Summer Phoenix: Coping with Hollywood | Film | The Guardian Share on Messenger Close Summer Phoenix - actress, nascent style icon, hip kid - launched her first and only mission to change the world, to make it a more loving, more free-wheeling, more vegan place, when she was almost three years old. She did this in association with her four older brothers and sisters, River and Liberty, Rain and Joaquin (then 'Leaf'), through the medium of the Phoenix Family, the band they formed and toured round the upmarket affluence of Beverly Hills, in the mid-Eighties. In its original incarnation, the Phoenix Family was a creative and ideological power base, the Osmonds with Utopian dreams and very specific dietary requirements. It was the intensely tight-knit family unit that Summer's one remaining elder brother, Academy Award nominee Joaquin, has fondly referred to on more than one occasion as 'Team Phoenix'. 'It's true,' Summer says, and only her dry, wry delivery, her low-pitched, sardonic voice stops her from sounding desperately earnest. 'That's how it all started.

We went to LA as a family, with a sort of vision that we were going to "make it", whatever that meant.' Now, Summer Phoenix is 26 years old, an established feature on the edgy, indie flick scene, a pianist, a purveyor of vintage fashions,fiancee of Casey Affleck (the cooler brother of Ben), whose child she's expecting in May, and most famously of all, younger sister of Joaquin and the man who the Hollywood establishment routinely refers to as the 'tragic' and/or 'late' River Phoenix . Along with Joaquin, Rain and Liberty, she has since abandoned all hopes of orchestrating a social revolution. 'Nah, it's not about that now,' she says. 'Now, I just want to act.' When we first meet, in early spring 2003, Summer is in London to apply the finishing touches to her latest project, a low-budget Brit flick called Suzie Gold. She isn't yet pregnant. She is, however, sweet, good-humoured, accommodating, sleepy.

She poses for pictures, spread-eagled and feline, on the tiled hallway floor of a vast, empty mansion.'Whoa, this house!' she keeps saying, delightedly, of the decayed and decadent five-storey almost-palace on the fringes of Regent's Park. Summer Phoenix is gorgeous, in a very wild, untamed and un-Hollywood fashion: high drama eyebrows and translucent tanned skin, and dark, shadow-smudged eyes. Her looks also hint at an indeterminate ethnicity, which makes her thoroughly well suited to her latest on-screen incarnation. Phoenix plays Suzie Gold's eponymous lead, a north London-dwelling Jewish girl in her early twenties, who is struggling to reconcile her heritage with her modern-girl aspirations, to find her own identity without destroying the links with her sometimes claustrophobic but loving family, and other cliches. When Phoenix talks about the film, she makes vague statements, like: 'The film? It's about, for me, it's about a girl who's learning how to respect where she comes from without letting it be who she is. And I think it's a pretty normal sort of coming of age story, almost. Am I proud of it?

I don't know... ah... sure. I worked really hard on it... but it was a labour of love for the people who worked on it, and I'm incredibly proud of them. But I haven't actually seen the whole thing yet.' As this might suggest, Suzie Gold is not a great film. Summer, however, is defiantly good in it. Because she is good - her talent is low-key, subtle, shifting. She's that most hackneyed of good-actor cliches: 'versatile', to the point, often, that she's unrecognisable from one film to the next. She acted as a teenager, but was never a Teen Actress: never fodder for the slasher movie, or the gross-out movie, or the titillating post-Porkies spring break movie. She was too discerning for all that. In the right hands, Summer Phoenix's life story could be marketed as a crash course in how to be extraordinary, eccentric and cool, without even trying. Her parents, John and Arlyne, were progressive and nomadic and vegan; her childhood was a blissful, stimulating romp through the US, and Central and South America: 'We had no money.

All we had was each other. It's all you need.' When Summer wasn't being home-schooled, she was educated in establishments that she remembers fondly: 'It was totally chill. There were only 23 kids for four different grades, and we had different animals - peacocks, lambs, dogs. We didn't start till 10am, and we had a morning meeting where we'd "share stuff". I loved it.' Summer was discovered, as a toddler, along with River, Joaquin, Liberty and Rain. An agent stumbled upon the Phoenix family as they busked for their tofu-based supper on the streets of LA. 'It was a blast,' she remembers. 'My dad and my brother wrote the songs, they were all original. We could do little choreographed dances in banana yellow outfits.' The agent put them in touch with a director, who made a documentary about the family, which must, I suggest, have played out like a hippy-fied, liberal version of The Waltons. 'Of the what?' 'Were they on TV? We didn't have a TV.' Of course you didn't.

The documentary led to other opportunities, and by the age of three, Summer was appearing in adverts and sitcoms she'd never see, on account of the Phoenix family no-TV policy, but that was pretty much her only foray into mainstream acting. Once she hit her teens, she began specialising in the kinds of roles that are officially referred to as 'gritty and complex' in offbeat indie flicks. She played a neo-fascist in The Believer, a heroin addict in MTV's Wasted and an artist/waitress in a diner in Dinner Rush. In 2001, she took to the London stage, co-starring alongside Matt Damon and (conveniently enough) Casey Affleck, in Kenneth Lonergan's acclaimed This Is Our Youth. 'I loved it,' she says. 'The instant gratification of theatre!' But after her three-month stint at the Garrick, she returned to films, pausing only to open Some Odd Rubies, a shop which peddles artfully customised vintage finds to the terminally fashionable, in downtown Manhattan. In her spare time, she flies out to far-flung destinations to play the piano, in her sister Rain's band.

Predictably, Summer Phoenix's multifaceted career is not the result of planning and scheming and long-term, hard-bitten ambition. That kind of thing would surely be frowned upon by Team Phoenix. It is instead the result of haphazard opportunities and hard work and a weird kind of self-belief that never begins to feel like arrogance. She's spoken often and fiercely in the past about how little her family name has helped her establish herself in the industry, how she's been largely hindered by it. And while this is a touch naive, it's nothing she's traded on as rampantly as she could have done. And so, Summer refers to herself, cheerfully, as a C-list actress. 'That's exactly what I am! There's the big lines and the little lines...' And to get the big lines, you have to be a bit more grasping? 'I think you must. Either that, or it's like the turtle that wins the race. And that's what I'd like to see myself as.' Ambition, therefore, doesn't really come into it. 'It's not precisely that I'm not ambitious,' she continues. 'I love what I do, and I love doing it, and I love getting better at it.

I just am not willing to risk... much... to go on to the next level. I don't want to risk my personal sanity or happiness, or my family, or the love of my life. That's a mistake. And I think a lot of people make that mistake, they're always kind of, like, seeking out the next thing that's gonna happen.' She says, however, that there's very little she wouldn't do for a role if she really wanted it. 'I wouldn't eat meat, I wouldn't have sex. And that's probably about it.' But she is vehement that she doesn't want to be hugely famous. 'No. Never. I mean, what need would that fulfil? Ever? In anybody?' It's difficult to know whether Summer Phoenix is referring obliquely to her brother River - to his giddying ascent to premier league fame and his subsequent, very public death - when she makes statements like this. River, the ethereally beautiful, intensely talented, highest profile of the Phoenixes, who died 11 years ago of a drugs overdose on the pavement outside Johnny Depp's LA nightclub, the Viper Room, seems to be the subtext of a lot of the things Summer says.

Yet she'll never talk about him directly. She skirts around the issue. She refers, for example, to her decision to take a break from acting shortly after his death: 'Movies and I just equally avoided each other at certain times in my life, you know?' And she has said, in the past, of her decision to play a heroin addict in Wasted: 'My mother would have disowned me had [my character] died. It's all too close to reality.' But she tenses palpably whenever our conversation veers too close to what her publicist calls 'the whole River thing'. Perhaps as a diversionary tactic, perhaps because she is naturally very open, Summer is remarkably candid about other aspects of her life - most notably, her relationship with Casey Affleck. They first met through Joaquin, who had become close friends with Casey on the set of To Die For, though the precise circumstances of their introduction are open to debate. 'I don't recall that much, actually,' says Summer, 'but he's got the story that I ran into him on the street when I was with my brother.

And my brother was like,' (she adopts a Neanderthal teen male voice) '"Uh, yeah, this is my sister..." and I was awestruck. And then, for, I swear it was eight years, we hung around in the same circles, sometimes, but he was at school, and he was pretty mysterious: "Yeah, I'm in school all the time, I don't have time to come out, I don't smoke, I don't drink, I'm not partying". And he would just make fun of me all the time, like a big brother would.' But eventually, after eight years of veiled flirting, they worked it out. 'My brother was staying at Casey's apartment in New York when Casey was out of town, and I joined him for a few days. Casey called and asked to speak to me. We talked for a time and I said: "You have a beautiful apartment". He said: "The only thing missing is you.

Be there for me when I get back." So I stayed.' The next time Summer Phoenix and I speak, she's in Florida, visiting her parents, avoiding the brutal cold snap enveloping New York, and she is, at this point, 'so chubby and fat and [four months] pregnant, but so maternal. It's amazing how the maternal instinct overwhelms you.' She's also engaged. Affleck proposed at the beginning of this year. 'I've never had a diamond before, and now I've got a diamond surrounded by other diamonds and diamonds in places where, frankly, you don't need diamonds at all, and I would have been happy with a piece of twine. So yes, of course I said yes.' Her acting career is, accordingly, on hold for a little while. The future roles that she hinted at when we first met have been redistributed among her edgy indie flick-frequenting peers. But sure, Summer Phoenix has every intention of acting again, because 'it's my first love,' she says. And also because, Team Phoenix ethics notwithstanding, Summer would quite like an Oscar. 'I mean, officially I hate it and I think it's a popularity contest, it's all those things.

But, oh, if I ever won one, I'd probably get up there and cry and thank God and my family. Of course I would.' · Suzie Gold is released on 5 March. Joaquin Phoenix - Biography - IMDb Joaquin Phoenix Biography Showing all 95 items Jump to: Overview (4) | Mini Bio (1) | Trade Mark (4) | Trivia (44) | Personal Quotes (36) | Salary (6) Overview (4) 5' 8" (1.73 m) Mini Bio (1) Joaquin Phoenix was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to Arlyn (Dunetz) and John Bottom, and is the middle child in a brood of five. His parents, from the continental United States, were then serving as Children of God missionaries. His mother is from a Jewish family in New York, while his father, from California, is of mostly British Isles descent. As a youngster, Joaquin took his cues from older siblings River Phoenix and Rain Phoenix , changing his name to Leaf to match their earthier monikers. When the children were encouraged to develop their creative instincts, he followed their lead into acting.

Younger sisters Liberty Phoenix and Summer Phoenix rounded out the talented troupe. The family moved often, traveling through Central and South America (and adopting the surname "Phoenix" to celebrate their new beginnings) but, by the time Joaquin was 6, they had more or less settled in the Los Angeles area. Arlyn found work as a secretary at NBC, and John turned his talents to landscaping. They eventually found an agent who was willing to represent all five children, and the younger generation dove into TV work. Commercials for meat, milk, and junk food were off-limits (the kids were all raised as strict vegans), but they managed to find plenty of work pushing other, less sinister products. Joaquin's first real acting gig was a guest appearance on River's sitcom, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1982). He worked with his brother again on the after-school special ABC Afterschool Specials: Backwards: The Riddle of Dyslexia (1984), then struck out on his own in other made-for-TV productions.

He made his big-screen debut as the youngest crew member in the interstellar romp SpaceCamp (1986), then won his first starring turn in the Cold War-era drama Russkies (1987). In the late '80s, the Phoenix clan decided to pull up stakes and relocate again--this time to Florida. River's film career had enough momentum to sustain the move, but Joaquin wasn't sure what lay in store for him in the Sunshine State. As it happened, Universal Pictures had just opened a new studio in the area and he was cast almost immediately as an angst-ridden adolescent in Parenthood (1989). His performance was very well-received, but Joaquin decided to withdraw from acting for a while--he was frustrated with the dearth of interesting roles for actors his age, and he wanted to see more of the world. His parents were in the process of separating, so he struck out for Mexico with his father. Joaquin returned to the public eye three years later under tragic circumstances. On October 31, 1993, he was at The Viper Room (an L.A.

nightclub partly-owned by Johnny Depp ) when his brother River collapsed from a drug overdose and later died. Joaquin made the call to 911, which was rebroadcast on radio and TV the world over. Months later, at the insistence of friends and colleagues, Joaquin began reading through scripts again, but he was reluctant to re-enter the acting life until he found just the right part. He finally signed up to work with Gus Van Sant (who had directed River in My Own Private Idaho (1991) and Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993)) to star as Nicole Kidman 's obsessive devotee in To Die For (1995). The performance made Joaquin (who had dropped Leaf and reverted to his birth name) a critics' darling in his own right. His follow-up turn in Inventing the Abbotts (1997) scored more critical kudos and, perhaps more importantly, introduced him to future fiancée Liv Tyler .

(The pair dated for almost three years.) He returned to the big screen later that year with a supporting role in Oliver Stone 's U Turn (1997), then played a locked-up drug scapegoat in Return to Paradise (1998). He and "Paradise" co-star Vince Vaughn re-teamed almost immediately for the small-town murder caper Clay Pigeons (1998), which Joaquin followed with a turn as a porn store clerk in 8MM (1999). The film that confirmed Phoenix as a star was Gladiator (2000). The Roman epic cast him as a selfish, paranoid young emperor opposite Russell Crowe 's swarthy hero. Determined to make his character as real as possible, Phoenix gained weight and cultivated a pasty complexion during the shoot. Later that year, he appeared in two indies, playing a dock worker in The Yards (2000) (which he counts among his favorite experiences--and one of the only films of his that he can sit through) and the priest in charge of the Marquis de Sade's asylum in Quills (2000).

- IMDb Mini Biography By: IMDb Editors Trade Mark (4) Darkened circles under his eyes Scar on upper lip Often plays emotionally and mentally troubled characters Trivia (44) Took his mother to the premiere of Gladiator (2000). Was born Joaquin Rafael, but at the age of four he decided that he wanted a more earthy name, like his elder siblings River and Rain, so while he was raking leaves with his father he decided on Leaf. In the early '90s he took back his birth name. Brother of River Phoenix , Summer Phoenix , Rain Phoenix and Liberty Phoenix His first name is pronounced "Wha-keen". Once refused to wear shoes during a photo shoot for Prada because they were made out of leather. He is a strict vegan. He refuses to wear any costumes made out of animal skin. For the movie Gladiator (2000), Quills (2000) and Walk the Line (2005), among others, he requested that his "leather" costumes be made from synthetic materials. Was born on same day, year and city as Dayanara Torres .

Resides in New York City in the same apartment building as best friend Casey Affleck and sister Summer Phoenix and director Gus Van Sant . Took his mother to the Academy Awards. [2001] Joaquin's father was born in California. On his father's side, Joaquin has English, and distant German and French, ancestry. Joaquin's mother was born to an Ashkenazi Jewish family in New York (they were immigrants from Russia and Hungary). Is a spokesperson for PETA. Became an uncle again after sister, Summer Phoenix , gave birth to Indiana August Affleck (2004). Uncle of Liberty Phoenix 's children Rio Everest, Indigo Orion and Scarlette Jasmine, and Summer Phoenix 's son Indiana August. Contrary to popular belief, the scar on his lip is not the result of a repaired cleft lip or palate. It is simply a birth mark. Phoenix has stated in interviews that, while pregnant with him, his mother felt a sharp pain one day, and he was born with a mark on his lip. Spoke Spanish as a small child but forgot most of it as he got older. Reportedly never reads his own press or reviews.

Checked himself into rehab to be treated for alcoholism in early April 2005. Phoenix is half a foot shorter than the real Johnny Cash was, although he plays him in Walk the Line (2005). Did his own vocals on the Walk the Line (2005) soundtrack. 26 January 2006 - Escaped injury after his car overturned. The crash reportedly was caused by brake failure. Phoenix was in car accident January 2006 on a winding canyon road that flipped his car over. Shaken and confused, Phoenix heard a tapping on his window and a voice say, "Just relax". Unable to see the man, Phoenix replied, "I'm fine. I am relaxed". Then managed to see that the man was famed, eccentric German auteur Werner Herzog , and Herzog replied, 'No, you're not'. After helping Phoenix out of the wreckage, Herzog phoned in an ambulance and vanished. He and his brother have both appeared in film series that involved Harrison Ford . River Phoenix played the young Indiana Jones in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), and Ford's son in The Mosquito Coast (1986).

Joaquin is among those being considered to play John Clarke in the Jack Ryan spin-off Without Remorse , a character that Willem Dafoe played opposite Ford in Clear and Present Danger (1994). Often brings his mother or any of his three sisters as his date to movie premieres or award shows. He and River Phoenix are the first brothers to be nominated for acting Academy Awards. Favorite authors include Tennessee Williams , Rainer Maria Rilke and Hubert Selby Jr. . Rides a Ducati motorcycle and a yellow '72 Le Mans. Joaquin has been nominated for 3 categories in the Music Video Production Association Awards (2006), Directorial Debut, Direction of a New Artist, and Adult Contemporary. Invited to join AMPAS in 2006. In his diner scene with Sean Penn in U Turn (1997) the song "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash starts playing. Years later, Joaquin played Cash in Walk the Line (2005). Owns two cats. Close friends with Matt Damon and Vince Vaughn . Friend of Keanu Reeves . Was friends with Heath Ledger . Kate Winslet calls him one of the best actors of his generation.

Announced his retirement from acting in October 2008 and claimed he wanted to pursue a career as a rapper. This announcement was followed by several bizarre appearances and musical performances by Phoenix, which made the shocked public wonder whether it was all just an act or if his behavior was for real. His retirement from acting and his "career" as a rapper turned out to be a hoax, which was part of his movie I'm Still Here (2010). Donated $2,000 in 2003 to Dennis Kucinich's (DSA) campaign for president - along with such other famous contributors as Willie Nelson , Danny Glover , and Edward Asner . The longest he has gone without an Oscar nomination is 7 years, between Walk the Line (2005) and The Master (2012). Joaquin and his brother River both played the son of actor Richard Harris. Joaquin in Gladiator, and River in Silent Tongue. Phoenix's looks provided the inspiration for the design of the character Bill the Cat in The Freak Next Door (2012), most noticeably the darkened circles under his eyes. Began filming We Own the Night (2007) in New York.

[March 2006] Was in Brazil/Amazon area working with the Yawanawa Tribe. [September 2006] Began treatment for alcoholism. [April 2005] August 11, 2005 - directed the video for "Tired of Being Sorry" by the band Ringside [August 2005] Finished filming Reservation Road (2007). [November 2006] Two days after his 19th birthday, he was in the company of his brother River Phoenix , his sister Rain Phoenix and River's girlfriend Samantha Mathis at The Viper Room in Hollywood, California when River Phoenix suffered an overdose of heroin and cocaine in the early hours of October 31st 1993. Phoenix called 911 from a call box located across the street from the club (co-owned by Johnny Depp who was performing on stage with his band at the time). A distraught Phoenix informed the 911 operator that his brother was "laying on the cement" had "taken a Valium" and was "having seizures", adding "Please, [get here] because he's dying".

River Phoenix was pronounced dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre at 1.51am, he was 23. Phoenix immediately returned to his home in Florida with his sister and mother (who had flown out to collect him). The incident was a high-profile celebrity death, with Phoenix's recorded 911 call released to the media and played repeatedly on news reports covering the story over the following weeks. He has worked with 3 directors who have won a Best Director Oscar: Ron Howard , Oliver Stone , and Woody Allen . Personal Quotes (36) I had a Catholic girlfriend but she wouldn't, uh, share loving. After River's death, I felt like I was in an altered state. It took me over a year to get my life back. I don't have the slightest desire to speak about my dead brother. It gets on my nerves to always be compared with him. My brother was a magnificent person and an outstanding actor. River and I would talk about being old, being in our 50s together, how it'd probably take us that long to get to work together. There was something gorgeous about us being old together. River will be missed -period.

I mean now, more than ever I wish I could talk to him. - on living without older brother River. My significant other right now is myself, which is what happens when you suffer from multiple personality disorder and self-obsession. (On relationship with Liv Tyler ) "What can I say ? We hit it off immediately. She's a darling. I've said it over and over again. She's just very real, right there, never like a movie star. She's so genuine, and she doesn't take herself too seriously. It shows in the work she does that her honesty stands out most." (On relationship with Liv Tyler ) "I'm a great believer in people coming into your life, and you into theirs, for a reason. And i know that when Liv and I met, it was for a reason - I really needed her and she really needed me. And at a certain point, I think we stopped evolving with each other, stopped progressing, and made a very mature decision to move on, even though there was still a great love there. There's no one gossipy thing that I can share. I'm thankful that we had the time we had." (On relationship with Liv Tyler ) "I was in awe.

Every once in a while you find an actor that, with one word, can sum up eight different emotions. She absolutely nailed that." I'm not the indie kid, and I'm also not the John Grisham novel hero, but I am all of those things. I do whatever excites me at the time. I'll be in some huge $80 million buddy cop movie, I don't care, and I'll also do some wild independent movie. I refuse to have an agenda. I don't know why I always get to play these guys who have few redeeming features. But don't knock it. Villains are much more fun. As I'm reading a script, I start to see the character. I always seem to do something to my hair. A lot of stuff I do for a part, people don't even notice, but I notice, and it makes the character whole for me. The reason I keep making movies is I hate the last thing I did. I'm trying to rectify my wrongs. I go into movies thinking, we're performing, but with interviews, we're pretending to be completely real. I just can't get my head around it.

And the things we say in this hour could permanently shape our personas. I mean, tell me that's not a little odd! And because I think that's odd, people think I'm odd. And that's strange. Know what I'm saying? I enjoy humour more than anything, I don't really sit around banging my head and crying all the time. I changed my name because no one in the States could pronounce 'Joaquin' and I used to get really embarrassed about it as a kid. All the other kids in my family had gorgeous names and I got 'Joaquin', you know what I mean? So I said 'This is not good. Even I can't say it'. It's been a year since last time I tried to give up smoking. I went to a hypnotist; we sat down and started talking. A couple of hours later, I woke up; the hypnotist wasn't in the room, but his wife was. I was like 'Oh my goodness, I fell asleep and didn't get to talk to the doctor.' And she said 'Don't worry, you talked...' I freaked out, left their place, immediately bought a pack of cigarettes and smoked, terrified of what I'd said.

That kind of fame; I couldn't have it in my life. I love that we can sit on the lawn in Central Park and I'm just one of the millions. I don't want to lose that. I'm trying to figure out the perfect strategy. And it's tough. I just want to be right in the middle. I had a really wonderful upbringing. We were a tight family. It was wonderful to grow up with so many siblings. We were all just a year or two apart, and we were always so supportive of each other. I learned everything from my older brother and sister and taught it to my younger sisters. I never think that I'm good at anything I do. I can always do it better, I know my weakness. I've never been perfect. [on maintaining a lower profile than some of his other Hollywood peers] The less someone knows about me, the better, because my intention is to play a variety of characters. (On falling into acting): "I suck at painting and writing; I tried both. For me, it's acting because I grew up with it. When we moved to California, we all did commercials and TV shows.

Riv was the first to get a TV show and me and my sister Liberty guest-starred on another show. It was kind of accidental." (On his childhood and his live on the land with his family): "I remember us being poor, but I never felt embarrassed, or like I was missing anything. I don't remember the hardship of trying to make it, just how my parents always managed to get through." If you can come in, say your lines brilliantly, and be thinking 'What's for lunch?' the whole time you're doing it and it works for the audience, who cares? Making movies is a constant manipulation. You manipulate the environment. You make it rain when you want it to. You manipulate actors. And as an actor, you try and manipulate your feelings to match what you think you'd be going through in a situation where your character is going through something. I don't know Shakespeare! I'm not a serious actor. Directors always make references, and I go: "Ah, I'll check it out," and I never, ever do. I'm incredibly lazy. I'm going to sound a little weird here, but I like to spend a lot of time on my own in the woods.

I don't exactly sneak off in the middle of the night, but I like to be in a place where no one can reach me by phone or e-mail. Acting. I'm one of those actors who likes to stay in character between takes. I drive other actors crazy but, to me, the most important thing when I'm making a film is that the character takes precedence. I become obsessed with whoever I'm playing. I want to explore the character as completely as I can. The moment an actor becomes satisfied with themselves, their work suffers. I think that we should always challenge ourselves in work. - On acting being his biggest challenge. I live a really boring life. I'm much more clichéd, pathetic and pretentious than you would probably give me credit for. I don't want to do much of anything when I'm not working. It's important that any woman I know shouldn't need to be stimulated outside the house, because I can't provide that. (2007) It's a bad idea for actors to grow accustomed to seeing themselves on camera, because inevitably you start doing things and become too self-conscious. The only way to prevent it is by not being aware of yourself in that way or at least trying not to be.

First of all, I really think that the greatest fear for actors, is reaching the point in which they go, 'God, I'm good at this', because I think the work will really suffer. It's not a conscious effort, it's just I always hope I can do justice to the films and characters. I feel that I've been choosy in my roles as much as I can be, and I only work on films that I REALLY want to make. [2007, on being a vegetarian] I don't try to impose my views on anyone else, and I can simply say I feel it's right for me. Of course, I've had slips. When I was about 12 I stayed with a friend in San Diego. They got pizza, and I was like, "I'm having some motherfucking pizza. I ate two slices and vomited for two days. I'm strange in that I crave salad and vegetables. I've never really had a sweet tooth, and I don't particularly like foods that are too rich. I'm a parent's dream. [2007, on if he believes in life after death] Fuck no. There's just nothing. We're gone.

If I do have a soul, I don't think it's interpreting life, feelings or experience. My brain is what's making sense of experience and feelings for me. So when that fucker's cut off, how can I possibly understand or feel anything? [2007] Early on, there wasn't much strategy in choosing roles. I didn't get offered 400 movies; I got offered four, and I did those movies. Let's be honest: If I were six-foot-two, blond and incredibly muscular, they would have been banging down my door. Any actor who doesn't admit that is wrong. But once you've established yourself, you try to break out to the other place...The irony is that I am suddenly being offered all those things usually offered to the six-foot-two blond guy with the big chest. And I'm going, "Are you motherfuckers crazy?

I'm finally fucking starting to get into some real work, and now you want me to make movies where I run around with a fucking gun, chasing dudes?" I can't understand actors who, after busting their asses for years, get nominated for an Oscar at the age of 45 and win it, and the next 10 movies they make are fucking crap. Once I became a total buffoon, it was so liberating. Part of why I was frustrated with acting was because I took it so seriously. I want it to be so good that I get in my own way. It's like love: when you fall in love you're not yourself anymore. You lose control of being natural and showing all the beautiful parts of yourself, and all somebody recognizes is total desperation. [on Paul Thomas Anderson , director of The Master (2012)] He called me "Bubbles"on the set. Bubbles was Michael Jackson 's pet monkey, and I was Paul's pet monkey. I didn't mind I at all. I love having a master. [on being attracted to acting] On the first job I ever did, there was a fight scene.

I was eight, and though I knew it wasn't real and they were actors, I was emotionally affected by it. I felt the adrenaline race through my body. There are kids who get on a BMX bike when they're eight and they go, 'Whoa, this is incredible' and grow up to do extreme sports. It's the same for me with acting. Salary (6) RAIN Biography - Bi (비) - Jung Ji-Hoon (정지훈) - Name Rain's real name is Jung Ji-Hoon (pronounced Jung like young and - hoon like moon) other notation Jeong Ji-Hun (the correct romanization from his Korean characters), which he uses when he performs as an actor. His surname is Jung and his given name is Ji-Hoon. Before Rain made his debut as singer some people said, that he has a certain sadness charisma when he dance. Therefore Rain assume the chinese word/audible "bēi"/雨 (translated "sadness") as his stage name. The Korean say "Bi or Pi" (translated: "Rain"), an simimlar pronunciation for the Chinese"bēi".

Because Rain associated sadness with rain, so he assume the english word "RAIN" for his international stage name. 雨 is the Chinese character for the word "bēi" and you can find it in Rain's signatur (in the word Jung Ji-Hoon, it is a part of the second "J"). ==> click here to see All his "stage names" in the different languages means always the word "rain". In the West, he is known by the English word Rain. In Korea he is known as 비, romanized as Bi and pronounced as the letter B in English. In Japan, he is known as ピ, pronounced Pi. In some parts of Chinese word, he is sometimes referred to as Yu or 雨 pronounced bēi. He uses these stage names when he performs as a singer and dancer. Usually he want this name solely use as singer and dancer, but in the west the most known he as Rain and hence he is also in (Hollywood) movies (as Actor) named as Rain. Biography Rain was born on the 25th of June 1982 in Seoul (South Korea) and has a younger sister.

He became interested in R&B and Hiphop dancing when he was in 6th grade. As a teenager, he was a member of a boy band called Fan Club. The group's first hit single, 꿈을 찾아서 (translation: "In Search of a Dream"), subsequently, was a remake of the popular 1997 hit, Tubthumping, sung by English band, Chumbawamba. The two songs were the same in composition. Only the lyrics were changed in content and language. The group was short-lived, and soon disbanded. At that time Rain was having the hardest time of his life. His mother was sick, he had no money, he had a little sister to take care of and had to go to school. Yet he still pressed forward, always dancing and dreaming of becoming a singer. Rain then began auditioning for various talent agencies.

In a CNN interview, however, he recalled being repeatedly rejected because of his looks: "In fact, I was told after one audition that my singing and dancing was great but I didn't make it because I didn't have double eyelids." Music, film and businessman career Park Jin-Young (Korean producer/singer who worked with American singers Will Smith, Mase, Lil' Kim, 3LW, Tyrese) took Rain under his wings after he auditioned Korean talent agency JYP Entertainment. During the early years of training in dancing and singing, Rain was a backup dancer for a famous Korean singer named Park Ji-Yoon and Park Jin-Young himself. During those training, Rain was not often at home and told to his parents them he was gonna study in the library while in fact he went to the dance studio. He struggled financially and at times had to go without meals. Nevertheless, he continued to focus on his dance and singing even though he was anxiously waiting for his debut. Finally, in 2002 he debuted with the album "Bad Guy" where he was introduced to the media through his stage or commercial name, Rain. In the album, a similarly-named single "Bad Guy" was a big hit.

After his first album, he took time off from his career as a singer to star in the drama series, "Sang Doo! Let's Go To School". Following the success of his debut as singer and actor, Rain released his second album "How to Avoid The Sun", and had another hit with the title song "Ways to Avoid the Sun". In 2004, he starred in another successful drama called "Full House", which was one of the highest-rated Korean dramas of all time with ratings of over 30% for every episode. It was broadcasted in many other countries including the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, China, Japan, Taiwan and the U.S. Through Full House, Rain was recognized across Asia. His performance in the drama also won him the Best Actor Award at the KBS Acting Awards. His 3rd album "It's Raining" has been released 2004 in Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and has top the foreign music charts in those countries; the album has sold more than 1 million in Asia.

In the years 2004 and 2005 he won many awards with his music (see also " Awards "). Rain then went on his first Asia-Tour "RAINY DAY" in January 2005, starting in Seoul and followed by Tokyo and Hong Kong; due to his fame and his extravagant performances, tickets sold out quickly. His first solo concert in Japan last summer, entitled Rainy Day Japan held at the Tokyo International Forum, was so popular that all the tickets were sold out 30 seconds after going on sale. The tickets for another of his concerts in Taiwan were sold out the moment they became available also. His performances in Hong Kong also sold out in a couple of hours. Rain continues to set records in Asia. Now planning to go beyond Japan and Hong Kong, Rain will make a foray into China by giving a concert in Beijing. Rain's fourth album, "Rain's World" was released in Korea on October 14, 2006. The first single was "I'm Coming", followed by the second single "In My Bed", and finally "Inside of You".

Rain's first world tour "RAIN's Coming" began on December 13, 2006 at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul, and was scheduled to continue through 2007 to the following countries: Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, China, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, United States and Canada. Rain has his film debut with "I'm A Cyborg, But That's OK" in 2006. It was broadcasted in many other countries worldwide and was awarded with some awards. This includes winning an Alfred Bauer Award at the 57th Berlin International Film Festival (Germany) 2007 and being selected as the opening film for the Hong Kong International Film Festival. Also, at the 43rd Baeksang Award in Korea in 2007, Rain and Su-Jeong were nominated for New Best Actor and Best Actress. Rain won the award while Su-jeong lost to The Fox Family's Park Si-Yeon. The role as Taejo Togokhan (a rival racer) in the movie "Speed Racer" is Rain's Hollywood debut and will be released in May 2008.

In May-June 2008, Rain was in Berlin (Germany) filming "Ninja Assassin". He will play an Ninja called Raizo. It will be Rain's first lead role in an Hollywood movie. The cinema release is scheduled for March or October 2009. In October 2008 Rain start his comeback with appearances in many TV and Radio Shows. On 15th October 2008 has been released his 5th Album "레이니즘 / Rainism". It is a Asia Special Album and will be available in different Countries. In these albums are the songs "Rainism" and "Love Story" in the respective national language (it is available in Korean, Chinese, Japanese and English). Rainism is Rain's first album under his own agency company "J. Tune Entertainment" (since 2007) where he is the owner. Rain founded a further company called "J. Tune Creative" in 2008. This Company will start in December 2008 a clothing line with the brand name "Six to Five".

Rain will hold the SIX TO FIVE Launching SHOW 09 & Concert on 23th December 2008 to present his new fashion line. by, Phoenix Vanessa and Lynn Redgrave - Sister Act - Pictures - CBS News Is it just us or are there really more clans in which show business has become the family business? There have always been acting or singing families, of course, but they just seem to be more numerous in recent years. Continue clicking to see some of the sisters, both old and young, who share the stagelights. Credit: AP The Olsen Twins The most famous of all may be the Olsen twins, 20, who have been acting together since they were babies. Before they were a year old, they shared the role of Michelle Tanner in the popular TV series "Full House," taking turns on camera to comply with child labor laws. Since then, they have not only appeared together in a number of movies and commercials, but have launched their own lines of clothing and cosmetics.

Credit: AP/Teen Vogue, Marion Curtis Ashlee and Jessica Simpson Older sis Jessica, left, (born in 1980) gained fame in the 1990s as a pop singer and branched out into acting after she and then-hubby Nick Lachey had their own MTV reality TV series, "The Newlyweds." Younger sis Ashlee (born in 1984) released her first pop album in 1984, accopanied by a reality TV series. She has since done more recordings and concert tours. Credit: AP Ali and Lindsay Lohan Daughter of two actors, singer and actress Lindsay Lohan, right, started her career as a child model and began acting in soap operas. She later added music to her list of accomplishments. Sister Ali (Aliana) also began modeling as a child and made cameo appearances in several of her older sister's movies before landing an acting job of her own. She released a Christmas album in 2006.

Credit: GETTY IMAGES/Evan Agostini Britney and Jamie Lynn Spears Grammy-winning pop singer Britney Spears, right, got her start in Disney's "The New Mickey Mouse Club." Spears, who has sold millions of albums worldwide has parlayed her singing success into forays into movies, reality TV and endorsements. Younger sis, Jamie Lynn, appeared in her sister's movies and music videos until she got an acting gig of her own on Nickelodeon. Credit: AP Vanessa and Lynn Redgrave Vanessa, left, and Lynn Redgrave come from a British acting dynasty. Vanessa, whose screen credits include "Julia," "Howards End" and "Running With Scissors," has an Oscar and a Tony. Lynn, who starred on TV in "House Calls" and was a Weight Watchers spokesperson, has been nominated for three Tonys and an Oscar. Her most recent movie is "The White Countess" with Vanessa's daughter, Natasha Richardson. Credit: GETTY IMAGES/Brad Barket Natasha and Joely Richardson Acting is in the genes of Natasha, left, and Joely Richardson, right, seen here with their famous mother, actress Vanessa Redgrave.

Natasha, the older, has appeared in "Nell," "The Parent Trap," "Asylum" and "Chelsea Walls" among other films. Joely is known to American audiences as Julia McNamara in TV's "Nip/Tuck." She also stars with Timothy Hutton in "The Last Mimzy." Credit: GETTY IMAGES Penelope and Monica Cruz Golden Globe and Oscar-nominated actress Penelope Cruz, right, began her career on TV in her native Spain. She appeared in many Spanish movies, before making her debut in Hollywood in 2000s "All The Pretty Horses." Her younger sister, Monica, started her career as a dancer but now has an acting role in a Spanish TV show. Credit: AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes Roseanna and Patricia Arquette Older sister Roseanna Arquette, left, started out as an actress but has moved into film direction in recent years.

She directed "Searching for Debra Winger" and has appeared in dozens of TV shows and movies including "Pulp Fiction." Patricia, who has appeared in many movies including "Ed Wood" and "Fast Food Nation," is best known for playing Allison DuBois on TV's "Medium," a role for which she won an Emmy. Credit: AP Haylie and Hilary Duff "Seventh Heaven" actress Haylie Duff, right, won acclaim for her breakout performance in "Napoleon Dynamite." She wrote several songs for her sister's albums and is working on a debut album due out next year. Younger sis Hilary Duff is TV's "Lizzie McGuire." She also has appeared in movies, including "Material Girls" and "Cheaper By The Dozen." A pop singer, she has three platinum albums to her credit. Credit: GETTY IMAGES/Chad Buchanan Paris and Nicky Hilton Heir to the Hilton Hotel fortune, older sis Paris, left, was a celebutante until she landed a plum role on TV's "The Simple Life." She has since appeared in several movies and released her first album last summmer.

Nicky (Nicholai) has appeared in several movies with her sister but is best known as a fashion model and designer. Credit: GETTY IMAGES/Bryan Bedder Liza Minnelli and Lorna Luft Half sisters Liza Minnelli, right, and Lorna Luft are the daughters of legendary singer Judy Garland. Liza, with her signature song "New York, New York," has become something of a legend herself, having won an Oscar, an Emmy, a Tony and a special Grammy. Lorna, who has acted on stage, is known primarily as a singer and currently tours with a program of her mother's most famous songs.

Credit: GETTY Jennifer and Meg Tilly Jennifer, right, a semi-regular on the TV show "Family Guy," gained fame as a singing waitress in "The Fabulous Baker Boys" and was nominated for an Oscar for "Bullets Over Broadway." Her younger sister Meg, a classically trained dancer, appeared in "The Big Chill" and "Psycho II." She won a Golden Globe and was nominated for an Oscar for her role in "Agnes of God." Credit: CBS Beyonce and Solange Knowles Grammy-winning singer Beyonce Knowles, left, got her start as a member of the trio Destiny's Child, before going solo in 2003. She made her film debut in 2006's "Dreamgirls." Solange got her start as a dancer for her older sister's group Destiny's Child. She has made several TV appearances and is working on her debut album. Credit: AP LaToya and Janet Jackson A middle child in the singing Jackson clan, LaToya, left, is an actress, singer and author. She struggled in a music career in the 1980s and '90s and has recently released a new album.

She was one of the stars of the short-lived reality TV show "Armed And Famous." The youngest child, Janet is a Grammy-winning singer and Oscar-nominated actress. She also holds the record for most Soul Train music awards. Credit: GETTY IMAGES Sienna and Savannah Miller British actress Sienna Miller, left, began as a fashion model and acted in TV shows in England before launching a movie career that includes roles in "Casanova," "Alfie," "Layer Cake" and "Factory Girl." Younger sister Savannah also began as a model and is now making a name for herself as a fashion designer in the U.K. Credit: GETTY IMAGES/Dave Hogan Rain and Summer Phoenix Singer and actress Rain Phoenix, left, who once toured with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, is now the frontman for the band papercranes. She has appeared in several movies including "Even Cowgirls Get The Blues." Her younger sister Summer is also a TV and movie actress.

She has appeared on stage with her husband, Casey Affleck, and Matt Damon and has had roles in "ER," "Growing Pains" and "Murder, She Wrote." Credit: CBS Dakota and Elle Fanning Dakota Fanning, left, is one of Hollywood's most famous child stars, having appeared in such movies as "I am Sam," "Sweet Home Alabama," "War of the Worlds," "Dreamer" and "Charlotte's Web." Her younger sister Elle appeared in several of her movie's as a younger version of Dakota's character but soon Elle was getting parts of her own. Her movie credits include "The Door in the Floor," "Deja Vu" and "Babel." Credit: GETTY IMAGES/Frazer Harrison Venus and Serena Williams Venus Williams, right, and younger sister Serena took the tennis world by storm beginning in the late 1990s. The sisters rose to the top of the rankings in both women's singles and women's doubles competitions. Despite the inevitable on-court rivalry, the sisters remain close friends.

Serena has embarked on an acting career, most notably appearing in episodes of "ER" and "Law & Order." Credit: GETTY IMAGES/Mark Mainz Eva and Zsa Zsa Gabor No compendium of famous sisters would be complete without the Hungarian-American Gabors. The middle of three girls, Zsa Zsa, right, studied music in Vienna and appeared in dozens of movies and TV shows. Younger sister Eva, who died in 1995, is best known for her role on TV's "Green Acres." She also appeared in dozens of movies and voiced characters in Disney animated films. Credit: CBS Rain Phoenix's unusual childhood | Life and style | The Guardian Family Rain Phoenix's unusual childhood Rain Phoenix was raised by hippies and, like her brothers River and Joaquin, has made a career in film and music. She talks about their unusual childhood Musician and actor Rain Phoenix. Photograph: Dan Tuffs for the Guardian Friday 8 July 2011 19.06 EDT First published on Friday 8 July 2011 19.06 EDT Share on Messenger Close Not many people can say they were out busking on the streets at the age of three.

Or that they got their first agent at the age of five, and then played the Hollywood Bowl with Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young by the time they were six. But then not many people can say they come from a family like Rain Phoenix's. As the eldest daughter of the Phoenix clan, 38-year old Rain comes sandwiched between two of Hollywood's most recognisable young stars. River Phoenix – teen icon and Hollywood heartthrob who died of a drug overdose when he was just 23 – was two years her elder, while the twice Oscar-nominated actor Joaquin, is two years younger. There are also two sisters as well – Summer and Liberty. With names such as these it's no surprise to hear that the Phoenix parents were both bone fide, flowers-in-their-hair hippies. Rain's middle name is Joan of Arc. "I feel honoured they chose to give it me," she says. "At times it's been a source of solace, just knowing that's my name." Their mother, Arlyn, was born in the Bronx to Jewish parents who had emigrated from Russia.

In the late 60s she got wind of the counter-culture movement that was spreading across America, and set off on a voyage of discovery. While she was hitchhiking in northern California, a young songwriter called John Bottom picked her up. The two were married within the year. The couple were archetypal flower children. In 1973, just after River and Rain were born, they joined a religious sect called the Children of God for which they worked as missionaries, supporting themselves by fruit picking and other odd jobs. It was a laid back, free-spirited, hippy existence. Each of their children was born in a different American state (Rain in Texas) and much of their early life was spent on the road. "Travelling was a big part of my childhood and one that I value very much," says Rain. "In some respects I can't help but be a bit of a gypsy as an adult. I get fidgety if I'm in one place for longer than three months." Then in 1979, after the birth of their fifth child, things took a slightly different course.

Arlyn and John ditched ordinary old Bottom as a surname and picked Phoenix – with its connotations of a magical bird rising up out of the ashes. They moved to LA where Arlyn got a job as a secretary with a casting agent at NBC, right in the heart of the slippery Hollywood talent pool, and they embarked on a course that would set about turning their children into stars. "In her job my mum learned a lot about the good and bad aspects of Hollywood," says Rain. "There are so many beautiful things about the industry as well as really hideous things; it was almost like having an insider." All five siblings were signed up to an agent, schooling became a jumble of tutoring on film sets, home teaching and stints in traditional classrooms, and their careers began. Nothing was off limits apart from commercials for meat, milk and junk food (they were vegans). "My parents really were very dedicated to us, and in some ways they gave up many of the things they had had in their 20s to help us find what it was we dreamed of. It was an incredibly selfless act," says Rain. "There was never any competitiveness between us.

We realised there was a shared aspect of success – that at different times each individual was poised to shine, and supporting that was the most important thing. That is really how we felt; it isn't just a statement, it was how we behaved." The Phoenix children were obviously quite a talented and precocious force. Rain tells me the story of when they took the decision to turn vegan – how they were on a ship to Florida when they saw a group of fishermen thrashing fish against some nails sticking out of the side of the boat. That very night when they got home, River, Rain and Joaquin declared to their parents that the entire family was to turn vegan. Rain was about five. "At the time it seemed so obvious and normal, it was just how we felt," she says, "but I guess looking back you could say it was a bit strange and very mature." It was River who hit the big time first – he received an Oscar nomination at the age of 18 for his role in Running on Empty about a family on the run from the FBI. And after years of working in TV, 15-year old Rain made her film debut, Maid to Order. "It was terrible timing," she says.

"I was in the absolute throws of puberty. My hair looked like I had an Afro and I'd just gotten my period. lt was probably the one time you don't want to be permanently captured on celluloid for the rest of your life." Which sounds decidedly embarrassing, and for all their work pulling strings behind the scenes, Arlyn and John have often been called pushy and criticised for foisting such grand ambitions on their children at such young ages. "We were never pushed to do anything," says Rain shortly. "People will always say things, true or not. All I had was a lot of positive reinforcement. The thing is with my parents, they very much embraced having children. As soon as they had us they switched their focus entirely to providing us with the best possible home life, spiritual support and love." Evidence suggests she's right. Just after Rain's debut movie and just as River was becoming a global teen superstar, Arlyn and John, worried what the excesses of 1980s Tinseltown might do to their children, upped and left. "My parents were like, you know what, maybe you shouldn't go to high school in Hollywood," says Rain.

"So we moved to Florida, and that was primarily to avoid exposing us to the teen years in Hollywood." After years of moving around, today Rain has somehow found her way back to LA. Home for her now is a little 1920s cottage in Laurel Canyon, a leafy neighbourhood in the Hollywood Hills. In the 60s it was a big hippy hangout whose residents included Jim Morrison and Neil Young, so clearly she's staying true to her roots. She lives just round the corner from her brother Joaquin to whom she is incredibly close and they see each other as often as they can. "I trust his opinion more than anyone else's," she says. Rain is the spitting image of Joaquin. With her long dark hair and exotic features, you can see the Russian ancestry clearly in both of them. River was completely different to all his siblings – blonder, cute and pixyish. Both Joaquin and Rain were there the night their brother died outside the Hollywood nightclub the Viper Room in 1993. River had taken a speedball – a mix of heroin and cocaine – and had been vomiting and passing out inside the club before being taken into the street outside.

It was Joaquin who made the heart-wrenching 911 call and it was Rain who jumped on top of her brother as he lay convulsing on the pavement, in an attempt to try to get him to stop. "Of course there is a sadness with not seeing him in the physical world but everything I do, he is a part of," says Rain. "Through my music I am for ever able to stay connected to my brother. We are always infinitely collaborating in spirit." Rain's first love had always been music and it was a young River who had encouraged her and taught her. "River was a bit of a guitar prodigy," she says. "He would play and I would just start singing. It was clear to my parents that I had the gift of voice and they encouraged me to pursue it. Me and my brother spent a lot of time singing round the fire at home after dinner, making little four-track demos in our room, or when we would be round at people's houses, we'd just break out the guitar and start singing. There was definitely a connection musically." She used to busk with River as a three-year-old to raise money for their family.

And it was with River who she sang Teach the Children Well at the Hollywood Bowl in front of an audience of thousands. "Busking was a great way to rehearse," she says. "At that age we were clearly not going to be booked for shows in clubs, so for us it was the closest we got to finding an audience and getting feedback." At first she was so shy she used to sing with her eyes closed, but then she discovered how to move around and communicate with her audience. "Having a lot of people watch made me nervous," she says, "but when I was about eight I managed to break out of that shyness and engage with my audience. But I was always connected as a performer to my brother, and that felt safe. He was the first person to support and flower my creativity as a musician." As teenagers, Rain and River formed a band called Aleka's Attic, which was signed to Island. They recorded an album, which was just about finished when River died. Since then Rain has spent years mixing it, finishing it off and weeding through half-completed tracks.

"I wanted to put the record out and give the money to charities my brother felt strongly about, but I came up against some of the musicians who also played on it, wanting a lot of money for it, so I shelved it. It was meant to be something that was really beautiful, not about money. I was very happy with the way I finished it, and I love the music. I hope that one day I can release it." Somehow, despite what happened to her brother, Rain remains positive. Her upbringing seems to have equipped her with a way of dealing with anything the ugly side of Hollywood can throw at her. "Being in the public eye there will always be negatives," she says. "Those dark aspects will always be there and so too those things that will try and tear you down, but I have made the choice not to engage with them. I'm not going to let them affect me or destroy me. It's about your sense of self; if you know your true passion and what you're going after, it can't touch you." She clearly draws a great strength from her family too.

Her sister Summer is married to the actor Casey Affleck and runs a vintage store in New York called Some Odd Rubies and designs all the clothes for Rain's stage shows. Liberty, meanwhile, has a shop called IndigoGreen, which sells eco-friendly homewares, and both sisters have regularly sung and played with Rain too. About 15 years ago, John and Arlyn split up. He now lives in Florida where he works as an organic farmer, and she is remarried and remains true to her original beatnik roots, working as a campaigner for a peace alliance. "My mum will always come and see my shows if she can," says Rain, "and if she can't she'll text or email just before wishing me a great show and telling me how much she loves me. She still gives tonnes of positive reinforcement and love. It's really remarkable what that does for a child and it's really remarkable what that does for me as an adult." She has just made a new album with her current band, papercranes, entitled Let's Make Babies in the Woods . "Someone once said that to me in a really drunken state, a kid, a very sweet guy. I thought it was absolutely adorable.

I was like, 'No to that, but do you mind if I use that line, it's so fertile and evocative.'" The album came out a lot darker than she ever intended. "I was surprised by some of the themes," she says. "I was pretty fresh out of a divorce so there's a lot of stuff about moving on and loss and new direction. It's a very cathartic record for me. I felt lighter in my life after making the record. I felt within the darkness there was great hope." She had been with her musician husband Michael Tubbs for 13 years before the marriage broke down a few years ago. "We're very close friends now," she says. "Ultimately the divorce ended wonderfully as far as the fact that you certainly hope that you can remain friends because you spent half your life with them." She's got a new boyfriend now and they regularly meet up with her ex-husband and his girlfriend. "People think that's a bit strange, but I'm very happy about it." I ask her if she wants to have children. She says the urge right now just isn't quite strong enough.

"I sometimes feel like I want children but because it's only sometimes I haven't done it yet." But if she ever does she knows just what she would do. She would do to her child just exactly what her parents did to her.

Question: What is the surname of sisters Rain and Summer, who come from a Hollywood acting family?
Answer: Phoenix