vietnam War.

The Howling Commandos encountered Office of Strategic Services agent Reed Richards (later Mister Fantastic of the Fantastic Four) in #3 (Sept. 1963), and fought alongside Captain America and Bucky in #13 (Dec. 1964).

[edit] Strange Tales and solo series

In Strange Tales #135 (Aug. 1965), Fury, now a colonel, became a James Bond-esque Cold War spy, with Marvel introducing the covert organization S.H.I.E.L.D. (Supreme Headquarters International Espionage Law-enforcement Division) and its nemesis HYDRA (the name, for unexplained reasons, is not an acronym but capitalized regardless, according to Marvel).^[5]

The 12-page feature was initially by Lee and Kirby, with the latter supplying such inventive and enduring gadgets and hardware as the Helicarrier—an airborne aircraft carrier—as well as human-replicant LMDs (Life Model Decoys), and even automobile airbags. Writer-penciller-colorist Jim Steranko began on the feature in Strange Tales #151 (Dec. 1966) (initially over Kirby layouts),^[6] and quickly became one of comic books' most acclaimed and influential artists. In some of the creative zeniths of the Silver Age, Steranko established the feature as one of comic books' most groundbreaking, innovative, and acclaimed.^[7] He introduced or popularized in comic books such art movements of the day as psychedelia and op art; built on Kirby's longstanding work in photomontage; and created comic books' first four-page spread—again inspired^{[citation needed]} by Kirby, who in the 1930s-1940s period fans and historians call the Golden Age of Comic Books had pioneered the first full-page and double-page spreads. All the while, he spun plots of intense intrigue, barely hidden sensuality, and hi-fi hipness—and supplied his own version of Bond girls, pushing what was allowable under the Comics Code at the time.

The 12-page feature ran through Strange Tales #168 (sharing that "split book" with the occult feature "Doctor Strange" each issue), after which it was spun off into its own series, titled Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D, running 15 issues (June 1968 - Nov. 1969), followed by three all-reprint issues beginning a year later (Nov. 1970 - March 1971). Steranko wrote and drew issues #1-3 and #5, and drew the covers of #1-7.

Fury continued to make appearances in the other Marvel books, from Fantastic Four to The Avengers. In 1972, Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos celebrated its 100th issue with a present-day reunion of the squad, sponsored by Stan Lee and the creative team behind the title. (Lee, like other comic books professionals, has made occasional cameos in his own books, in a tradition going back to the 1940s Golden Age of Comic Books). The matter of Fury apparently not aging significantly since his term of service in World War II was justified in "Assignment: The Infinity Formula" by writer Jim Starlin and artist Howard Chaykin in Marvel Spotlight #31 (Dec. 1976), revealing Fury's age-retarding medication treatment.

New S.H.I.E.L.D. stories did not appear for nearly two decades after the first solo title^{[citation needed]}. A six-issue miniseries, Nick Fury vs. S.H.I.E.L.D. (June-Nov. 1988) was followed by Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. vol. 2. This second series lasted 47 issues (Sept. 1989 - May 1993); its pivotal story arc was "the Deltite Affair", in which many S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were replaced with Life Model Decoys in a takeover attempt.

A year after that series ended, the one-shot Fury (May 1994) retconned the events of those previous two series, recasting them as a series of staged events designed to distract Fury from the resurrection plans of HYDRA head Baron von Strucker. The following year, writer Howard Chaykin and penciller Corky Lehmkuhl produced the four-issue miniseries Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D. (April–July 1995). Various publications have additionally focused on Nick Fury's solo adventures, such as the graphic novels and one-shots Wolverine - Nick Fury: The Scorpio Connection (1989), Wolverine/Nick Fury: Scorpio Rising (Oct. 1994), Fury/Black Widow: Death Duty and Captain America/Nick Fury: Blood Truce (both Feb. 1995), and Captain America/Nick Fury: The Otherworld War (Oct. 2001). He also starred in the 2004-2005 Secret War miniseries.

Fictional character biography[link]

This article describes a work or element of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. Please help rewrite it to explain the fiction more clearly and provide non-fictional perspective. (July 2010)

Early life and wartime[link]

Nicholas Joseph Fury is the eldest of three children born to Jack Fury in New York City. His father is a United States citizen who enlists in the United Kingdom's Royal Flying Corps during World War I. Jack enlists in 1916 and is stationed in France. He reportedly shoots down Manfred von Richthofen early in his flying career, and is a highly decorated combat aviator by the end of the War in 1918.

Discharged after the War, Jack returns home, marries an unnamed woman, and becomes the father of three children. Nick, probably born in the late 1910s or early 1920s, is followed by Jacob "Jake" Fury (later the supervillain Scorpio who co-founded the Zodiac cartel), and their sister, Dawn.

All three children grow up in the neighborhood known as Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York City, New York. Nick is an amateur boxer through the Police Athletic League where he also learns marksmanship. With his friend Red Hargrove, he eventually leaves the neighborhood to pursue his dreams of adventure, eventually settling on a daring wing walking and parachuting act. Their death-defying stunts while training British Commandos in 1940 catch the attention of Lieutenant Samuel "Happy Sam" Sawyer, then serving with the British Commandos, who enlists them for a special mission in the Netherlands. Nick and Red later join the U.S. Army, with Fury undergoing Basic Training under a Sergeant Bass. Nick and Red are stationed together at Schofield Barracks, Oahu, Hawaii when the Imperial Japanese Navy ambushes the base on December 7, 1941. Red is among the many killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor, with Fury swearing vengeance against both the Japanese and the Nazis.

Sawyer, now a captain, assigns Fury command of the First Attack Squad, a unit of U.S. Army Rangers, who are awarded the honorary title of Commandos by Winston Churchill after their first missions. They are nicknamed the "Howling Commandos" and stationed at a military base in the United Kingdom to fight specialized missions, primarily but not exclusively in the European Theatre of World War II. During this period, Fury falls in love with a British nurse, Lady Pamela Hawley, who dies in a bombing raid on London before he can propose to her.

C.I.A.[link]

At the end of World War II in Europe, Fury is severely injured by a land mine in France, and is found and healed by a Berthold Sternberg, who uses him as a test subject for his Infinity Formula. After making a full recovery, Fury begins working for the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), precursor of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Six months into his service, he learns the extent of Sternberg's life-saving operation: the Infinity Formula has retarded his aging, but if he does not receive annual doses, he will age rapidly and die. The doctor begins a 30-year period of extorting large sums of money from Fury in exchange for the injections. These events, culminating in the end of said extortion, are detailed in Marvel Spotlight #31 (Dec. 1976): "Assignment: The Infinity Formula," by writer Jim Starlin and artist Howard Chaykin.

Fury segues into the CIA as an espionage agent, gathering information in Korea. During this time the Howling Commandos are reformed where Fury receives a battlefield commission to lieutenant. He later reaches the rank of colonel. During this time, he recommends the recruitment of married agents Richard and Mary Parker, who will go on to become the parents of Fury's occasional superhero ally Spider-Man. Much later, the CIA uses him as a liaison to various superpowered groups that have begun appearing, including the Fantastic Four, whom CIA agent Fury first encounters in Fantastic Four #21 (Dec. 1963). Despite Marvel's "elastic chronology", which puts the early-'60s stories as roughly only 10 years before modern-day stories, Marvel has never retconned an explanation for that chronological discrepancy, as the company has for many others.

During his time with the CIA, Fury begins wearing his trademark eyepatch (an issue of Sgt. Fury had revealed that he had taken shrapnel to one eye during the war, which caused him to slowly lose sight in it over the course of years).

S.H.I.E.L.D.[link]

Recruited by Tony Stark, Fury becomes the second commander of S.H.I.E.L.D. as its Public Director. The ultimate authority of S.H.I.E.L.D. is revealed to be a cabal of 12 mysterious men and women who give Fury his orders and operational structure, leaving Fury to manage the actual implementation of these orders and strategems.^[8] The identities of these people have never been revealed; they appear only as shaded figures on monitors. Initially, his organization's primary nemesis is the international terrorist organization HYDRA, created by Fury's worst enemy of World War II, Baron Wolfgang von Strucker (after retconning of the original continuity). Under Fury, S.H.I.E.L.D. grows into one of the world's most powerful organizations, reaching covertly into national governments and forming strategic alliances with the Avengers and other superhero groups, while always maintaining independence and deniability. Fury soon becomes the superhero community's main contact when government-related information is required in order to deal with a crisis.

After years at the helm, Fury discovers that S.H.I.E.L.D. and HYDRA have both fallen under the control of a group of sentient Life Model Decoy androids known as Deltites. Betrayed, Fury goes to ground, hunted by his fellow agents, many of whom are later revealed to have been replaced with Deltites. Although Fury ultimately exposes and overcomes the Deltite threat, the conflict is so destructive to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s personnel and infrastructure, and leaves Fury so disillusioned, that he disbands the agency to prevent it from again being subverted from within.^[9]

Fury rebuilds S.H.I.E.L.D. from the ground up, initially as a more streamlined agency small enough for him to personally oversee and protect from being corrupted. This new incarnation changed the acronym to stand for "Strategic Hazard Intervention, Espionage and Logistics Directorate".

Sometime later, Frank Castle, the vigilante known as the Punisher, is captured and sent to a maximum-security facility with a S.H.I.E.L.D. escort. During a hypnosis session with Doc Samson, a character named Spook interrupts and has the Punisher conditioned to believe Fury is responsible for the murder of the Punisher's family. An escaped Punisher eventually kills Fury, who is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.^[10] However, the Fury that the Punisher has "killed" is later revealed to have been a highly advanced Life Model Decoy android.^[11]

Returned to his post as S.H.I.E.L.D. director, Fury independently enlists the superheroes Captain America, Spider-Man, Luke Cage, Wolverine, Daredevil, and the Black Widow to launch a covert assault on the leadership of Latveria, which is plotting a massive attack on the U.S. One year afterward, Latveria launches a counterattack that results in Fury's removal as S.H.I.E.L.D. commander, forcing him again into hiding with numerous international warrants out for his arrest. His successors as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. are first Maria Hill and then Tony Stark.^[12] Both Hill and Stark, keeping Fury's disappearance secret from the S.H.I.E.L.D. rank and file, uses Life Model Decoys to impersonate Fury on occasion.

Fury is the only "33rd-degree" S.H.I.E.L.D. officer, meaning he is the only member of S.H.I.E.L.D., present or past, to know the full existence of 28 emergency, covert bases scattered across the globe, secretly providing the Anti-Registration faction in the subsequent superhuman civil war with bases where they can rally their forces without worrying about their Pro-Registration enemies finding them.^[13]

Secret Invasion[link]

During the time Fury spends in hiding, he learns that Valentina Allegra de Fontaine has been plotting to extract S.H.I.E.L.D. passcodes from him and kill him. Fury kills her first, after which she reverts to the form of an extraterrestrial shape-shifter from the hostile Skrull race, which has mounted an invasion of Earth. He recruits Spider-Woman to be his mole inside both HYDRA and S.H.I.E.L.D., and to watch for further Skrull impostors. Unbeknownst to him, she's replaced shortly after by Skrull Queen Veranke herself.^[14] He later instructs former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Daisy Johnson to recruit superpowered children of various heroes and villains to help combat the Skrull invasion; these include Phobos, the 10-year old son of Ares and himself the young god of fear; Yo-Yo, a misunderstood mutant speedster; Hellfire, a relative of Phantom Rider with supernatural powers; Druid, a magician and son of Doctor Druid; and Stonewall, a young man who can grow bigger at will and has super strength. Fury dubs them his "Commandos".^[15]

Soon after the attack on Earth, Fury and his new team are seen counter-attacking the Skrull attack in Times Square, Manhattan. They manage to repel and kill the invaders in the area significantly, whilst saving the downed Initiative cadets and the Young Avengers.^[16] He, along with his team and the rescued heroes, are next seen working and planning their next move in one of the scattered 28 covert S.H.I.E.L.D. bases.^[17] He has also been seen talking to Deadpool, while Deadpool was on a Skrull ship after pretending to join them. It is also revealed that Fury hired Deadpool to infiltrate Skrull ranks by pretending to defect, with the intention of obtaining biological information of the Skrulls that Fury can use to stop them. However, when Deadpool attempts to transmit the data, it is intercepted by Norman Osborn.^[18]

Fury leads the survivors of the Young Avengers and Initiative back to the fight in New York, where they are joined by Thor, the new Captain America, the New Avengers and Mighty Avengers, the Hood's gang, and the Thunderbolts, to take on Veranke's army of Super Skrulls.^[19]

When the battle is over and the real heroes are found, Nick is greeted by the real Valentina Allegra de Fontaine and Dum Dum Dugan. He gives them one look and teleports away with his Secret Warriors, not speaking to his former friends.^[20]

Dark Reign and Secret Warriors[link]

During an infiltration and elimination of a covert S.H.I.E.L.D. base in Chicago, Fury discovers that S.H.I.E.L.D. is, and always has been, secretly controlled by HYDRA.^[21] A distraught Fury now plans to use his Secret Warriors to combat the renewed HYDRA threat, spearheaded by his old nemesis, Baron Strucker.^[22] He also hires the new Howling Commandos, a private military company formed by 1200 former S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who refused to join Norman Osborn's H.A.M.M.E.R., to employ them in his fight against HYDRA and Osborn.^[23] Also, he has a number of inside men to assist in his raids,^[24] including Natasha Romanova posing as Yelena Belova who is in command of the Thunderbolts.^[25] Eventually, he and his men commandeer decommissioned Helicarriers, as well as forcing the H.A.M.M.E.R. agents at the dock to follow him.^[26] Natasha brings Songbird to Fury, but she is followed and the three are captured by the Thunderbolts. Osborn then shoots Fury in the head.^[27] However, it was not the real Fury who was shot, but a Life Model Decoy in his image,^[28] which the Fixer reveals to Songbird and Black Widow later after they escape the Thunderbolts.^[29]

On a solo mission soon after, Fury teams with Norman Osborn to interrogate a lower-level H.A.M.M.E.R. agent. The conversation (and materials obtained afterwards) reveal there may be an organization much like HYDRA, installed in the upper levels of world governments, called "Leviathan." This organization appears to have been founded by the Soviet government for reasons as yet unclear.^[30] Fury later introduces Daisy Johnson to prominent members of the Howling Commandos including Alexander Pierce, leader of the second caterpillar team, and Mikel, Fury's son and leader of the "gray" team.^[31]

Siege[link]

Fury and the Secret Warriors are later summoned by Captain America to his hideout along with the New and Young Avengers, when Rogers, seeking to aid his long-time comrade Thor in his plight during the Siege of Asgard launched by Norman Osborn, gathered all his allies to strike back against Osborn and rescue Thor whilst simultaneously ending Osborn's Dark Reign. Fury insists on Phobos remaining behind due to an unwillingness for him to battle his father Ares and his youth, and later opens a wormhole aboard an ex-S.H.I.E.L.D. jet which brings the combined forces of the three teams to Oklahoma.^[32][33] They then intercept Norman Osborn's siege and with the help of Iron Man, who receives a variation of his suit from Speed, they shut down Norman's suit. However, their victory is cut short when Sentry, now fully possessed by the Void, begins attacking them.^[34][35] Loki attempts to help Fury and the other heroes by empowering them with the Norn Stones, but Void kills him before long. Iron Man then uses the ex-S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier as a bullet on the Void. Robert Reynolds regains control of his body and begs the Avengers to kill him. Thor refuses but ends up killing him anyway when Void begins to take over again. The Avengers are reunited and the press declares that a new "Heroic Age" has begun.^[36][37]

Heroic Age[link]

While Fury remains underground, allowing Steve Rogers to take official command of the super-spy side of things, he remains in contact with Earth's heroes and keeps an eye on their activities.^{[volume & issue needed]} He provided the New Avengers with a special serum, created as a combination of the Super-Soldier serum and the Infinity Formula, to help Mockingbird when she was shot during a raid on a H.A.M.M.E.R. base.^[38] However, Nick Fury later expends the last sample of the Infinity Formula to save Bucky's life. He remains immortal, however, due to trace amounts of the formula in his body.^[39]

Battle Scars[link]

In 2012, the six part series Battle Scars introduces Nick Fury's secret son, Sgt. Marcus Johnson who is an African American, and ends up losing one eye in the series.^[40] The character has been described as looking like Samuel L. Jackson, just as the Nick Fury of the Ultimate Universe does.^[41][42] Nick Fury retires at the end of the series, and his son joins S.H.I.E.L.D. Johnson changes his name to his original birth name of Nick Fury, as he and Agent Coulson appear on the Helicarrier in the final page.^[43]

Powers, abilities, and equipment[link]

Nick Fury's aging has been slowed greatly by the Infinity Formula, a serum created by Dr. Berthold Sternberg. Fury was first inoculated with the serum in the 1940s. Fury took the serum annually for many years. Due to its cumulative effect, Fury no longer needs additional doses to prolong his life span. Nick Fury is an athletic man despite his advanced chronological age. Fury's injured left eye, though initially minimally affected by a grenade blast during World War II,^[44] has over the decades resulted in a 95% loss of vision in this eye. Despite some comments to the contrary, Fury has not had the eye removed, nor bionically enhanced, and merely covers it with a cosmetic eye-patch to prevent depth perception distortion.

Fury is a seasoned unarmed and armed combat expert, was a heavyweight boxer in the army (during World War II), and holds a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and a brown belt in Jiu Jitsu. He has honed his unarmed combat skills sparring with Captain America.

Fury is a combat veteran of three wars, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam Conflict, as well as numerous "military adviser" missions and clandestine operations ("a dozen conflicts you've never even heard of"). He is trained as a paratrooper, Ranger, a demolitions expert, vehicle specialist (including aircraft and seagoing vessels), and a Green Beret.

Fury has access to a wide variety of equipment and weaponry designed by S.H.I.E.L.D. technicians. He wears a S.H.I.E.L.D. uniform made of 9-ply Kevlar (able to withstand ballistic impact up to .45 caliber bullets) and a Beta Cloth (type C), a fire-resistant material, which has a kindling temperature of 1,700 °F (930 °C).

Fury uses various types of handguns, including a .15 caliber needle gun, a government issue .45 caliber automatic, a captured German Luger in 9mm Parabellum, a modified semi-automatic Walther PPK in 9 mm Parabellum, and the Ingram MAC-10 machine pistol in .45 caliber.

As the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., Fury has access to the entire S.H.I.E.L.D. highly advanced arsenal of weaponry; various air, land, and sea craft provided by S.H.I.E.L.D.; and numerous S.H.I.E.L.D. paraphernalia, including a radio-link tie and a bulletproof suit. Due to his high-ranking status, even when S.H.I.E.L.D. is directed by Tony Stark, and then Norman Osborn, Fury retains access to several S.H.I.E.L.D. warehouses and paraphernalia that are unknown to anyone else but him.

Other versions[link]

1602[link]

In the 1602 miniseries, Nick Fury appears as Sir Nicholas Fury, Queen Elizabeth I's chief of intelligence. His character was modeled after Elizabeth's real life spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham.^[45]

Avataars[link]

In the Avataars: Covenant of the Shield miniseries Nick Fury appears as Regent Nicholas, who watches over the throne of Avalon "with his elite guard as its shield."^[46]

Earth X[link]

In the Earth X universe Nick Fury is dead. However, several LMDs still exist and fight against Cold War-era communists such as the current leader of Russia, Piotr Rasputin. One attacks Piotr when he is meeting with Captain America's party.^[47]

[edit] Fury

In the Marvel MAX-imprint miniseries Fury vol. 2, by writer Garth Ennis and penciller Darick Robertson, Fury is a burned-out Cold War veteran unable to cope with the modern world. He is swiftly drawn into a conflict with an old HYDRA enemy and the new bureaucratic version of S.H.I.E.L.D. This version continues to appear in Ennis' Punisher series. Writer-editor Stan Lee, a co-creator of Nick Fury, was critical of the extreme violence and gore of this new series: "I don't know why they're doing that. I don't think that I would do those kinds of stories."^[48]

[edit] Fury: Peacemaker

A six-part miniseries, also written by Ennis, was published in 2006 under the Marvel Knights imprint. It portrays a young Sergeant Fury during World War II, who learns the art of war in the deserts of North Africa with the newly formed British SAS and ultimately joins them on a mission to assassinate an important German general.^[49]

House of M[link]

In the alternate reality of the crossover story arc "House of M", Nick Fury has vanished some time ago. During the mutant purges of the armed forces (which involved outright executions of most of the human field-officers) Nick Fury is kept on as a subservient Drill Instructor, because his talents are too valuable. He makes an enemy of one of his soldiers, Earshot, who has the power to throw his voice with precision over long distances. Earshot uses this power to trick Nick Fury into a trap, seemingly killing him. It is hinted that the trap was actually planned by Wolverine, another of Fury's soldiers.^[50]

Marvel Mangaverse[link]

In this manga imprint, Nick Fury, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., disappears for a time to mastermind the death of 99% of the superhuman population. He is assisted by that universe's Black Cat. It is said, by his mind-controlled victim, Sharon Carter, that the motivation for the superhero deaths is jealousy.

Marvel Zombies[link]

Nick Fury organizes a resistance against the zombies but is eventually devoured by the zombified Fantastic Four on the Helicarrier. Shortly before he dies, Fury orders Thor to destroy the teleporter built by Tony Stark to prevent the Fantastic Four from escaping to other dimensions for destruction, effectively saving the rest of the multiverse.^[51]

MC2[link]

In the alternate reality known as the MC2 Universe, Nick Fury is alive and well and is still running S.H.I.E.L.D.^[52]

Mutant X[link]

In the alternate reality of the X-Men-related miniseries Mutant X, Fury leads S.H.I.E.L.D., an anti-mutant policing organization. It is corrupt, and brainwashes its personnel to violently hate all mutants. Lynchings are common.^[53]

The Transformers[link]

Fury and Dum Dum Dugan appear in the alternate universe toy-license series The Transformers #3 (Jan. 1985).

Ultimate Nick Fury[link]

In the Ultimate Marvel Universe, General Nick Fury is African American, with his look and personality tailored after actor Samuel L. Jackson with the actor's permission.^[54] Jackson also played Nick Fury in the 2008 film Iron Man (appearing in a post-credits scene) and reprised the role in the sequel,^[55] and in Captain America: The First Avenger.^[56] He also appears uncredited as Fury in Thor.^[57] Jackson appeared as Nick Fury in the 2012 film The Avengers.^[58]

Deadpool Merc with a Mouth[link]

In the 7th issue of the series, Deadpool visits a universe where the Wild West still exists. There, Nick Fury is the sheriff of a town.^[59]

Back in the USSA[link]

In the alternate history novel Back in the USSA, Fury is mentioned as being among a group of military officers hoping to take power from President J. R. Ewing after the collapse of the United Socialist States of America.

H.A.T.E.[link]

In the Nextwave series, the title team works for H.A.T.E., run by Dirk Anger, an over-the-top parody of Fury.^[60]

In other media[link]

Collected editions[link]

• Marvel Masterworks: Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Vol. 1 (Strange Tales #135-153, Tales of Suspense #78, Fantastic Four #21)
• Marvel Masterworks: Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Vol. 2 (Strange Tales #154-168, Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #1-3)
• Marvel Masterworks: Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Vol. 3 (Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #4-15, Avengers #72, Marvel Spotlight #31)
• Marvel Masterworks: Sgt. Fury Vol. 1 (Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #1-13)
• Marvel Masterworks: Sgt. Fury Vol. 2 (Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #14-23, Annual #1)
• Marvel Masterworks: Sgt. Fury Vol. 3 (Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #24-32, 'Annual #2)
• Essential Sgt Fury Vol. 1 (Sgt Fury #1-23 and Annual #1)
• Secret Warriors Vol. 1: Nick Fury Agent of Nothing (Secret Warriors #1-6)
• Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Classic Vol. 1 (Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Vol. 3 #1-11)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Nick Fury

• Nick Fury at Marvel.com
• Marvel Directory: Nick Fury
• Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on March 15, 2012. (May be overridden by a S.H.I.E.L.D. webring on some browsers/platforms.)
• Comics 101 (column, March 3, 2004): "Secret Agent, Man", by Scott Tipton
• E. Favata's Comic Book Movies: Nick Fury
• ComicBookMovie.com: Nick Fury
• The Grand Comics Database
• Iron Man Movie on IMDB
• Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. at the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe
• Sneak Peek TV: Nick Fury
• Nick Fury on the Internet Movie Database
• Marvel Comics wiki: Fury, Nick

Look up fury in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Fury is a form of anger.

Fury may also refer to:

In literature:

• One of the Erinyes, or Furies, in Greek mythology
• Fury (novel), a Salman Rushdie novel
• Fury (Star Wars novel), the seventh book in the Legacy of the Force series
• The Fury (novel), a John Farris novel
• Fury, a novel by Henry Kuttner

In film and television:

• Fury (1923 film), a 1923 silent film starring Richard Barthelmess
• Fury (film), a 1936 movie starring Spencer Tracy
• Fury (TV series), a children's TV series on NBC (1955-60) about an eponymous black horse
• Fury, 1966 Russian film starring Yevgeny Matveyev
• The Fury (1978 film), a Brian de Palma movie
• "Fury" (Star Trek: Voyager), an episode of Star Trek: Voyager

In comics:

• Fury (DC Comics), two superheroine characters
• Fury (Marvel Comics), a robot that battled Captain Britain and the X-Men
• Nick Fury, a Marvel Comics character and the leader of S.H.I.E.L.D.
• The Fury (Image Comics), the original Fury comics by Stephen Bissette

In gaming:

• Bryan Fury, a video game character from the Tekken series
• Fury (computer game), a 3D fantasy, multiplayer, online, role-playing game
• Fury (Super Robot Wars), a race that served as antagonists in Super Robot Wars Judgement
• The Fury (Martech), a computer game released for home computer systems by Martech
• Fury of the Furries, a 1993 platform game
• Fury Amulet, commonly called a Fury, an amulet in RuneScape
• Fury, a longsword in Morrowind
• Fury, Lulu's overdrive from Final Fantasy X
• Fury, a vehicle in Unreal Tournament 3
• Fury3, a 1996 3D Shooter video game developed by Terminal Reality
• The Fury, a Metal Gear Solid 3 character

Aircraft:

• Felixstowe Fury, a large triplane seaplane designed by John Cyril Porte in 1918
• FJ-1 Fury, a straight-wing jet aircraft manufactured by North American Aviation in the 1940s
• FJ Fury, a series of swept-wing jet aircraft manufactured by North American Aviation in the 1950s
• Hawker Fury, an interwar period British fighter aircraft
• Hawker Sea Fury, an early Cold-War era British fighter aircraft
• LoPresti Fury, a sports airplane designed in the USA in the 1980s

Other vehicles:

• HMS Fury (1814), a Hecla-class bomb vessel
• Plymouth Fury, an American car
• LMS 6399 Fury, an experimental steam locomotive with a high-pressure boiler
• Honda Fury, a Motorcycle

In music:

• Billy Fury (1940 - 1983), English pop singer
• Fury (band), a heavy metal band from Australia
• "Fury" (song), a song by Prince
• "Fury", a song by Yngwie Malmsteen from the 1986 album "Trilogy"
• "Fury", a song by Muse (band)
• "Fury", a song by Machinae Supremacy
• The Fury (album), an album by Gary Numan
• Fury Records, a United States record label
• "Fury (Go)", a song by Frankie Goes to Hollywood on their album Welcome to the Pleasuredome
• Fury, an early childhood band that included Rivers Cuomo, formed in the mid-1980's
• Robby Fury, a heavy metal musician from Nashville, TN

In sports:

• Durham Fury, a Tier II Junior "A" ice hockey team from Oshawa, Ontario, Canada
• Flint Fury, a semi-pro football team located in Flint, Michigan
• Fresno Fury, a National Indoor Football League team that never played a game
• Monterrey Fury, a Mexican team playing in a United States-based soccer league
• Muskegon Fury, a UHL hockey team based in Michigan
• North Queensland Fury FC, an association football club currently playing in the Australian A-League.
• Ottawa Fury, a Canadian soccer team
• Philadelphia Fury, a North American Soccer League team that played from 1978 to 1980
• Tyson Fury, a professional British heavyweight boxer
• Fury Ultimate, an elite women's Ultimate Frisbee team based in the San Francisco Bay Area

See also[link]

• Mike Furey
• Furie (disambiguation)
• Furies (mythological creatures)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Samuel L. Jackson
Jackson at the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con
Born	Samuel Leroy Jackson (1948-12-21) December 21, 1948 (age 63) Washington, D.C., United States
Occupation	Actor, producer
Years active	1972–present
Spouse	LaTanya Richardson (m. 1980) «start: (1980)»"Marriage: LaTanya Richardson to Samuel L. Jackson" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Samuel_L._Jackson)
Website
www.samuelljackson.com

Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21, 1948) is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor, Morgan Freeman, and the director Spike Lee. After gaining critical acclaim for his role in Jungle Fever in 1991, he appeared in films such as Patriot Games, Amos & Andrew, True Romance and Jurassic Park. In 1994, he was cast as Jules Winnfield in Pulp Fiction, and his performance received several award nominations and critical acclaim.

Jackson has since appeared in over 100 films including Die Hard with a Vengeance, The 51st State, Jackie Brown, Unbreakable, The Incredibles, Black Snake Moan, Shaft, Snakes on a Plane, as well as the Star Wars prequel trilogy and small roles in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill Vol. 2 and Inglourious Basterds.

He played Nick Fury in Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, and Marvel's The Avengers, the first five of a nine-film commitment as the character for the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise. Jackson's many roles have made him one of the highest-grossing actors at the box office. Jackson has won multiple awards throughout his career and has been portrayed in various forms of media including films, television series, and songs. In 1980, Jackson married LaTanya Richardson, with whom he has a daughter, Zoe.

In October 2011, Jackson surpassed Frank Welker as the highest grossing film actor of all-time.^[1]

Early life[link]

Jackson was born in Washington, D.C.^[2] He grew up as an only child in Chattanooga, Tennessee with his mother, Elizabeth Jackson (née Montgomery), who was a factory worker and later a supplies buyer for a mental institution, and his maternal grandparents and extended family.^[3][4] His father lived away from the family, in Kansas City, Missouri, and later died from alcoholism; Jackson had only met his father twice during his life.^[3][5] Jackson attended several segregated schools^[6] and graduated from Riverside High School in Chattanooga. Between the third and twelfth grades, he played the French horn and trumpet in the school orchestra.^[7] Initially intent on pursuing a degree in marine biology, he attended Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia. After joining a local acting group to earn extra points in a class, Jackson found an interest in acting and switched his major.^[8] Before graduating in 1972, he co-founded the "Just Us Theatre".^[3][9]

Civil Rights Movement involvement[link]

After the 1968 assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., Jackson attended the funeral in Atlanta as one of the ushers.^[10] Jackson then flew to Memphis to join an equal rights protest march. In a Parade interview Jackson revealed: "I was angry about the assassination, but I wasn’t shocked by it. I knew that change was going to take something different – not sit-ins, not peaceful coexistence."^[11] In 1969, Jackson and several other students held members of the Morehouse College board of trustees (including a nearby Martin Luther King, Sr.) hostage on the campus, demanding reform in the school's curriculum and governance.^[12] The college eventually agreed to change its policy, but Jackson was charged with and eventually convicted of unlawful confinement, a second-degree felony.^[13] Jackson was then suspended for two years for his criminal record and his actions (although he would later return to the college to earn his Bachelor of Arts in Drama in 1972).^[14]

While he was suspended, Jackson was employed as a social worker in Los Angeles.^[15] Jackson decided to return to Atlanta, where he met with Stokely Carmichael, H. Rap Brown, and others active in the Black Power movement.^[11] Jackson revealed in the same Parade interview that he began to feel empowered with his involvement in the movement, especially when the group began buying guns.^[11] However, before Jackson could become involved with any significant armed confrontation, his mother sent him to Los Angeles after the FBI told her that he would die within a year if he remained with the Black Power movement.^[11]

Acting career[link]

1970s–1980s[link]

Jackson initially majored in marine biology at Morehouse College before switching to architecture. He later settled on drama after taking a public speaking class and appearing in a version of The Threepenny Opera.^[7] Jackson began acting in multiple plays, including Home and A Soldier's Play.^[3] He appeared in several television films, and made his feature film debut in the blaxploitation independent film Together for Days (1972).^[16] After these initial roles, Jackson proceeded to move from Atlanta to New York City in 1976 and spent the next decade appearing in stage plays such as The Piano Lesson and Two Trains Running, which both premiered at the Yale Repertory Theater.^[15][17] At this point in his early career, Jackson developed alcoholism and cocaine addictions, resulting in him being unable to proceed with the two plays as they continued to Broadway (actors Charles S. Dutton and Anthony Chisholm took his place).^[14] Throughout his early film career, mainly in minimal roles in films such as Coming to America and various television films, Jackson was mentored by Morgan Freeman.^[7] After a 1981 performance in the play A Soldier's Play, Jackson was introduced to director Spike Lee who would later include him in small roles for the films School Daze (1988) and Do the Right Thing (1989).^[3][18] He also played a minor role in the 1990 Martin Scorsese film Goodfellas as real-life Mafia associate Stacks Edwards and also worked as a stand-in on The Cosby Show for Bill Cosby^[12][19] for three years.

1990s[link]

While completing these films, Jackson's drug addiction had worsened. After previously overdosing on heroin several times, Jackson gave up the drug in favor of cocaine.^[20] After seeing the effects of his addiction, his family entered him into a New York rehab clinic.^[7][21] When he successfully completed rehab, Jackson appeared in Jungle Fever, as a crack cocaine addict, a role which Jackson called cathartic as he was recovering from his addiction.^[3] Jackson commented on the transition, "It was a funny kind of thing. By the time I was out of rehab, about a week or so later I was on set and we were ready to start shooting."^[22] The film was so acclaimed that the 1991 Cannes Film Festival created a special "Supporting Actor" award just for him.^[5][23] After this role, Jackson became involved with multiple films, including the comedy Strictly Business, dramas Juice and Patriot Games, and then moved on to two other comedies: National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1 (his first starring role) and Amos & Andrew.^[24][25] Jackson then worked with director Steven Spielberg, appearing in Jurassic Park.^[26]

After a turn as the criminal Big Don in the 1993 Tarantino-penned True Romance directed by Tony Scott, Tarantino contacted Jackson for the role of Jules Winnfield in Pulp Fiction. Jackson was surprised to learn that the part had been specifically written for him, "To know that somebody had written something like Jules for me. I was overwhelmed, thankful, arrogant – this whole combination of things that you could be, knowing that somebody's going to give you an opportunity like that."^[27] Although Pulp Fiction was Jackson's thirtieth film, the role made him internationally recognized and he received praise from critics. In a review by Entertainment Weekly, his role was commended: "As superb as Travolta, Willis, and Keitel are, the actor who reigns over Pulp Fiction is Samuel L. Jackson. He just about lights fires with his gremlin eyes and he transforms his speeches into hypnotic bebop soliloquies."^[28] For the Academy Awards, Miramax Films pushed for the supporting actor nomination for Jackson (although he had about the same screen time as Travolta, who was nominated for best actor).^[29] For his performance, Jackson received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. In addition, Jackson received a Golden Globe nomination and a BAFTA Best Supporting Actor award win.^[30][31][32]

After Pulp Fiction, Jackson received multiple scripts to play his next role: "I could easily have made a career out of playing Jules over the years. Everybody's always sending me the script they think is the new Pulp Fiction."^[33] With a succession of poor-performing films such as Kiss of Death, The Great White Hype, and Losing Isaiah, Jackson began to receive poor reviews from critics who had praised his performance in Pulp Fiction. This ended with his involvement in the two successful box office films A Time To Kill, where he depicted a father who is put on trial for killing two men who raped his daughter, and Die Hard with a Vengeance, starring alongside Bruce Willis in the third installment of the Die Hard series.^[34][35] For A Time to Kill, Jackson earned a NAACP Image for Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture and a Golden Globe nomination for a Best Supporting Actor.^[36]

Quickly becoming a box office star, Jackson continued with three starring roles in 1997. In 187 he played a dedicated teacher striving to leave an impact on his students.^[37] He received an Independent Spirit award for Best First Feature alongside first-time writer/director Kasi Lemmons in the drama Eve's Bayou, for which he also served as executive producer.^[38] He joined up again with director Quentin Tarantino and received the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the Berlin Film Festival^[39] and a fourth Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of arms merchant Ordell Robbie in Jackie Brown.^[40] In 1998, he worked with other established actors such as Sharon Stone and Dustin Hoffman in Sphere and Kevin Spacey in The Negotiator, playing a hostage negotiator who resorts to taking hostages himself when he is falsely accused of murder and embezzlement.^[41][42] In 1999, Jackson starred in the horror film Deep Blue Sea, and as Jedi Master Mace Windu in George Lucas' Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.^[43][44] In an interview, Jackson claimed that he did not have a chance to read the script for the film and did not learn he was playing the character Mace Windu until he was fitted for his costume (he later said that he was eager to accept any role, just for the chance to be a part of the Star Wars saga).^[45]

2000s[link]

Film roles[link]

Jackson at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival

On June 13, 2000, Jackson was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame which can be found at 7018 Hollywood Blvd.^[46] He began the next decade in his film career as a Marine colonel put on trial in Rules of Engagement, co-starred with Bruce Willis for a third time in the supernatural thriller Unbreakable, and starred in the 2000 remake of the 1971 film Shaft.^[47][48][49] Jackson's sole film in 2001 was The Caveman's Valentine, where he played a homeless musician in a murder thriller. The film was directed by Kasi Lemmons, who previously worked with Jackson in Eve's Bayou.^[50] In 2002, he played a recovering alcoholic attempting to keep custody of his kids while fighting a battle of wits with Ben Affleck's character in Changing Lanes.^[3] He returned for Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, seeing his minor supporting role develop into a major character. Mace Windu's purple lightsaber in the film was the result of Jackson's suggestion;^[3] he wanted to be sure that his character would stand out in a crowded battle scene.^[51][52] Jackson then acted as a NSA agent alongside Vin Diesel in xXx and a kilt-wearing drug dealer in The 51st State.^[53][54] In 2003, Jackson again worked with John Travolta in Basic and then as a police sergeant alongside Colin Farrell in the television show remake S.W.A.T.^[55][56] A song within the soundtrack was named after him, entitled Sammy L. Jackson by Hot Action Cop.^[57] Jackson also appeared in HBO's documentary Unchained Memories, as a narrator along many other stars like Angela Bassett and Whoopi Goldberg. He uses terminology such as paddy rollers (which can be seen on the slave patrol page) when reading his narration.

According to reviews gathered by Rotten Tomatoes, in 2004 Jackson starred in both his lowest and highest ranked films in his career.^[58] In the thriller Twisted, Jackson played a mentor to Ashley Judd.^[59] The film garnered a 2% approval rating on the website, with reviewers calling his performance "lackluster" and "wasted".^[60][61][62] He then lent his voice to the computer-animated film The Incredibles as the superhero Frozone.^[63] The film received a 97% approval rating, and Jackson's performance earned him an Annie Award nomination for Best Voice Acting.^[64][65] He then went on to do a cameo in another Quentin Tarantino film, Kill Bill, Vol. 2.^[66]

In 2005, he began with the sports drama, Coach Carter, where he played a coach (based on the actual coach Ken Carter) dedicated to teaching his players that education is more important than basketball.^[67] Although the film received mixed reviews, Jackson's performance was praised despite the film's storyline.^[68][69] Bob Townsend of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution commended Jackson's performance, "He takes what could have been a cardboard cliche role and puts flesh on it with his flamboyant intelligence."^[70] Jackson also returned for two sequels: XXX: State of the Union, this time commanding Ice Cube, and the final Star Wars prequel film, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.^[71][72] His last film for 2005 was The Man alongside comedian Eugene Levy.^[73] On November 4, 2005, he was presented with the Hawaii International Film Festival Achievement in Acting Award.^[74]

On January 30, 2006, Jackson was honored with a hand and footprint ceremony at Grauman's Chinese Theater; he is the seventh African American and 191st actor to be recognized in this manner.^[75] He next starred opposite actress Julianne Moore in the box office bomb Freedomland, where he depicted a police detective attempting to help a mother find her abducted child while quelling a citywide race riot.^[76][77] Jackson's second film of the year, Snakes on a Plane, gained cult film status months before it was released based on its title and cast.^[78] Jackson's decision to star in the film was solely based on the title.^[79] To build anticipation for the film, he also cameoed in the 2006 music video "Snakes on a Plane (Bring It)" by Cobra Starship. On December 2, 2006, Jackson won the German Bambi Award for International Film, based on his many film contributions.^[80] In December 2006, Jackson starred in Home of the Brave, as a doctor returning home from the Iraq War.^[81]

Jackson in July 2006

On January 30, 2007, Jackson was featured as narrator in Bob Saget's direct-to-DVD Farce of the Penguins.^[82] The film was a spoof of the box office success March of the Penguins (which was narrated by Morgan Freeman).^[83] Also in 2007, he portrayed a blues player who imprisons a young woman (Christina Ricci) addicted to sex in Black Snake Moan, and the horror film 1408, an adaptation of the Stephen King short story.^[84][85] In 2008, Jackson reprised his role of Mace Windu in the CGI film, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, followed by Lakeview Terrace where he played a racist cop who terrorizes an interracial couple.^[86][87] In November of the same year, he starred along with Bernie Mac and Isaac Hayes (who both died prior to the film's release) in Soul Men.^[88] In 2008, he portrayed the villain in The Spirit, which was poorly received by critics and the box office.^[89][90] In 2009, he again worked with Quentin Tarantino when he narrated several scenes in the World War II film, Inglourious Basterds.^[91] In 2010, he starred in the drama Mother and Child and portrayed an interrogator who attempts to locate several nuclear weapons in the direct-to-video film Unthinkable.^[92][93] Alongside Dwayne Johnson, Jackson again portrayed a police officer in the opening scenes of the comedy The Other Guys. He also co-starred with Tommy Lee Jones for a film adaptation of The Sunset Limited.

Throughout Jackson's career, he has appeared in many films alongside mainstream rappers. These include Tupac Shakur (Juice), Queen Latifah (Juice/Sphere), Method Man (One Eight Seven), LL Cool J (Deep Blue Sea/S.W.A.T.), Busta Rhymes (Shaft), Eve (xXx), Ice Cube (xXx: State of the Union), Xzibit (xXx: State of the Union), David Banner (Black Snake Moan), and 50 Cent (Home of the Brave).^[94] Additionally, Jackson has appeared in four films with actor Bruce Willis (National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1, Pulp Fiction, Die Hard with a Vengeance, and Unbreakable) and the actors were slated to work together in Black Water Transit before both dropped out.^[95]

Television and other roles[link]

In addition to films, Jackson also appeared in several television shows, a video game, music videos, as well as audiobooks. Jackson had a small part in the Public Enemy music video for "911 Is a Joke". Jackson voiced several television show characters including the lead role in the anime series, Afro Samurai, in addition to a recurring part as the voice of Gin Rummy in several episodes of the animated series The Boondocks.^[96][97] He guest-starred as himself in an episode of the BBC/HBO sitcom Extras.^[98] He voiced the main antagonist, Officer Frank Tenpenny, in the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.^[99] Jackson also hosted a variety of awards shows. Thus far, he has hosted the MTV Movie Awards (1998),^[100] the ESPYs (1999, 2001, 2002, and 2009),^[101] and the Spike TV Video Game Awards (2005, 2006, and 2007).^[102] In November 2006, he provided the voice of God for The Bible Experience, the New Testament audiobook version of the Bible. He was given the lead role because producers believed his deep, authoritative voice would best fit the role.^[103] He further expanded his audio book legacy by then reading the Audible.com production of the number one Amazon.com best seller Go the Fuck to Sleep.^[104] For the Atlanta Falcons 2010 season, Samuel L. Jackson portrayed Rev. Sultan in the Falcons "Rise Up" commercial to help improve tickets sales.

Upcoming films[link]

Jackson has several upcoming film projects between 2010 and 2012. In 2001, Jackson gave his consent for Marvel Comics to design their "Ultimate" version of the character Nick Fury after his likeness.^[105] In the 2008 film Iron Man, he made a cameo as the character in a post-credit scene.^[106] In February 2009, Jackson signed on to a nine-picture deal with Marvel which would see him appear as the character in Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, and The Avengers as well as any other sequels they would produce.^[107]

He will appear^[when?] in Quentin Tarantino's film, Django Unchained.^[108] He is also set to produce a live-action movie of Afro Samurai,^[109] and is assuming the role of Sho'nuff in a remake of The Last Dragon.^[110]

Box office performance[link]

Jackson has said that he chooses roles that are "exciting to watch" and have an "interesting character inside of a story", and that in his roles he wanted to "do things [he hasn't] done, things [he] saw as a kid and wanted to do and now [has] an opportunity to do".^[111] Throughout the 1990s, A.C. Neilson E.C.I., a box office tracking company, determined that Jackson appeared in more films than any other actor that grossed $1.7 billion domestically.^[112] For all the films in his career, where he is featured as a leading actor or supporting co-star, his films have grossed a total of $2.81^[113] to $4.91 billion^[114] at the North American box office, placing him as the seventh (as strictly lead) or the second highest-grossing movie star (counting supporting roles) of all time; behind only that of voice actor Frank Welker. The 2009 edition of The Guinness World Records, which uses a different calculation to determine film grosses, stated that Jackson is the world's highest grossing actor, having earned $7.42 billion in 68 films.^[115]

Personal life[link]

Jackson with his wife LaTanya Richardson in 2005

In 1980, Jackson married actress and sports channel producer LaTanya Richardson,^[116] whom he met while attending Morehouse College.^[3] The couple have a daughter, Zoe, born in 1982.^[117] In 2009, they started their own charitable organization to help support education.^[116] Jackson and Richardson live in Los Angeles, California.

Jackson has revealed in an interview that he sees every one of his movies in theaters with paying customers claiming that "Even during my theater years, I wished I could watch the plays I was in – while I was in them! I dig watching myself work."^[118] He also enjoys collecting the action figures of the characters he portrays in his films, including Jules Winnfield, Shaft, Mace Windu, and Frozone.^[119] He is a comic book and anime fan.^[45]

Jackson is bald, but enjoys wearing unusual wigs in his films.^[120] Jackson has reflected on his decision to go bald: "I keep ending up on those bald is beautiful lists. It's cool. You know, when I started losing my hair it was during the era when everybody had lots of hair. ... All of a sudden I felt this big hole in the middle of my afro, I couldn't face having a comb over so I had to quickly figure what the haircut for me was."^[120] His first bald role was in The Great White Hype.^[121] Jackson usually gets to pick his own hairstyles for each character he portrays.^[121][122] Although he did poke fun at his baldness the first time he appeared bald on The Tonight Show, explaining that he had to shave his head for one role, but then he kept receiving more and more roles afterward, and had to keep shaving his head so wigs could be made for him. Laughingly, he ended the tale by lamenting to Jay Leno, "The only way I'm gonna have time to grow my hair back, is if I'm not workin'!".

Jackson enjoys playing golf, a game he has been reported to have become very proficient at.^[3] Jackson has a clause in his film contracts that allows him to play golf during production.^[6][30] He has played in the Gary Player Invitational charity golf tournament to assist golf icon Gary Player raise funds for needy children in South Africa. He stated that the golf course is the only place where he "can go dressed as a pimp and fit in perfectly".^[7] Jackson is also a keen basketball fan, and especially favors the Toronto Raptors and the Harlem Globetrotters.^[123] He also became a Liverpool F.C. fan after filming The 51st State in Liverpool. Jackson, a known lover of Ireland, also supports a Dublin based football team Bohemian F.C.^{[124][125][126]}

Jackson campaigned during the 2008 Democratic Primary for then Illinois Senator Barack Obama in Texarkana, Texas. He said "Barack Obama represents everything I was told I could be growing up. I am a child of segregation. When I grew up and people told me I could be president, I knew it was a lie. But now we have a representative... the American Dream is a reality. Anyone can grow up to be a president."^[127] Jackson also said "I voted for Barack because he was black. ’Cuz that’s why other folks vote for other people – because they look like them".^[128]

Filmography[link]

References[link]