BIOGRAPHY 

 Reeves was born to Samuel Nowlin Reeves, Jr. (born 1942), an American geologist, and Patricia Taylor (born 1944), an English showgirl and costume designer who was working in Beirut when she met Reeves' father at a local nightclub. His paternal grandfather, Samuel Nowlin Reeves, was born in Hawaii to Charles Armistead Reeves, a Tennessee-born Irish American, and Rose Lokalia Miguel, who was of Chinese and Hawaiian descent. Reeves was named after his uncle Henry Keanu Reeves.The name originated with Reeves' great-great-uncle Keaweaheulu, whose "cool breeze over the mountains" in Hawaiian.

{slimbox title="Cherry"}images/stories/stories5/bio/bio2.jpg{/slimbox}While living in Canada, Reeves became a naturalized Canadian citizen. Canada, Britain, and the United States accept the concept of multiple citizenships, so he is eligible to hold all three citizenships contemporaneously. However, Reeves generally considers himself a Canadian, Canada being the country where he grew up, went to school (at Malvern Collegiate Institute, a high school in the Beaches, a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada), and got his start in show business. Although Keanu Reeves was born in Lebanon, he is not a Lebanese citizen because his parents were only temporary residents of Lebanon and were not themselves of Lebanese descent (cf. jus soli and jus sanguinis).

{slimbox title="Cherry"}images/stories/stories5/bio/kr3a030c[1].jpg{/slimbox}Reeves made his screen acting debut in Canada, in a 1979 CBC production, Hanging In. Throughout the early 1980s, he appeared in commercials (including one for Coca-Cola), short films and stage work in Toronto. His first studio movie appearance was in the Rob Lowe ice hockey flick Youngblood, which was filmed in Canada. In it, he played an ice hockey goalie. Shortly after the movie's release, Reeves obtained his green card and drove from Toronto to Los Angeles in his 1969 Volvo. His ex-stepfather Paul Aaron, a stage and television director, gave him a place to stay and got him a manager, Erwin Stoff, and agent before he even arrived in Los Angeles. After a few minor roles gained the notice of the critics in 1986's River's Edge, a teenage drama that received positive reviews. Following the film's success, he spent the late 1980s appearing in a number of movies aimed at teenage audiences, including Permanent Record, a dark film about teenage suicide, and the successful 1989 comedy, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, which (along with its 1991 sequel, Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey) typecast Reeves somewhat during the next few years, as much of his subsequent portrayal in the press has been influenced by his portrayal of the comically airheaded character, "Ted." Reeves was originally offered the role of Pvt. Chris Taylor in Platoon (1986) but turned it down as he disliked the violence involved; the role went to Charlie Sheen. During the early 1990s, Reeves appeared in high-budget action films like Point Break and lower-budget independent films, including the well-received 1991 film, My Own Private Idaho, and the critically hated 1994 film, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues.

{slimbox title="Cherry"}images/stories/stories5/bio/fam2.jpg{/slimbox}In 1993, Reeves starred in Bram Stoker's Dracula, which was a box office success. However, his acting was criticized by many, and director Francis Ford Coppola claims that Reeves was only cast because he wanted a male character that teenagers could look up to. In 1994, Reeves also starred in the action film Speed, which was a commercial success and raised his profile, leading to his casting in films like Johnny Mnemonic and Chain Reaction, both of which failed at the box office. Hitting a low in his career, Reeves then did the unthinkable and turned down the role of Jack Traven in the Speed sequel (which was ultimately a critical and financial disappointment). He was reportedly offered $11 million dollars for the sequel but opted instead to star in the horror/drama The Devil's Advocate with Al Pacino and Charlize Theron. Reeves deferred his salary for The Devil's Advocate so that Pacino would be cast, and he did the same for The Replacements, guaranteeing the casting of Gene Hackman. In 1995, Reeves performed the title role in a Manitoba Theatre Centre production of Hamlet in Winnipeg, Manitoba. His 1999 science fiction hit, The Matrix, restablished him as a Hollywood leading man after a few years of films that received only moderate box office success and mixed critical reception.

{slimbox title="Cherry"}images/stories/stories5/bio/matrix5.jpg{/slimbox}In between the first Matrix film and its sequels, Reeves appeared in several films that received mostly negative reviews and average box office grosses, including The Watcher, Sweet November and Hardball. However, the two Matrix sequels, The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, as well as his 2005 horror-action film, Constantine, proved to be box office successes and brought Reeves back into the public spotlight. On January 31, 2005, Reeves received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Reeves accompanied former Speed costar Sandra Bullock to the 2006 Academy Awards, which caused some controversy as Bullock is married to bike builder Jesse James. It was later revealed to be a publicity stunt to coincide with Bullock and Reeves having a movie rolling out that same year (The Lake House). His film A Scanner Darkly was released on July 7, 2006, shortly after the June 2006 release of The Lake House, in which he played a starring role. [edit] Personal life In December 1999, Reeves' girlfriend, Jennifer Syme, gave birth to a stillborn daughter who was named Ava Archer Syme Reeves. In April 2001, Syme was killed in a car accident. She was buried next to their daughter in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California. Reeves has never reconnected with his estranged biological father4, who served time in prison and was paroled after serving two years of a 10-year sentence for selling heroin at Hilo Airport in 1992.

{slimbox title="Cherry"}images/stories/stories5/bio/bike2.jpg{/slimbox}Reeves enjoys riding motorcycles and coined the term "demon ride" to describe how he often rides with no headlights at night. On one of his "demon rides" in 1988, he crashed near Topanga Canyon and broke several ribs and ruptured his spleen; he has had an abdominal scar ever since – when the paramedics arrived – an emergency medical technician trainee dropped one end of the stretcher by mistake. For nearly a decade following his initial rise to stardom, Reeves lived a vagabond existence in hotels, opting not to buy a house or find a permanent place of residence, despite earning millions. Reeves has lived in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles since 2003, but also has an apartment in New York City. He does not formally practice any religion, although he has a Christian background and is interested in Buddhism. Reeves is fond of chess, motorcycles, ice hockey, and table tennis. He is left-handed, but plays the bass guitar right-handed and loves punk rock bands such as The Ramones, The Sex Pistols, and The Clash, as well as legendary R&B singers such as Stevie Wonder and Otis Redding. In a 1992 New Year's Eve party show, Reeves filled in on bass for punk rock band The Vandals while bassist Joe Escalante was at a wedding. He began playing the bass with rock band Dogstar, which has now gone "into hibernation". Reeves also had a part in New York thrash metal band Anthrax's "Safe Home" music video. More recently, he played bass in a band called Becky with former Dogstar drummer Rob Mailhouse, guitarist Paulie Kosta and singer Rebecca Lord.

{slimbox title="Cherry"}images/stories/stories5/bio/kr9cfff9[1].jpg{/slimbox}In early 2005, he announced that he is leaving the band and his musical career for good. Reeves is reported to be very generous with his time and money, lending both to a variety of causes. He took a significant amount of the profits from his Matrix series and treated the twelve stuntmen who worked on the films to motorcycles, among other things. His sexual orientation is matter of dispute - bisexual or heterosexual - according to some interviews he has given. Keanu Reeves had always been subjected to the rumors of being homosexual or bisexual -- at one point the yellow press reported he had married film producer David Geffen, whom he had never met -- but has always kept a very tight lid on his romantic and private lives. He has denied being homosexual, but he refuses to answer if he is bisexual or heterosexual. In June 2006, he said that he would like to get married and to have children