The Name is “Scor-sez-see”

The MAN held as the Monniker of America’s greatest living filmmaker and it is an accolade which continues to resonate strongly with the director still in the business of making great films as he enters what is most likely the twilight period of his career. Suffering from asthma at a young age, he was unable to play sport or partake in much outdoor activity and so he immersed himself in the World of Cinema and his passion grew from there. A passion which has treated audiences to some of the finest American films ever made.What follows is a list of some interesting facts about the one and only

Signore Martin Scorsese

His name is pronounced “Scor-sez-see“

*IMDB Top 250 features Scorsese, five times on the list with highest entry Goodfellas (#16) along with Taxi Driver (#40), The Departed (#51), Raging Bull (#71) and Casino (#176).

IMDB leader Alfred Hitchcock has eleven films featured.

Alfred Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980)

(English film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres)

*Scorsese has famously collaborated with Robert De Niro in 8 films. Scorsese has said that his creative collaboration with De Niro is very deep and that they can often understand each other without even talking. Their collaboration has had many dry spells (including recently), but Scorsese says he shows almost every script he writes or considers directing to De Niro to see what the actor’s thoughts on them are even when De Niro ultimately has no involvement the film.

(Deniro and Scorsese on the sets of Goodfellas)

*Both The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) and Gangs of New York (2002) were personal passions of Scorsese, that he had wanted to make since the 1970s

When he first starting considering them, Robert De Niro was in his mind to play the lead characters in both (Jesus Christ in “Temptation” and Bill Cutting in “Gangs”). De Niro ultimately turned down the part in “Temptation” and it was decided he was too old to play Cutting by the time that “Gangs” finally went into production.

*The Aviator (2004) was his first movie to gross over $100 million in the U.S. Its is the highest-grossing movie of his 40-year career.

(Leonardo Dicaprio in The Aviator)

*Scorsese took a cameo in his film Taxi Driver (1976) (as a man about to kill his wife) only because the actor who was supposed to play the role was sick on the day the scene was to be shot. Says he is generally uncomfortable in front of the camera.

*He directed Michael Jackson`s Bad (1987) (V) music video. The full length video runs 16 minutes and is in both black & white and color. It is usually shortened down to just the color segment for television.

*He has used his parents, Charles Scorsese and Catherine Scorsese, in many of his movies.

Charles Scorsese as Vinnie and Catherine Scorsese as Tommy DeVito’s Mother in Goodfellas.

Catherine played Joe Pesci`s mother in Goodfellas (1990)

Catherine Scorsese It’s Not Just You, Murray! (1964), Who’s That Knocking at My Door (1967), Mean Streets (1973) , Italianamerican (1974) – Herself, The King of Comedy (1983) – Rupert’s Mom, Goodfellas (1990) – Mrs. DeVito, Tommy’s mother, Cape Fear (1991) – Fruitstand Customer, The Age of Innocence (1993) (uncredited) & Casino (1995) – Piscano’s mother.

She was also seen in The Godfather Part III (1990), as the Woman in Cafe

*When he won his Best Director Oscar for The Departed (2006), he received the award from legendary directors, George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, and Steven Spielberg. The four combined have 9 Academy Awards and 38 Nominations.

*Once in an interview he said, he was happy with the fact that it took so long for him to win Best Director, because if he had won it earlier, it would have affected his directing and films.