Portrait of Laurence Fishburne

Birthday profile

Laurence Fishburne

Laurence Fishburne, American actor and producer

Born
July 30, 1961
Age in 2026
65
Zodiac sign
Leo
Birth year
1961

About Laurence Fishburne

Laurence John Fishburne III (born July 30, 1961) is an American actor. Throughout his career, he has gained recognition for his roles on stage and screen as militant and authoritative characters. Fishburne first came to prominence appearing in Apocalypse Now (1979) and achieved further recognition for his supporting role in Boyz n the Hood (1991). Later, he became known for portraying Morpheus in The Matrix trilogy (1999–2003) and the Bowery King in the John Wick film series (2017–). For his portrayal of Ike Turner in What's Love Got to Do with It (1993), Fishburne was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. He has also won six Emmy Awards for various television projects, and a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his performance in Two Trains Running (1992). He has also received nominations for a Golden Globe Award and five Screen Actors Guild Awards. Other notable film credits include The Color Purple (1985), A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987), School Daze (1988), King of New York (1990), Deep Cover (1992), Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993), Higher Learning (1995), Event Horizon (1997), Mystic River (2003), Akeelah and the Bee (2006), Mission: Impossible III (2006), Predators (2010), Contagion (2011), Man of Steel (2013), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018), and The Mule (2018). On television, he had a recurring role as Cowboy Curtis in Pee-wee's Playhouse (1986–1990), starred in the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2008–2011), portrayed Jack Crawford in the NBC thriller series Hannibal (2013–2015), and played Earl "Pops" Johnson in the ABC sitcom Black-ish (2014–2022). In 1972, at the age of 11, Fishburne received positive reviews for his first acting role in the initial ABC Theater teleplay If You Give a Dance You Gotta Pay the Band.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Laurence Fishburne timeline

  1. In 1972, at the age of 11, Fishburne received positive reviews for his first acting role in the initial ABC Theater teleplay If You Give a Dance You Gotta Pay the Band.
  2. Fishburne first came to prominence appearing in Apocalypse Now (1979) and achieved further recognition for his supporting role in Boyz n the Hood (1991).
  3. He has also won six Emmy Awards for various television projects, and a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his performance in Two Trains Running (1992).
  4. Later, he became known for portraying Morpheus in The Matrix trilogy (1999–2003) and the Bowery King in the John Wick film series (2017–).

The world when Laurence Fishburne was born

Laurence Fishburne was born in 1961. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1961

  • #1 song"Tossin' and Turnin'" – Bobby Lewis
  • Top movieWest Side Story
  • Top TV showGunsmoke
  • Best-selling bookCatch-22 – Joseph Heller

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentRoger Maris hits 61 home runs, breaking Babe Ruth's record
  • Top headlineYuri Gagarin becomes the first person in space
  • Technology milestoneYuri Gagarin becomes first human in space
  • Defining fadSurfing culture
  • Notable inventionValium
  • World population3.08 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderJohn F. Kennedy
  • Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
  • Also wonBoston Celtics (NBA)
  • U.S. population183.7M

1961 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Laurence Fishburne's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19612026
Gas$0.31$3.45/gal
Average home$12,500$435,000
Average income$7,600$67,500
Minimum wage$1.15$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.69$11.95
Postage stamp$0.04$0.73
Population183.7M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, IMDb. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.