15 Things You Didn't Know About Denzel Washington

Some interesting facts about one of our luminaries.

15 Things You Didn't Know About Denzel Washington  - We have an amazing love for him as an actor and a man, but here are a few things you probably didn't know about him...  (Photo: Larry Busacca/Getty Images For People.com)

1 / 16

15 Things You Didn't Know About Denzel Washington - We have an amazing love for him as an actor and a man, but here are a few things you probably didn't know about him... (Photo: Larry Busacca/Getty Images For People.com)

Humble Beginnings - Denzel Washington was born in Mount Vernon, New York.(Photo: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

2 / 16

Humble Beginnings - Denzel Washington was born in Mount Vernon, New York.(Photo: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Why So Serious? - We know him for his serious roles, but Denzel Washington received his film debut in the comedy called A Carbon Copy.  (Photo: Columbia Pictures)

3 / 16

Why So Serious? - We know him for his serious roles, but Denzel Washington received his film debut in the comedy called A Carbon Copy. (Photo: Columbia Pictures)

"What's In a Name?"  - He's named after his father who was named after the doctor who delivered him, Dr. Denzel.  (Photo: Brad Barket/BET/Getty Images)

4 / 16

"What's In a Name?" - He's named after his father who was named after the doctor who delivered him, Dr. Denzel. (Photo: Brad Barket/BET/Getty Images)

His Best Film Moments - He claims that his personal favorite film performances are his work in the following films Cry Freedom (1987), Glory (1989), Malcolm X (1992) and Training Day (2001).  (Photo: PA PHOTOS /LANDOV)

5 / 16

His Best Film Moments - He claims that his personal favorite film performances are his work in the following films Cry Freedom (1987), Glory (1989), Malcolm X (1992) and Training Day (2001). (Photo: PA PHOTOS /LANDOV)

ADVERTISEMENT
Malcolm X (1992) - brooklyngal ‏@moneorange: "@BET we didnt land on plymouth rock plymouth rock landed on us! #malcolmx #blackmoviequotes"(Photo: 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks)

6 / 16

Walking in the Footsteps of Greatness - Before he starred in Spike Lee’s Malcolm X, he played Malcolm in the off-broadway production of “When the Chickens Came Home to Roost.” (Photo: Largo International)

Photo By Photo: 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks/Photo: 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks)

Not on the Fence - Denzel won a Tony-award for his role as Troy Maxson in the 2010 revival of August Wilson's play Fences.  (Photo: Jemal Countess/Getty Images)

7 / 16

Not on the Fence - Denzel won a Tony-award for his role as Troy Maxson in the 2010 revival of August Wilson's play Fences. (Photo: Jemal Countess/Getty Images)

You Da Man - Denzel Washington promotes his new film, The Equalizer, at BBC Radio 1 in London and is swarmed by fans.(Photo: Mirrorpix/Splash News)

8 / 16

Fake It 'Til You Make It - Washington attended Fordham University where he first studied biology, in the hopes of becoming a doctor, and then switched to political science. Feeling indecisive, Washington dropped out of college for a semester and worked as a creative arts director at a YMCA summer camp and the acting bug struck him!(Photo: Mirrorpix/Splash News)

Best Accident - The actor broke his right pinky finger during a childhood basketball accident and never had it set correctly. His finger is still crooked to this day, bent at the bottom knuckle a full 45 degrees outward from his other fingers.(Photo: Marcel Thomas/FilmMagic)

9 / 16

Best Accident - The actor broke his right pinky finger during a childhood basketball accident and never had it set correctly. His finger is still crooked to this day, bent at the bottom knuckle a full 45 degrees outward from his other fingers.(Photo: Marcel Thomas/FilmMagic)

Love at First Line - Denzel met his wife Pauletta Washington in 1977 when both had small roles in the 1977 television movie Wilma. Five years later they were married.  (Photo: Jason Merritt/Getty Images)

10 / 16

Love at First Line - Denzel met his wife Pauletta Washington in 1977 when both had small roles in the 1977 television movie Wilma. Five years later they were married. (Photo: Jason Merritt/Getty Images)

ADVERTISEMENT
To the 15th Degree - Received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Morehouse College in Atlanta.  (Photo: Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images)

11 / 16

To the 15th Degree - Received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Morehouse College in Atlanta. (Photo: Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images)

A Part of History's History - Washington won his Best Actor Oscar for 2001's Training Day in the same year that both Poitier received an Honorary Academy Award and Halle Berry became the first black woman to win an Oscar for Best Actress.  (Photo: Frank Micelotta/GettyImages)

12 / 16

A Part of History's History - Washington won his Best Actor Oscar for 2001's Training Day in the same year that both Poitier received an Honorary Academy Award and Halle Berry became the first black woman to win an Oscar for Best Actress. (Photo: Frank Micelotta/GettyImages)

Man in Uniform - For the film Courage Under Fire, Washington trained at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin in California. During his training he qualified on the M1A1 tank and the 120mm gun, participated in battle games, and listened to audiotapes of tank battles in Desert Storm. (Photo: Julien M. Hekimian/Getty Images)

13 / 16

Man in Uniform - For the film Courage Under Fire, Washington trained at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin in California. During his training he qualified on the M1A1 tank and the 120mm gun, participated in battle games, and listened to audiotapes of tank battles in Desert Storm. (Photo: Julien M. Hekimian/Getty Images)

Pure Destiny - Once, when Washington was at his mother's beauty parlor, a woman getting her hair done saw him and wrote down a prophecy that said he would grow up and speak to millions. (Photo: Keith Tsuji/Getty Images)

14 / 16

Pure Destiny - Once, when Washington was at his mother's beauty parlor, a woman getting her hair done saw him and wrote down a prophecy that said he would grow up and speak to millions. (Photo: Keith Tsuji/Getty Images)

Should've, Could've - The film offer Washington regretted turning down the most was Brad Pitt's Det. David Mills in Se7en.   (Photo: Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images)

15 / 16

Should've, Could've - The film offer Washington regretted turning down the most was Brad Pitt's Det. David Mills in Se7en.  (Photo: Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images)

Elite Class - He's only the sixth actor to win both leading and supporting acting Oscars. The other five are Robert De Niro, Gene Hackman, Kevin Spacey, Jack Lemmon and Jack Nicholson. (Photo: John Ricard / BET)

16 / 16

Elite Class - He's only the sixth actor to win both leading and supporting acting Oscars. The other five are Robert De Niro, Gene Hackman, Kevin Spacey, Jack Lemmon and Jack Nicholson. (Photo: John Ricard / BET)