Part of my series "Sexy Blond Male Actors"
Part of my series "Entertainment Biographies"
Also see my version of this same page at "Brad Pitt" at countyhistorian.com
William Bradley "Brad" Pitt was born 18 Dec 1963 in Shawnee, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, the eldest of three children born to William Alvin Pitt, who worked in management at a truck company and his wife Jane Etta Hillhouse, a high school counselor.
Brad first achieves public notice as "Mr and Mrs William Pitt, sister of the bride, and Brad of St Louis" at the Feb 1966 wedding of his aunt Ruthie.
Brad Pitt has two siblings, brother Doug Pitt (b. 1966 and married to Lisa Pitt) and sister Julie M (b. 1969 and married to Rob Neal). (Source) Brad and his siblings, grew up in Springfield, Greene County, Missouri, where the family moved soon after Brad's birth. Pitt was raised a Baptist. He attended Kickapoo High School (in Springfield), where he was involved in sports, debating, student government, and acting. He enrolled in 1982 in the Missouri School of Journalism at the University of Missouri–Columbia, but dropped out before getting his degree. He is a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity.
In 1987 as "William B Pitt" he is mentioned living at 826 W Primrose St, Springfield, Missouri. His sister Julie is mentioned living there in 1993 as "Julie M Neal", so either they were both living at home, or Brad was living with his sister ? Wikipedia reports that he moved to Los Angeles "two weeks before earning his degree", as I've shown, he was still in Springfield in 1987. So either he was on the "five year plan" as I humorously used to call it, or he took a year off here.
He was most likely in L.A. by November at any rate, as he appeared that month on a episode of the television series "Growing Pains", Season 3, Episode 9 "Who's Zoomin' Who?". Watch his appearance here on YouTube. He here plays a high school student (a senior I suppose), but he was almost 24. A month later, in Dec 1987 he appeared on two back-to-back episodes of the television series "Dallas", episode 264 "Brother, Can You Spare a Child?" and episode 265 "Daddy's Little Darlin". One or other other of these can be viewed in this clip (in English). The make-out scene here on the left however I can only find in a French-language version at this clip. He is a pretty young-looking 24 isn't he? I can see how he could possibly pass for just being in high school still.
His youthful appearance would change by 1991 when he appears as the cowboy drifter in the hit movie "Thelma and Louise". Watch his scene here in this six-minute clip.
Brad Pitt's first speaking role in a movie, was in 1988 in ''The Dark Side of the Sun'', although this film was not released until 1997. Pitt appeared uncredited in several movies, and then in smaller parts, but his first widely-known role was as the cowboy drifter "J.D." in ''Thelma and Louise'' (1991), (opposite Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis) which showed him without his shirt. It is pretty apparent that he had been working out seriously since his first 1987 roles which show him as, a cute but thin and boyish-looking 24. In this picture he was 27 years old.
Brad Pitt was married on 29 Jul 2000 at Malibu Beach, Los Angeles County, California to Jennifer Joanne Aniston who had been born 11 Feb 1969 in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles County the daughter of John Aniston and his wife Nancy Dow. Brad and Jennifer separated on 7 Jan 2005, Jennifer filed for a divorce 25 Mar 2005, but the divorce was not finalized until 2 Oct 2005.
Since 2005 Brad Pitt has been in a relationship with Angelina Jolie (b. 1975), they have three biological children together, and they have three other children, two which Brad had adopted before the relationship started, and one other they adopted while together. Angelina is the daughter of actor Jon Voight and actress Marcheline Bertrand.
Brad Pitt starred in the 2004 Movie "Troy". Watch it on YouTube at this link.
Secondary sources for 1
- "Brad Pitt", Wikipedia
- "Brad Pitt", Internet Movie Database
- "Brad Pitt", his ancestry at genealogy.com - This page by an anonymous editor is suspect for that reason. The email address no longer works and no one at Ancestry has responded to my request for a proper citation.
- "Brad Pitt", ancestral research by plaxamate@yahoo.com (whoever this is)
- "Brad Pitt", on OneWorldTree at Ancestry
2 William Alvin Pitt
William Alvin "Bill" Pitt was born 24 Mar 1941, the son of Alvin Monroe Pitt and his wife Elizabeth Jean Brown. I'm going to strike temporarily the claim that he was born in Cleveland County, Oklahoma as this is not really clear. If you have a credible source for this, let me know. Someone else's web page claiming it, is not a credible source. In 1949 Alvin and Betty are listed in a Baton Rouge, Louisiana city directory, then with three children.
According to his father Alvin Monroe Pitt's funeral notice in Mar 1959, "Billy" was then living in Shawnee, Oklahoma. This would seem to imply that Alvin and Betty were already divorced. In Jun 1962, while he was a Senior at Oklahoma Baptist University the newspaper announces the coming marriage of "William A Pitt to Miss Jane Hillhouse". In that announcement, it states that he graduated from Shawnee High School and his mother Betty appears as "Mr and Mrs Raymond M Russell of Shawnee". On 11 Aug 1962 while a resident of Shawnee, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, William married, in Joplin, Jasper County, Missouri to Jane Etta Hillhouse, a resident of that town.
The family were living in 1963 in Shawnee, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma when their son William Bradley "Brad" Pitt was born there that year, but shortly thereafter moved to Missouri. They had not moved as of Dec 1964, when Jane is noted as "Mrs William Pitt of Tulsa" when she was a bridesmaid. He is named as "Mr and Mrs William Pitt, sister of the bride, and Brad of St Louis" at the Feb 1966 wedding of Jane's sister Ruthie. Jane is named "Jane Pitt, Springfield" in her father's 1976 obituary.
They lived in Springfield, Greene County, Missouri where their three children grew up, and where Brad went to Kickapoo High School in that town. William Alvin Pitt has been called both "the owner of a trucking company" and "working in management for a trucking company."
I'm not yet sure where Brad's childhood home was, although in 1995, the family was living at 1409 W Sunshine Street, but also citing an address at 826 W Primrose St, and also an address at Rural Route 2, PO Box 88C in Nixa, Missouri. Bill and Jane were both living in 2010, when they are noted at an address on Josie Way. I wonder if they don't live in a gated area? It seems a little odd that the parents of someone so famous, would allow their exact address to be published in this way.
Primary sources for 2
- ''Missouri Marriage Records, 1805-2002'' : "License: William A Pitt of Shawnee, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, age 21; Jane E Hillhouse of Joplin, Jasper County, Missouri, age 21, dated 8 Aug 1962; Certificate: Thurman D Kelley, Minister, did at Joplin, Jasper County on 11 Aug 1962 did unite the above named persons."
Secondary sources for 2
- "Brad Pitt", his ancestry at genealogy.com
- "Brad Pitt", ancestral research by plaxamate@yahoo.com (whoever this is)
- "William A Pitt", The Robert Yerton Family Homepage by Robert Roland Yerton, Jr. of Tulsa, Oklahoma robertyerton@cox.net
- "William Pitt" on OneWorldTree
3 Jane Etta Hillhouse
Jane Etta Hillhouse was born in Missouri 13 Aug 1940, the daughter of Hal Knox Hillhouse and his wife Clara Maurine Bell. In 1958 she was an officer in Lambda Alpha Lambda sorority. She was also president of her high school's NFL society. Later that year she opined, "the chemise is the last spoke in the wheel of fashion." She is also mentioned acting in several plays at this time. She was also a cheerleader.
In 1959 she is noted as attending Joplin Junior College. At this time she is noted in a few plays, as a stage co-ordinator for a play, and as a camp counselor. In Sep 1959 as "Jane Etta Hillhouse, 19" she was in a traffic accident. In 1960, she wrote a review of the play "Barnaby" and her review was published in the "Joplin News Herald". In Aug of 1960 as "Jane Hillhouse of Joplin" she is noted as beginning her attendance at Oklahoma Baptist College in Shawnee. In Jan 1961 she was chosen for a part in that school's production of "A Different Drummer". She was listed on the Honor Roll in July 1961. She was a finalist for Queen in the "1962 Yahnseh yearbook pageant" Feb 1962
On 24 Jun 1962, Joplin Globe :
"The marriage will take place in Forest Park Baptist church of Joplin on August 11, with the Rev. Thurman D Kelley officiating.
"Miss Hillhouse is a Joplin high school graduate and attended Joplin Junior college, where she was vice president of her freshman class and cheerleader. She was a member of the 1962 graduating class of Oklahoma Baptist university. Miss Hillhouse was graduated with a double major in secondary education and English, and a speech minor. She was president of College Players, a member of Theta Alpha Phi and Kappa Delta Phi, and was a cheerleader.
"Mr Pitt, a graduate of Shawnee high school, is a Senior at Oklahoma Baptist university. In high school he was vice president of his sophomore class, president of his junior class and a member of Hi-Y and Letterman Club in basketball and baseball. He is a "B" Club member at O.B.U. in both basketball and baseball. He is a summertime employee of Southwestern Bell Telephone Company."
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