Birthday's to share this week : 13th-19th November 2016

Do you celebrate your Birthday this week?

Zoe Bell does on 17th November - check out my tribute to this Birthday Girl turning 38, at the end of this feature.

Do you also share your birthday with a well known, highly regarded & famous Actor or Actress; share your special day with a Director, Producer, Writer, Cinematographer, Singer/Songwriter or Composer of repute; or share an interest in whoever might notch up another year in the coming seven days? Then, look no further! Whilst there will be too many to mention in this small but not insignificant and beautifully written and presented Blog, here are the more notable and noteworthy icons of the big screen, and the small screen, that you will recognise, and that you might just share your birthday with in the week ahead. If so, Happy Birthday to you from Odeon Online!

Sunday 13th November

• Whoopi Goldberg - Born 1955, turns 61 - Actress | Producer | Writer | Singer
• Frances Conroy - Born 1953, turns 63 - Actress | Singer
• Joe Mantegna - Born 1947, turns 69 - Actor | Producer | Writer | Director
• Art Malik - Born 1952, turns 64 - Actor
• Steve Zahn - Born 1967, turns 49 - Actor | Singer
• Gerard Butler - Born 1969, turns 47 - Actor | Producer | Singer 

Monday 14th November

• Paul McGann - Born 1959, turns 57 - Actor | Director
• Josh Duhamel - Born 1972, turns 44 - Actor
• Olga Kurylenko - Born 1979, turns 37 - Actress  

Tuesday 15th November

• Shailene Woodley - Born 1991, turns 25 - Actress
• Edward Asner - Born 1929, turns 87 - Actor | Producer | Singer
• Yaphet Kotto - Born 1939, turns 77 - Actor | Writer
• Sam Waterston - Born 1940, turns 76 - Actor | Producer
• Roger Donaldson - Born 1945, turns 71 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Jonny Lee Miller - Born 1972, turns 44 - Actor  

Wednesday 16th November

• Griff Rhys Jones - Born 1953, turns 63 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Television Personality
• Maggie Gyllenhaal - Born 1977, turns 39 - Actress | Producer  

Thursday 17th November

• Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio - Born 1958, turns 58 - Actress | Singer
• Sophie Marceau - Born 1966, turns 50 - Actress | Writer | Director
• Rachel McAdams - Born 1978, turns 38 - Actress
• Zoe Bell - Born 1978, turns 38 - Actress | Stuntwoman | Producer
• Martin Scorsese - Born 1942, turns 74 - Director | Producer | Actor | Editor
• Danny DeVito - Born 1944, turns 72 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Director | Singer
• Roland Joffe - Born 1945, turns 71 - Director | Producer | Writer  

Friday 18th November

• Delroy Lindo - Born 1952, turns 64 - Actor | Producer
• Owen Wilson - Born 1968, turns 48 - Actor | Producer | Writer
• Damon Wayans Jnr. - Born 1982, turns 34 - Actor | Writer
• Chloe Sevigny - Born 1974, turns 42 - Actress  

Saturday 19th November 

• Kathleen Quinlan - Born 1954, turns 62 - Actress
• Meg Ryan - Born 1961, turns 55 - Actress | Producer | Director
• Jodie Foster - Born 1962, turns 54 - Actress | Director | Producer
• Charlie Kaufman - Born 1958, turns 58 - Writer | Producer | Director
• Jason Scott Lee - Born 1966, turns 50 - Actor
• Adam Driver - Born 1983, turns 33 - Actor

Zoe Bell was born on Waiheke Island, New Zealand to mother Tish, a nurse, and father Andrew Bell a doctor. She grew up on the island, off Auckland, and studied gymnastics as a young age, and at fifteen tae kwon-do. Being an active kinda gal, she also took part in dance, high diving, scuba diving and athletics activities. She attended the Auckland Girls Grammar School, and then the co-educational public Selwyn College, also in Auckland. She has a younger brother Jake, and a foster brother Leonhard, who is living back in his native Germany. Her career in the film and television stunt business kick started in 1992 when her father treated a stuntman for a head injury. With a contact phone number given by the injured patient, she landed her first stunt job on the long running New Zealand medical soap opera 'Shortland Street', by jumping out of a running car. 

This led to regular work in 'Hercules : The Legendary Journeys' from 1995-1999, and then 'Xena : Warrior Princess' from 1998-2001. Both series were filmed in New Zealand, and in time Bell graduated to be stunt double for lead Actress Lucy Lawless. In between time she did stunt work on a number of television shows including 'The Chosen', 'Young Hercules', 'Jacksons Wharf', 'Amazon High' and 'Jack of All Trades'.

Her breakout stunt work came as double for Uma Thurman in Quentin Tarantino's 'Kill Bill : Volumes 1 and 2'. This in turn led to her stunt doubling for Sharon Stone in 2004's 'Catwoman' where she performed a high fall of over 200 feet. More stunt work followed on J.J.Abrams 'Alias' and in movies 'Poseidon' and 'Penny Dreadful'. Another gig with Quentin Tarantino followed with his collaboration with Robert Rodriguez on the 'Grindhouse' double feature in both 'Planet Terror' and 'Death Proof' in which Bell receives both Acting and stunt credits. In 'Death Proof' Zoe Bell plays stuntwoman Zoe Bell who rides on the bonnet of a 1970 Dodge Challenger at full speed  holding on with just two leather straps, whilst being pursued by mad bad ageing Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell) in his 'death proof' Hollywood stunt car, intent on killing her and her two other travelling companions. Truly memorable!

Four episodes on 'Lost' in both acting and stunt roles followed in 2008 with 'Bitch Slap' marking the start of a busy 2009 which saw Bell coordinate stunts, choreograph fight scenes, perform stunt work and act too on that film. 'Angel of Death', 'Gamer' with Gerard Butler, and the roller derby 'Whip It' for Drew Barrymore all saw acting credits, before a return to Quentin Tarantino with dual roles in 'Inglorious Basterds' performing stunt work for Diane Kruger and Melanie Laurent. More stunt work followed on 'The Proposal' for Sandra Bullock, and 'The Final Destination' saw out the decade.

Straight to DVD 'Game of Death' with Wesley Snipes came next in 2012, with 'The Baytown Outlaws' and 'Django Unchained' for Quentin Tarantino again coming that same year and all in acting roles. So too were 'Hansel and Gretel : Witch Hunters' with Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton in the title roles, and then 'Oblivion' with Tom Cruise. A stunt credit on 'Iron Man 3', and then acting credits on 'Raze', 'Hawaii Five-O', 'Mercenaries', as Six-Horse Judy in Quentin Tarantino's 'The Hateful Eight' and 'Camino' saw out 2015.

This year there has been the Hollywood themed thriller 'Douglas Brown', lakeside horror thriller 'Freshwater', Sci-Fi drama 'Paradox' with short films 'No Touching' and 'Miner' both in Post-Production and 'Unspoken : Diary of an Assassin' currently filming. All up Bell has 35 Acting credits to her name, 24 stunt work credits, and seven as Producer. She has so far accumulated five award wins and nine other nominations for both her stunt work and her acting roles.

Zoe Bell - affectionately known as 'Zoe the Cat'; has stunt doubled for some of the best Actresses in the business; is now considered as Quentin Tarantino's stunt muse; is grounded, keeps it real, speaks her mind and has successfully transitioned from playing parts behind the scenes doubling up as someone else to playing the part on her own merits in front of the camera - whilst still performing her own stunts no matter what. As tough as nails! Happy Birthday to you Zoe, from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-