- Born
- Birth nameEdward Fitzgerald Burns
- Nickname
- Eddie
- Height6′ 1″ (1.85 m)
- Edward Burns was born on January 29, 1968 in New York City. He's the 2nd of 3 children to Molly, who worked for the Federal Aviation Administration at Kennedy Airport, & Edward J. Burns, a police sergeant as well as active spokesperson for the New York Police. He was raised as a Catholic. He as well as his older sister Mary & brother, Brian, were raised in Long Island. He attended Catholic Chaminade High School before transferring to a public high school. He went on to attend The State University of New York at Albany & Oneonta College in New York to major in English literature. During his junior year, he transferred to Hunter College in Manhattan, studied filmmaking & began writing short films.
After graduating, he secured a job at Entertainment Tonight through his father's connections, working at as a "go-fer." There he was able to finance & begin working on The Brothers McMullen (1995), a comedy focusing on the trials & tribulations facing 3 Irish-Catholic siblings. It was shot primarily in his parents' Long Island home w/ a cast of unknowns such as himself & Maxine Bahns. It was filmed over 8 months/ a reported budget of only $30,000. Rejected by a series of distributors, The Brothers McMullen (1995) bowed at Sundance after he had given Robert Redford a copy of the film while working on ET. In 1995, his film won the festival's Grand Jury Prize, becoming 1 of the most successful independent efforts of the year. He then sold the film to 20th Century Fox's Searchlight Pictures.
For his follow-up, he wrote & directed She's the One (1996), which retained much of McMullen's cast & crew. He was also able to cast up-and-coming stars Jennifer Aniston & Cameron Diaz in pivotal roles w/ original music from rocker Tom Petty. Filmed w/ a larger budget of almost $3 million, the romantic comedy successfully premiered during the summer of 1996 . He soon began work on his 3rd film No Looking Back, a romantic drama set in a coastal town's working-class community. In 1998, he co-starred in the Steven Spielberg World War II epic Saving Private Ryan (1998). Afterwards, he continued to have a successful year. However, his next few films such as Sidewalks of New York (2001) didn't make much of a dent in the box office.
He's committed to writing & directing his own films. He's not affected by his work & continues his own projects, even tackling touchy relationship subjects & pioneering real-life matters. With his panoply of Woody Allen-like films, he'll continue to dazzle while gaining recognition.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Jurisprudence
- SpouseChristy Turlington(June 7, 2003 - present) (2 children)
- ChildrenFinnGrace Burns
- ParentsMolly BurnsEdward J. Burns
- He always includes references to Long Island, New York
- Frequently collaborates with Max Baker, Dennis Farina, Kerry Bishé, Michael McGlone, and 'David Krumholtz' (I).
- Use of handheld cameras
- Often makes movies about Irish-Americans
- Frequently employs musician 'P. T. Walkley' as composer for his films.
- Has a degree in English from Hunter College, where fellow actors Vin Diesel and Sam Feuer, attended. All three got their big break from Steven Spielberg.
- Purchased the Manhattan loft on N. Moore Street of the late Kennedy, Jr, John F. for over $2 million in 2000.
- Got his role in Life or Something Like It (2002) after Edward Norton dropped out of the project.
- Grew up in Valley Stream, New York, as did actors Steve Buscemi, James Martin Kelly, and Larry Miller.
- Owns two production companies. One with brother Brian Burns: "Irish Twins". The other is called "Marlboro Road Gang Films", named for the road on Long Island that he grew up on.
- I suffer from Irish-Catholic guilt. Guilt is a good reality check. It keeps that 'do what makes you happy' thing in check.
- (On his fourth writing/directing effort, the Sidewalks of New York (2001)): "I hope people watch this movie and still see New York as the greatest city in the world. I certainly do".
- [on why he makes films about Irish-Americans] "I feel Irish-Americans are the forgotten minority group. Nobody else is making films about them. You have Woody Allen and Paul Mazursky making films about Jewish-Americans, you have Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola making films about Italian-Americans and you have Spike Lee and John Singleton making films about African-Americans. Who is making films about Irish-Americans?".
- If these new revenue streams weren't being uncovered, I know I would be out of business.
- Newlyweds shooting budget: 5k for actors, 2k insurance, 2k food and drink. 9k in the can. We only shot 12 days. That's how to make an independent film.
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