Cinematic Crush: Richard Gere

Crush object: Richard Gere, actor.

- He first found stage success in the original Broadway productions of Grease and Bent.

- Early films include Looking for Mr. Goodbar, Days of Heaven, Bloodbrothers and Yanks, leading up to his most infamous role as the title character in American Gigolo (including that full frontal shot) and his first blockbuster as the title character(s) in An Officer and a Gentleman.

- The rest of the 80's saw a string of notorious flops for the actor, such as Breathless, The Cotton Club and King David. But the next decade started well in 1990 with a strong dramatic turn in Internal Affairs and another big hit with Pretty Woman.

- His next strong year was 2002, with the marital drama Unfaithful and the splashy musical Chicago. His role as the smooth talking lawyer Billy Flynn in the latter razzle dazzled the critics and won him Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards.

- Other notable films he has starred in include Sommersby, the TV movie And the Band Played On, Mr. Jones, Primal Fear, Runaway Bride, Shall We Dance, The Hoax, I'm Not There and Nights in Rodanthe, which makes its DVD debuttomorrow.