Alec Baldwin's Casino Luck

Actor Discusses His First Oscar Nomination For Role In 'The Cooler'

NEW YORK, Feb. 19, 2004 | by Rome Neal

(CBS)  With a long and diverse acting career, it seems hard to believe that an Oscar nomination eluded Alec Baldwin for years. That is no longer the case.

Baldwin received the honor of being nominated Best Supporting Actor for his powerful portrayal of a casino manager in "The Cooler."

The actor is scheduled to discuss the honor and the role that brought it, with The Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith.

In "The Cooler," Baldwin plays Shelly Kaplow, a casino manager who employs Bernie Lootz (William H. Macy), the unluckiest guy in Vegas. Bernie's mere presence at a hot table can kill any winning streak. But, when Bernie's luck begins to change as he finds love, Shelly slowly loses control of his moneymaker.

The prospect of losing millions of dollars makes Kaplow very unhappy, so the casino manager uses his power to make Lootz miserable again.

Some Facts About Alec Baldwin

The actor was born Alexander Rae Baldwin, 3rd, in Amityville, N.Y. on April 3, 1958.

From 1980 to 1982, Baldwin acted in the NBC daytime serial "The Doctors."

From 1984 to 1985, Baldwin first attracted serious attention as a charismatic television preacher Joshua Rush in the CBS serial "Knots Landing"

He has acted in movies such as 1986's "Forever Lulu," 1988's "Working Girl," "Married to the Mob," "Beetlejuice" and "Talk Radio," 1990's "The Hunt for Red October," "Miami Blues" and "Alice," 1991's "The Marrying Man," 1992's "Glengarry Glen Ross," 1994's "The Shadow," 1996's "The Juror," "Heaven's Prisoners" and "Ghosts of Mississippi," 1997's "The Edge," 1998's "Mercury Rising," 1999's "Outside Providence," 2001's "Pearl Harbor," 2003's ""Dr. Seuss' The Cat in the Hat" and "The Cooler."

In 1995, Baldwin, in an oft-questioned move, turned over his "Clear and Present Danger" Jack Ryan role to Harrison Ford in order to play Stanley Kowalski in a 1995 Broadway revival of "A Streetcar Named Desire," opposite Jessica Lange.

In 2002, Baldwin set out to make his feature directorial debut with a remake of "The Devil and Daniel Webster" with co-stars Anthony Hopkins and Jennifer Love Hewitt. The film, however, has been marred with financing problems and may never be released.

Also in 2002, Baldwin was nominated for his first Emmy for his role in the HBO drama, "Path To War."

Baldwin is about to start a new show on Broadway, starring with Anne Heche in the Roundabout production of "Twentieth Century."

Tune in to Thursday's The Early Show for the Alec Baldwin interview.

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