Born Issur Danielovitch to Russian Jewish immigrants on 9 December 1916 in New York, he got the acting bug after appearing in school plays at St Lawrence University. He won a scholarship to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, where he met Betty Joan Perske – later known as Lauren Bacall.

He enlisted in the US Navy in 1941, shortly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor plunged the country into World War Two. He married Bacall's friend Diana Dill on 2 November 1943, and they had two sons – Michael in 1944 and Joel in 1947 – before divorcing in 1951. Bacall helped him get his first film role, opposite Barbara Stanwyck in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946). He soon became a Hollywood star, playing rough and rugged heroes in films such as The Big Trees and Champion (which gave him his first Oscar nomination).

College graduation photo of Kirk Douglas in the 1939 St Lawrence University Gridiron yearbookSt Lawrence University Gridiron yearbook

Kirk Douglas with Barbara Stanwyck in the 1946 film The Strange Love of Martha IversParamount Pictures

1952: A promotional photo for The Big Trees, a film about a Quaker colony trying to save giant sequoias from a timber baronWarner Bros

September 1953: Kirk Douglas and the Indian actress Mehtab stroll on the Lido beach during the Venice Film FestivalAFP

A shot of Kirk Douglas from the 1950sHulton Archive/Getty Images

1952: Kirk Douglas with Lana Turner in The Bad and the Beautiful, directed by Vincente MinnelliMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer

14 August 1955: Marlene Dietrich, Kirk Douglas and Gina Lollobrigida rehearse for a charity concert in ParisKeystone/Getty Images

Mid-50s: Kirk Douglas looks at a globe with two of his sons, Joel and Michael Douglas (who was born in September 1944)Arnold M. Johnson/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

circa 1955: Kirk Douglas and his wife Anne show off their newborn son PeterKeystone/Getty Images

1956: Kirk Douglas plays Vincent van Gogh in the film Lust for Life

Kirk Douglas plays Colonel Dax in the 1957 film Paths of Glory, directed by Stanley KubrickUnited Artists

1958: Janette Scott, Kirk Douglas, Burt Lancaster and Laurence Olivier pose on the film set of The Devil's Disciple at Tring Park in HertfordshireMichael Stroud/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

1 September 1958: Kirk Douglas and his wife Anne attend the first night of Auntie Mame in London with Burt LancasterEvening Standard/Getty Images

 Espartaco

Kirk Douglas plays the title role in the 1960 film Spartacus, also directed by Stanley KubrickUniversal Studios

 Espartaco

5 December 1960: Kirk Douglas and his wife Anne arrive in London for the premiere of SpartacusDennis Oulds/Central Press/Getty Images

 Chuck Tatum ('El gran carnaval')

7 December 1960: I'm Spartacus! Kirk Douglas plays with a lion cub called Spartacus which was presented to him by the director of Southport zooLee/Central Press/Getty Images

 Ned Land ('20.000 leguas de viaje submarino')

16 October 1961: Elizabeth Taylor dances with Kirk Douglas at a party in Rome for the film SpartacusKeystone/Getty Images

Douglas has appeared in 91 films and TV productions, including 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Heroes of Telemark and seven with his regular screen partner Burt Lancaster. From the 1970s onwards, Kirk and Anne Douglas became known for philanthropic works, travelling the world as goodwill ambassadors, flying to Cairo to speak with Egyptian president Anwar Sadat in 1980, rebuilding more than 400 school playgrounds and establishing a centre for homeless women in Los Angeles.

1965: Kirk Douglas talks to his son Michael on the set of Cast a Giant Shadow. Michael had a bit part in the filmKeystone/Getty Images

 Einar ('Los vikingos')

26 March 1965: Kirk Douglas and Richard Harris chat during the making of Heroes of Telemark, a film about the Norwegian resistance trying to stop German efforts to produce an atomic bomb component during World War IILarry Ellis/Express/Getty Images

 Doc Holliday ('Duelo de titanes')

16 March 1978: US President Jimmy Carter greets Kirk and Anne Douglas at the White HouseNational Archives

25 March 1985: Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster address the audience at the 57th Annual Academy Awards in HollywoodRob Boren/AFP

4 December 1994: Kirk Douglas applauds fellow honoree Aretha Franklin at a reception for the Kennedy Centre Honours in the East Room of the White HouseJoshua Roberts/AFP

12 December 1995: Frank Sinatra celebrates his 80th birthday at an intimate dinner party at the Beverly Hills home of television producer George Schlatter. Guests at the party included (L-R) Gregory Peck, Veronique Peck, Jolene Schlatter, Barbara and Frank Sinatra, Anne Douglas, George Schlatter and Kirk DouglasReuters

25 March 1996: Kirk Douglas salutes the crowd at the 68th Annual Academy Awards after he received an Oscar for lifetime achievementTimothy A Clary/AFP

20 May 1998: Kirk Douglas and Tony Curtis embrace following the funeral of Frank Sinatra at the Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Beverly Hills. Sinatra died of a heart attack at the age of 82Nick Ut/AFP

7 March 1999: Kirk Douglas strikes a boxing pose with actress Janet Leigh as they pose for photographers after Douglas was awarded the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement AwardReuters

17 July 2000: Kirk Douglas prays at the Western Wall during a visit to Israel for the XVII Jerusalem Film Festival where he was honoured with a lifetime achievement awardMenahem Kahana/AFP

3 March 2001: Catherine Zeta-Jones kisses her father-in-law Kirk Douglas, after she presented him with the Milestone Award at The Producers Guild of America's 12th Annual Golden Laurel AwardsReuters

25 June 2001: Kirk Douglas kisses his son Michael as they arrive at the Simon Wiesenthal Centre Museum of Tolerance National Tribute Dinner in Beverly Hills, where Michael received the Humanitarian AwardLucy Nicholson/AFP

19 January 2002: Kirk Douglas acknowledges cheering fans during an appearance at a Toronto bookstore to promote his autobiography, My Stroke of LuckAndrew Wallace/Reuters

13 April 2003: Kirk Douglas, his first wife Diana, their son Michael and Michael's son Cameron arrive at the New York premiere of It Runs In The Family, which starred all fourScott Gries/Getty Images

September 2007: Alec Baldwin kisses the hand of Kirk Douglas as Catherine Zeta-Jones and her husband Michael Douglas look on during the match between Novak Djokovic of Serbia and David Ferrer of Spain during the 2007 US Open in New YorkAl Bello/Getty Images

28 May 2008: Kirk Douglas goes down a slide during the dedication of the 400th Anne and Kirk Douglas Playground, at Lillian Street Elementary School in Los AngelesValerie Macon/AFP

25 November 2009: Kirk Douglas and his wife Anne prepare to assist serving an early Thanksgiving meal to the homeless and others at the Los Angeles MissionFred Prouser/Reuters

27 February 2011: Melissa Leo curtsies to Kirk Douglas after she won the Actress in a Supporting Role award for The Fighter during the 83rd Annual Academy AwardsKevin Winter/Getty Images

13 October 2011: Kirk and Michael Douglas attend the 2011 Kirk Douglas Award for Excellence In Film, honouring Michael Douglas, at the Biltmore Four Seasons in Santa Barbara, CaliforniaMichael Buckner/Getty Images

26 February 2012: Kirk and Michael Douglas pose at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party hosted by Graydon Carter in West HollywoodAlberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images

13 August 2012: Kirk Douglas attends a 70mm film screening of his film Spartacus at the Samuel Goldwyn Theatre in Beverly HillsAlberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images

October 2016: Anne and Kirk Douglas attend Hollywood's Night Under The Stars at MPTF Wasserman Campus in Los AngelesAlberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for MPTF

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