7 Revelations From Paramount Network’s ‘I Am’ Documentaries (PHOTOS)
Heath Ledger thought he bombed his audition for The Patriot
“Heath would get caught up in the fear of whether or not he could accomplish what he wanted to do,” the actor’s agent explains in I Am Heath Ledger. “He almost pulled out of every movie he ended up doing.”
Martin Luther King Jr. faced his mortality every day
“Every day he left home knowing there was a real possibility he’d never get back,” Rev. Al Sharpton says of the civil rights movement leader in I Am MLK Jr.
Fatherhood was difficult at first for Paul Walker
“Emotionally I wasn’t there yet,” the Fast and Furious actor explains in an audio clip in I Am Paul Walker. “Because I didn’t even know who the hell I was.”
Richard Pryor was raised in a brothel
And he presented a more palatable version of his childhood during the so-called “whitebread” portion of his comedy career.
Chris Farley pulled a NSFW stunt in high school
The SNL funnyman pulled out a certain body part in his high school typing class and tried to type with it, resulting in a suspension until the end of the semester.
Steve McQueen turned down some high-profile movies
The Bullitt star declined parts in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and Apocalypse Now.
Patrick Swayze struggled with his sex symbol status
“I’ve always been very insecure and had these problems go on in my insides and this tension and this not liking myself stuff,” the Dirty Dancing star says in an I Am Patrick Swayze audio clip.
Paramount Network took another heart-rending look at a life lost too soon with the August 18 premiere of I Am Patrick Swayze, the latest installment in its I Am series and a touching portrait of the Ghost actor’s public and personal personas.
“He charmed everyone,” Swayze’s Road House costar Kelly Lynch said in the doc. “He’d find a way in, and make you just fall in love with him.”
Click through the gallery above to see seven revelations from the I Am series so far, including details on Heath Ledger’s self-doubt, Paul Walker’s role as a father, and Richard Pryor’s unconventional upbringing.
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