After Dinner Speakers: Joaquin Phoenix, Air Supply, The Real Thing

Brother of the late River Phoenix, Joaquin Raphael Phoenix was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on 28 October 1974, later moving to the Los Angeles area. In his early years Joaquin appeared (under the name Leaf Phoenix) in TV commercials, although meat, milk, and junk food were off-limits as the kids were all raised as strict vegans. Joaquin's first real acting job was a guest appearance on River's sitcom Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1982). He worked with his brother again on the TV special Backwards: The Riddle of Dyslexia (1984), then struck out on his own in other made-for-TV productions. He made his film debut as the youngest crew member in the inter-stellar romp SpaceCamp (1986), then won his first starring turn in the Cold War-era drama Russkies (1987) with Whip Hubley. The family moved to Florida in the late 1980s, as as it happened, Universal Pictures had just opened a new studio in the area. Joaquin was cast almost immediately as an angst-ridden adolescent in Parenthood (1989). Joaquin then took time out from acting, which continued for some time after his brother's much publicised death. He was finally persuaded to sign up to star as Nicole Kidman's obsessive devotee in To Die for (1995). The performance made Joaquin a critics' darling in his own right. His follow-up appearance in Inventing the Abbotts (1997) scored more critical kudos, and, perhaps more importantly, introduced him to future girlfriend, Liv Tyler. The film that confirmed Phoenix as a star was Gladiator (2000). Later that year he appeared in two indipendent films, playing a dock worker in The Yards (2000) and the Abbé du Coulmier, the priest in charge of the Marquis de Sade's asylum, in Quills (2000).