Kevin Michael Costner (born January 18, 1955) is an American film actor and director who has often produced his own films.
Born in Lynwood, California, Costner spent his teenage years and pre-actor adulthood in Orange County, California, graduating from Villa Park High School in Villa Park, California in 1973, and earning a B.A. in business from California State University, Fullerton in 1978.
Costner's most popular success was with the epic Dances with Wolves. He directed and starred in the film and served as one of two producers. The film was nominated for twelve Academy Awards and won seven, including two for him personally (Best Picture and Best Director). A number of his film efforts after that success have been criticized for being too long and overly serious, and for squandering financial resources. The science-fiction epics Waterworld and The Postman was both major disappointments at the box office.
