Wesley Snipes was born in Orlando, Florida on July 31, 1962. His mother Marian divorced his father during Wesley's childhood. Snipes grew up in the Bronx and attended Manhattan's High School for the Performing Arts and later studied theater at the State University of New York-Purchase. Snipes was married when he was 22 and the marriage lasted five years and produced a son, Jelanie, who is eight.
In 1985, while trying out for various auditions in New York and in between installing public telephones, Snipes auditioned for a role in the Warner Brothers Pictures comedy Wildcats (1986), starring Goldie Hawn. He landed a part and later caught the eye of director Spike Lee after a part in the Martin Scorsese directed video for Michael Jackson's "Bad". Lee cast him in his 1990 Mo' Better Blues and later on in Jungle Fever (1991). One of his most powerful performances came with New Jack City (1991), playing the ruthless drug kingpin. With his success from New Jack City, he was cast in the action movie Passenger 57 (1992) and Snipes soon emerged as the top African American action star with roles in Rising Sun (1993) and Demolition Man (1993).
He deviated from action movies when he accepted roles in movies such as Waiting to Exhale (1995) and that same year with his portrayal of a flamboyant drag queen in To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar. Snipes continued to focus on less action projects after a turn as a baseball player in The Fan (1996) and starring as an adulterous director in One Night Stand (1997). He moved back to action films with roles in U.S. Marshalls (1998), Blade (1998), The Art of War (2000) and Blade II (2002).
Trivia:
Snipes lost his Florida mansion last year due to non-payment of his mortgage and now he's being sued for $100,000 by the William Morris Agency in payments; WMA bosses claim he has failed to honor an agreement to pay them the money he owes. (May 6, 2003)
He got the role of Regis in Murder at 1600 (1997) after Bruce Willis dropped out.
Awards and Nominations:
1992 - Nominated for a MTV Movie Award for Best Villain for: New Jack City (1991)
1993 - Won an Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Motion Picture for: New Jack City (1991)
1993 - Nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male for: Waterdance, The (1992)
1993 - Nominated for a MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss for: White Men Can't Jump (1992), Shared with: Woody Harrelson
1993 - Nominated for a MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo for: White Men Can't Jump (1992), Shared with: Woody Harrelson
1994 - Nominated for a MTV Movie Award for Best Villain for: Demolition Man (1993)
1997 - Won an Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Television Movie or Mini-Series for: America's Dream (1996) (TV)
1997 - Won a Volpi Cup for Best Actor for: One Night Stand (1997)
1998 - Star on the Walk of Fame, Motion Picture on 21 August 1998. At 7020 Hollywood Blvd.
1999 - Won a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actor - Horror for: Blade (1998)
1999 - Nominated for a Blockbuster Entertainment Award
Favorite Duo - Action/Adventure for: U.S. Marshals (1998), Shared with: Tommy Lee Jones
1999 - Nominated for a MTV Movie Award for Best Fight for: Blade (1998), For the fight against vampires.
Filmography:
As an Actor:
Blade III (2004) (announced) .... Blade
John Doe (2004) (pre-production) .... John Doe
Godforsaken (2003) (pre-production)
Nine Lives (2003) (filming)
Undisputed (2002) .... Monroe Hutchens
Ultimate Fights from the Movies (2002) (V) (archive footage) .... Blade Trio (Blade)
Blade II (2002) .... Blade/Eric Brooks/'The Daywalker'
Zigzag (2002) .... Fletcher
Liberty Stands Still (2002) .... Joe
Disappearing Acts (2000) (TV) .... Franklin Swift
Art of War, The (2000) .... Neil Shaw
Futuresport (1998) (TV) .... Obike Fixx
Blade (1998) .... Blade/Eric Brooks/'The Daywalker'
Down in the Delta (1998) .... Cousin Will Sinclair
U.S. Marshals (1998) .... Mark J. Sheridan/Mark Warren/Mark Roberts
One Night Stand (1997) .... Max Carlyle
Murder at 1600 (1997) .... Detective Harlan Regis
Fan, The (1996) .... Bobby Rayburn
America's Dream (1996) (TV) .... George Du Vaul (segment "The Boy Who Painted Christ Black")
Waiting to Exhale (1995) (uncredited) .... James Wheeler
Money Train (1995) .... John
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995) .... Miss Noxeema Jackson
Drop Zone (1994) .... Pete Nessip
Sugar Hill (1994) .... Roemello Skuggs
Demolition Man (1993) .... Simon Phoenix
Rising Sun (1993) .... Lt. Web Smith
Boiling Point (1993) .... Jimmy Mercer
Passenger 57 (1992) .... John Cutter
White Men Can't Jump (1992) .... Sidney Deane
Waterdance, The (1992) .... Raymond Hill
Jungle Fever (1991) .... Flipper Purify
New Jack City (1991) .... Nino Brown
Mo' Better Blues (1990) .... Shadow Henderson (Sax)
King of New York (1990) .... Thomas Flanigan
"H.E.L.P." (1990) TV Series .... Off. Lou Barton
Major League (1989) .... Willie Mays Hayes
Vietnam War Story II (1988) (V)
Bad (1987) (V) .... Mini Max
Critical Condition (1987) .... Ambulance Driver
Streets of Gold (1986) .... Roland Jenkins
Wildcats (1986) .... Trumaine
As a Producer:
Blade III (2004) (announced) (producer)
Undisputed (2002) (executive producer)
Blade II (2002) (producer)
Dr. Ben (2001) (executive producer)
Disappearing Acts (2000) (TV) (executive producer)
Art of War, The (2000) (executive producer)
Futuresport (1998) (TV) (producer)
Blade (1998) (producer)
Down in the Delta (1998) (producer)
Big Hit, The (1998) (producer)
John Henrik Clarke: A Great and Mighty Walk (1996) (executive producer)
Miscellaneous Crew:
Blade (1998) (martial arts choreographer)
Himself:
Directors: Spike Lee, The (2000) (V) .... Himself
Play It to the Bone (1999) .... Himself (ringside fan)
Jackie Chan: My Story (1998) (V) .... Himself
Masters of the Martial Arts Presented by Wesley Snipes (1998) (TV) .... Himself
John Henrik Clarke: A Great and Mighty Walk (1996) (voice) .... Narrator
1993 MTV Movie Awards (1993) (TV) .... Himself/Presenter
Dangerous: The Short Films (1993) (V) (archive footage) .... Himself
Hardwood Dreams (1993) (voice) .... Narrator
1992 MTV Movie Awards (1992) (TV) .... Himself/Presenter
Real Malcolm X, The (1992) (TV) .... Himself (actor)
Notable TV Guest Appearances:
"Bernie Mac Show, The" (2001) playing "Duke" in episode: "Bernie Mac Rope-a-Dope" (episode # 2.11) 5 February 2003
"Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The" (1992) playing "Himself" 9 August 2002
"Howard Stern Show, The" (1994) playing "Himself" 2002
"Clive Anderson All Talk" (1996) playing "Himself" (episode # 3.6) 1998
"Howard Stern Show, The" (1994) playing "Himself" 1998
"Clive Anderson All Talk" (1996) playing "Himself" (episode # 2.8) 1997
"Days and Nights of Molly Dodd, The" (1987) playing "One of two guys (with Samuel L. Jackson) "working for the man" in fantasy sequence" in episode: "Here's Why You Should Always Make Your Bed in the Morning" (episode # 3.7) 3 June 1989
"Man Called Hawk, A" (1989) playing "Nicholas Murdock" in episode: "Choice of Chance" (episode # 1.7) 11 March 1989
"Vietnam War Story" (1987) in episode: "An Old Ghost Walks the Earth"
"Miami Vice" (1984) playing "Silk" in episode: "Streetwise" (episode # 3.10) 5 December 1986
Sources:
http://www.imdb.com/Bio?Snipes,%20Wesley
http://www.eonline.com/Facts/People/Bio/0,128,14665,00.html
http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&id=1800018882&cf=biog&intl=us
http://www.movieclub.com/spotlight/snipes/snipes.html
http://www.filmbug.com/db/769
http://www.celebritywonder.com/html/wesleysnipes.html