Stardom followed with his role as young Vito Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola's crime epic The Godfather Part II (1974), which won De Niro the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. His first collaboration with Scorsese was Mean Streets (1973), where he played small-time criminal 'Johnny Boy'. His first major role was in Greetings (1968), and gained recognition with his role as a baseball player in the sports drama Bang the Drum Slowly (1973). President Barack Obama in 2016.īorn in Manhattan in New York City, De Niro studied acting at HB Studio, Stella Adler Conservatory, and Lee Strasberg's Actors Studio. In 2009, De Niro received the Kennedy Center Honor, and received a Presidential Medal of Freedom from U.S. DeMille Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award. He is particularly known for his nine collaborations with filmmaker Martin Scorsese, and is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, the Cecil B. ( / d ə ˈ n ɪər oʊ/ də NEER-oh, Italian: born August 17, 1943) is an American actor, producer, and director.