He is one of the top forty highest grossing actors of all time. As a lonely adolescent, Damon has described feeling “such pain in wanting to belong somewhere and not belonging.” Damon performed as an actor in several high school theater productions; he has credited his drama teacher at Rindge and Latin, Gerry Speca, as an important artistic influence, even though Damon recalls that, “Mr. Speca always seemed to trust Ben with the biggest roles and longest speeches.” Damon attended Harvard University from 1988 to 1992 but did not graduate. Damon dropped out of the university to pursue his acting career in Los Angeles because he mistakenly expected Geronimo: An American Legend to become a big success. After following a self-prescribed diet and fitness regimen to lose the weight, Damon was told after filming that he was fortunate his heart did not shrink. Damon has become known for choosing a wide variety of film roles, from his portrayal of Patricia Highsmith’s anti-hero Tom Ripley in The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999) to a fallen angel who discusses pop culture as intellectual subject matter with Affleck in Dogma (1999); from a conjoined twin in Stuck on You (2003), which got a mixed critical reception, to the low budget experimental film Gerry (2002), which he co-wrote with Casey Affleck and Gus Van Sant.

The pair won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay for their work and Damon garnered multiple Best Actor nominations, including the Academy Award, for his lead performance in the film. Damon has since starred in commercially successful films such as Saving Private Ryan (1998), the Ocean’s trilogy, and the Bourne series, while also gaining critical acclaim for his performances in dramas such as Syriana (2005), The Good Shepherd (2006), and The Departed (2006). Damon has been actively involved in charitable work, including the ONE Campaign, H2O Africa Foundation, and Water.org. After his parents divorced, Damon and his brother moved with their mother back to Cambridge, where they lived in a six-family communal house. Damon took to role-playing as a child partly because his mother raised him “by the book,” which made him feel as though “you couldn’t define yourself, because you already had been defined by her.” He attended Cambridge Alternative School (now Graham & Parks) and then Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, where he was a disciplined student but had a “terrifying” first two years due to his short height at the time.

Tobey Maguire Sued Over Illegal Poker Game Underground poker games happen all the time, we assume. What we don’t assume, however is that Tobey Maguire, Leo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, and Ben Affleck take part in them — especially the ones being run by a “Beverly Hills hedge fund manager who embezzled investor funds and orchestrated a Ponzi scheme in a desperate bid [...] [link]

He is one of the top forty highest grossing actors of all time. Matt Damon was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the son of Kent Telfer Damon, a stockbroker, and Nancy Carlsson-Paige, an early childhood education professor at Lesley University. He and his family moved to Newton and lived there for two years.

Lindsay Lohan Had a Diva-Off with Matt Lauer Last Night [Gossip Roundup] Lindsay Lohan meant to give an interview before today’s court appearance, but freaked out and locked herself in her bedroom instead. Hugh Hefner’s wedding special is back on. Tobey Maguire and Matt Damon get caught up in a illegal poker scandal. Thursday gossip makes demands. More » [link]