Robert John Downey Sr. (born Robert John Elias; June 24, 1936) is an American actor, writer, and film director, and the father of actor Robert Downey Jr. He is best known as an underground filmmaker, serving as director and/or writer of such cult classics as Putney Swope, a satire on the New York Madison Avenue advertising world.

Downey's father, Robert Elias, was the son of Russian Jewish parent, and his mother, cover girl Betty McLoughlin, was of Irish Catholic descent. He was born Robert Elias, but changed his last name to "Downey" (after his stepfather, James Downey) when he was a minor and wanted to enlist in the Army.

Downey Sr. has been married three times. His first marriage was to actress Elsie Downey (née Ford), with whom he had two children: actress/writer Allyson Downey and actor Robert Downey Jr. The marriage ended in divorce in 1975. Downey Sr.'s second marriage, to actress-writer Laura Ernst, ended with her 1994 death from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease. He currently lives in New York City with his third wife, Rosemary Rogers, whom he married in 1998.

Robert John Downey Jr. (born April 4, 1965) is an American actor who made his screen debut in 1970 at the age of five, appearing in his father's film Pound, and has worked consistently in film and television ever since. During the 1980s, he had roles in series such as coming of age films associated with the Brat Pack. His role in Less Than Zero (1987) was the first time Downey's acting would be commended by critics. After Zero, Downey was cast in starring roles in bigger films, such as Air America (1990), Soapdish (1991), and Natural Born Killers (1994). He played Charlie Chaplin in the 1992 film Chaplin, for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.

Between 1996 and 2001, Downey was frequently arrested on drug-related charges. After being released from the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison in 2000, Downey joined the cast of the hit television series Ally McBeal playing the new love interest of Calista Flockhart's title character. His performance was praised and received accolades, but his character was written out when Downey was fired after two drug arrests in late 2000 and early 2001. After one last stay in a court-ordered drug treatment program, Downey finally achieved lasting sobriety and his career began to take off again. He appeared in semi-independent films such as The Singing Detective (2003), Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005), and A Scanner Darkly (2006). He also had supporting roles in the mainstream films Gothika (2003) and Zodiac (2007). In 2004, Downey released his debut studio album The Futurist.

Paul Thomas Anderson (born June 26, 1970), is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He has written and directed feature films: Hard Eight (1996), Boogie Nights (1997), Magnolia (1999), Punch-Drunk Love (2002), There Will Be Blood (2007), and The Master (2012). He has been nominated for five Academy Awards — There Will Be Blood for Best Achievement in Directing, Best Motion Picture of the Year, and Best Adapted Screenplay; Magnolia for Best Original Screenplay; and Boogie Nights for Best Original Screenplay.

Anderson has been hailed as being "one of the most exciting talents to come along in years" and "among the supreme talents of today." After the release of Boogie Nights and Magnolia, Anderson was praised as a wunderkind. In 2004, Anderson was ranked twenty-first on The Guardian's list of the forty best directors. In 2007, Total Film named him the twentieth greatest director of all time, while the American Film Institute regards him as "one of American film's modern masters." In 2011, Entertainment Weekly named him the tenth-greatest working director calling him "one of the most dynamic directors to emerge in the last twenty years."

Allan Havey (born 19 September 1954) is an American stand-up comic and actor. He started his career as a comedian in New York City in 1981. He made his national debut in 1986 on Late Night with David Letterman and made many appearances on the show throughout the 1980s and 1990s. His latest appearance on the show was on October 8, 2010.

In November 1989 he was chosen by HBO to host a show on The Comedy Channel (later known as Comedy Central). His show, Night After Night with Allan Havey, which initially ran for three hours nightly, presented Allan's unique stream of consciousness, celebrity interviews, news and film clips (with commentary), and unusual "on location" scenarios. It became a cult classic among fans. The show also featured an "Audience of One", a "Viewer Mail" segment, "Dave the Weatherman", and announcer Nick Bakay, who performed the same role on The Dennis Miller Show. Night After Night ran for three years.

His film roles include "Internal Affairs", "Checking Out", "Rounders", "Hancock", Jerry Seinfeld's documentary "Comedian", and Steven Soderberg's "The Informant". On television Havey's comedy was featured twice on HBO's "One Night Stand"; both appearamces were nominated for Cable ACE awards. As a television actor he has guest starred on "Seinfeld", "Curb Your Enthusiasm", "Punk'd", and the "Sarah Silverman Program". In 2006 Havey was cast as a lead in the Fox Sitcom "Free Ride", where he played Bob Stahlings, father of the main character Nate Stahlings. He has since appeared on Ray Romano's "Men of a Certain Age", and in 2012 appeared on Disney's "Good Luck Charlie" and FX's "Louie".

Terrence Dashon Howard (born March 11, 1969) is an American actor and singer. Having his first major role in the 1995 film Mr. Holland's Opus, Howard broke into the mainstream with a succession of television and film roles between 2004 and 2006. His roles in movies includes Winnie, Ray, Lackawanna Blues, Crash, Four Brothers, Hustle & Flow, Get Rich or Die Tryin', Idlewild, August Rush and The Brave One. Howard co-starred in Iron Man and reprised the role in the video game adaption.

His debut album, Shine Through It, was released in September 2008.

Howard was born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in Cleveland, Ohio , the son of Anita Williams (née Hawkins) and Tyrone Howard. His maternal great-grandmother, Minnie Gentry, was a stage actress, as were his mother and uncles. Both of his parents were biracial, of African American and European American descent; he experienced racism throughout his childhood.^{[citation needed]} His father was involved in what has been termed the Santa Line Slaying, serving 11 months in prison on manslaughter charges after stabbing another man. At the age of 16, Howard emancipated himself from his parents and was put on welfare; at 18, he moved to New York City to pursue an acting career. He wanted to be a science teacher, though he had a low GPA in high school and was admitted to the Pratt Institute in New York only after convincing them to give him a special entrance exam. Howard did not complete his education, as he had joined his brother on an audition for The Cosby Show and was cast in the role. Though he did not obtain a degree, Howard claims to be an engineer. Howard had a principal role in a short-lived CBS sitcom, Tall Hopes.