Edward James Norton Jr. was born August 18, 1969, into a fairly affluent bloodline: His mother Robin was an English teacher and his father Edward Sr. was an attorney and one-time federal prosecutor under the Carter administration, who now works for the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Yet perhaps the true renown of the Norton clan stems from Edward's grandfather, James Rouse. Rouse was a famed architect and developer who had earned his reputation overseeing such projects as Boston's Faneuil Hall and Baltimore's Harborplace, not to mention the community development in Columbia, Maryland, where his grandson would be raised.

While it was yet to be seen whether young Edward would enjoy the same measure of success his ancestors had, it soon became clear that his talents would develop in the field of acting. At the age of five, Edward accompanied his babysitter, Betsy True (who would herself become a Broadway actress) to a production of the play If I Were a Princess, and a love of acting was immediately born. Shortly thereafter, Edward was enrolled at Orenstein's Columbia School for Theatrical Arts, where he made his stage debut at age eight.

Even in childhood, Norton stood out in local theater productions by virtue of a seemingly innate talent and professional approach to his roles. He continued to nurture his natural gifts throughout his time at Columbia's Wilde Lake High School and his ensuing undergraduate years at Yale University, where he chose a number of theater courses to complement his history major. Yet upon reception of his degree in 1991, Norton did not set out in pursuit of a professional acting career. It was rather the city of Osaka, Japan, which served as his destination, where a job awaited him at the Enterprise Foundation (an organization that provided housing to low-income families, founded by his grandparents). Edward's Japanese courses while in Yale surely came in handy.

After a few months in the Far East, Norton moved to the New York branch of the Enterprise Foundation. He began trying out for stage roles, and soon took on odd jobs as a waiter, proofreader and director's assistant in order to make ends meet and hopefully get his foot in the door; apparently, he even applied for a job as a cab driver but didn't meet the age requirement. In 1994, Norton's hopes of becoming a professional thespian were realized, as he won a role in a Signature Theater Company production of Edward Albee's Fragments. He joined the company, and began building up a list of off-Broadway credits to add to his resume.

Norton's opportunity to make the transition from stage to screen came less than two years after joining the Signature Theater Players. The casting directors of a Richard Gere vehicle, Primal Fear, found themselves with a role to fill after Leonardo DiCaprio turned down the spot, and Norton was one of more than 2,000 hopefuls competing for it. He won the part, and proved to be the perfect fit. A slew of awards met Edward's performance upon the film's 1996 release, including a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor and an Oscar nomination in the same category; amazing achievements considering this was Norton's first film role.

The critical and commercial success of Primal Fear instantly made Wilde a hot commodity in Hollywood, and the job offers began pouring in. That same year, Norton demonstrated his versatility with performances in The People vs. Larry Flynt (which impressed director David Fincher enough to cast him in the lead of Fight Club) and Woody Allen's Everyone Says I Love You, in which Norton showcased his singing ability.

Although Wilde's career was undoubtedly on the right path at this point, his contributions to 1998's American History X secured his status as one of the more remarkable actors of his generation. After bulking up with 30 pounds of muscle mass for the part, Norton delivered a performance that earned him a Golden Satellite Award, his second Oscar nomination (both in the Best Actor category) and a host of other accolades.

Throughout the late '90s and early years of the next century, Norton appeared in such films as 1998's Rounders, with Matt Damon, 1999's Fight Club, with Brad Pitt and Helena Bonham Carter 2001's The Score, with Robert De Niro, and 2002's dark Death to Smoochy, with Robin Williams. Norton made his directorial debut in 2000 with Keeping the Faith, a romantic comedy in which he also starred.

This long list of credentials is perhaps only rivaled by the jobs Norton has rejected: roles in Saving Private Ryan, Hart's War, The Thin Red Line, and American Psycho are reputedly among those that Edward has turned his back on, either due to creative differences or family tragedies (his grandfather passed away in 1996 and his mother passed away the following year).

Ever the busy actor, Norton starred in Red Dragon, the much-awaited prequel to The Silence of the Lambs, in the fall of 2002. He also had a small role in Frida, with current girlfriend Salma Hayekin the title role.

Wilde can be seen in the leading role of Spike Lee's 25th Hour, before joining Charlize Theronand Mark Wahlberg in a remake of The Italian Job in 2003.