Celebrating Sandra Bullock

America's Sweetheart Turns 51

Born on July 26, 1964 Sandra Bullock, who was often called “America’s Sweetheart” (no easy feat when you consider she was raised in Germany for 12 of her childhood years), has grown to become one of the highest-paid and most successful actresses in the business.

A cheerleader and drama student at her Arlington, Virginia high school Bullock went on to study drama at East Carolina University, before moving to Manhattan in 1987 where, like thousands of would-be actors, she spent her time bartending and waitressing in between auditions.

Throughout the late ‘80s, Bullock kept busy with small roles in television and indie films, but it wasn’t until 1993’s Demolition Man (with Sylvester Stallone and Wesley Snipes) that the tide turned forever. In fact, her supporting role in Demolition Man was also her first job within the Warner Bros. family, to which she has returned more than a dozen times since, including two Academy Award nominated performances (winning one of those “Best Actress” Oscars for The Blind Side) in the last six years.

One of the most powerful women in the entertainment industry today—as both actress and producer—Sandra Bullock remains one of a kind. Enjoy this pictorial look back through the years as we celebrate Sandy’s 51st birthday today!

On the set of 1993's Demolition Man, Sandra has a conversation with director Marco Brambilla.
In that same year, Bullock had the chance to work with screen icons Robert Duvall (pictured here), Richard Harris and Shirley
MacLaine in the vastly underrated film Wrestling Ernest Hemingway. Not only did the future Oscar winner get to rub shoulders with
these acting legends, but Duvall also taught her how to salsa!
Bullock co-starred with actor/comedian Denis Leary in 1996's rom-com, Two If By Sea. Unfortunately for the actress it was during
this shoot that she discovered she was allergic to horses.
Two of Hollywood’s biggest stars (and future Oscar winners)—Bullock and Matthew McConaughey—joined forces in 1996’s A Time
to Kill and their on-screen relationship moved off-screen for a time as well. Said McConaughey of Bullock: "She doesn’t know how
beautiful she is or how much people like her. She's just so regular about everything."
1996 was a busy year on screen for Bullock, including her pairing with Chris O'Donnell in the World War I era drama, In Love and War,
about a young Ernest Hemingway (not to be confused with her earlier film Wrestling Ernest Hemingway) and the nurse who impacted
his life and would be used in characterization throughout his legendary writing career.
Bullock starred with Nicole Kidman in 1998's comedic fantasy Practical Magic about two sisters who also happen to be witches.
Apparently one of their spells included the use of Reddi Wip!
In one of the more iconic images from filmdom at the turn of the millennium, Bullock starred as a frumpy FBI agent who is transformed
into a beauty pageant contestant in order to go undercover in the 2000 blockbuster hit comedy Miss Congenialty.
In 2002's Murder by Numbers Bullock played a homicide detective (with partner Ben Chaplin) going after two high school thrill-killers
(Ryan Gosling and Michael Pitt) in this cinematic adaptation of the infamous 1920s Leopold-Loeb murders. 
With the late, great James Garner, who played her father in 2002's Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. Said Garner of Bullock:
"I loved Sandra. She's a good girl, lot of fun. She broke me up. She said, 'I never liked the motherf#$@er' line during the scene. She'd
do that a lot, just lay a line on you."
Bullock, with Starbucks in hand, discusses a scene with co-star Hugh Grant and director Marc Lawrence on the set of 2002's hit
romantic comedy Two Weeks Notice.
In 2005, Bullock returned to her role as FBI agent Gracie Hart in the sequel, Miss Congentiality 2: Armed and Fabulous. And she
DOES look fabulous, even when taking down a perp in a Las Vegas casino!
The following year saw Bullock with Keanu Reeves (although not together much on screen) in the much more dramatic time-warping
romance, The Lake House.
In 2009's true story The Blind Side, Bullock took her memorable portrayal of Leigh Anne Tuohy all the way to an Academy Award win
for "Best Actress." Ironically, she also received the Razzie the night before for her performance in All About Steve, and in true Bullock
fashion of never taking herself too seriously, she showed up at the Razzies to accept the award while tossing All About Steve DVDs
to the crowd.
Starring opposite Tom Hanks in the 2011 "Best Picture" nominee, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. In the emotionally-charged
scene where Hanks' character calls his wife from one of the Twin Towers on 9/11, she said: "The thing that made it so poignant for
me was that Tom Hanks showed up that day. He sat in a room not far from where I was and made that call every single time. Every
time I pick up that phone, it was Tom Hanks on the other end of the line. My husband who is calling because he knows he's going to
die, giving me some gift, some joy, some jewel–something that he can leave me with so he knows I'm going to be okay."
In her second Oscar nominated role, Bullock gave a tour-de-force performance in 2013's Gravity about an astronaut lost in space on
her own. Here she and co-star George Clooney converse with director Alfonso Cuarón who won the "Best Director" Oscar (just one
of the seven Academy Award wins for the film).

Next up for Sandra is the political dramedy, Our Brand is Crisis, in which she stars opposite fellow Oscar winner Billy Bob Thornton. This Warner Bros. Pictures film hits theaters October 30.