page_title: Robert De Niro
section_title: Recognition and legacy
hierarchical_section_title: Robert De Niro / Recognition and legacy
caption_attribution_description: English: “Having seen more than 25 Bruce Springsteen concerts since 1978 and having seen just about every movie Robert DeNiro has ever made, it was a great thrill to be in their presence as the President greeted them before the Kennedy Center Honors at the White House.” (Official White House photo by Pete Souza) This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work prepared by an officer or employee of the United States Government as part of that person’s official duties under the terms of Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 105 of the US Code. See Copyright. .
context_page_description: Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. is an American actor, producer, and director who holds both American and Italian citizenship. He is particularly known for his collaborations with filmmaker Martin Scorsese. He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award. In 2009, he received the Kennedy Center Honor. In 2016, he received a Presidential Medal of Freedom from U.S. President Barack Obama.
  Born in Manhattan in New York City, De Niro studied acting at HB Studio, Stella Adler Conservatory, and Lee Strasberg's Actors Studio. His first major onscreen appearance was in Greetings. He soon gained recognition with his role as a Major League Baseball player in the sports drama Bang the Drum Slowly. His first collaboration with Scorsese was in Mean Streets, in which he played the small-time criminal "Johnny Boy". Stardom followed soon after with his role as the young Vito Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather Part II, which won him the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
context_section_description: Several journalists consider De Niro to be among the best actors of his generation. A. O. Scott said that De Niro "was transforming himself — physically, vocally, psychologically — with each new role. And in the process, before our eyes, reinventing the art of acting." In 2009, he was announced as one of the Kennedy Center Honorees with the commemoration: "One of America's greatest cinematic actors, Robert De Niro has demonstrated a legendary commitment to his characters and has co-founded one of the world's major film festivals". Martin Scorsese and Meryl Streep honored him at the event. In 2016, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama. President Obama stated “Everybody on this stage has touched me in a very powerful, very personal way ... These are folks who have helped make me who I am". White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Obama personally considered each of the recipients who sat on that stage. "There is no arguing that the individuals who will be honored today are richly deserving," he said.
  A number of De Niro's films have become classics of American cinema, with six of his films having been inducted into the United States National Film Registry as of 2020. Five of his films are featured on the American Film Institute's list of the 100 greatest American films of all time. De Niro and James Stewart share the title for the most films represented on the AFI list. Timeout magazine's list of 100 best movies included seven of De Niro's films, as chosen by actors in the industry. In 2006, De Niro donated his collection of film-related materials, such as scripts, wardrobe pieces and props, to the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin. The collection, which took more than two years to process and catalog, opened to the public in 2009.
  Honors
  1993 - Venice Film Festival Career Golden Lion
  1997 - Moscow International Film Festival Honorable Prize
  2001 - Gotham Award Lifetime Achievement Award
  2003 - AFI Life Achievement Award and tribute
  2009 - Kennedy Center Honors
  2011 - Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award
  2013 - Santa Barbara International Film Festival Kirk Douglas Award
  2016 - Presidential Medal of Freedom
  2017 - Film Society of Lincoln Center Gala Tribute
  2019 - National Board of Review Icon Award
  2020 - Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award
caption: De Niro, Bruce Springsteen, and President Barack Obama
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