The Rebel At 75

He came at us grinning wildly from underneath a football helmut, riding on top of a Harley. He waved at the camera-- meaning us, the audience-- while he was on that motorcycle. At that moment, in the film ''Easy Rider'', in that year of 1969, Jack Nicholson became a star. And, the world of film--and, pop culture-- has always been grateful.... Jack Nicholson turns 75 at the end of this month. It seems almost unbelievable that this iconic rebel and personality and symbol of the freedom of youth will be that age. Like Frank Sinatra before him, Jack [ beloved icons only require one name because they are so beloved, like Frank] is eternally young and rebellious in the publics mind. This man of swagger and vitality is in the autumn of his years, and certainly, has slowed down with time. But, Jack is ageless. Gracing life with a gusto of living life to the fullest that has always amused the public. His characters on film seem to be a window of whom he is off-screen. A no-bullshit guy from Jersey who takes life on his own terms. Not wanting to hurt anyone except the phonies who control us all. That spirit of rebellion inflames his work and his personal life. He is that rare combination of superb actor and Movie Star.... I obviously do not know the man. My perspective of him comes from closely studying him for years, for he is my favorite actor. Whether he is or is not his characters in private life is not important . He projects his likability through his actions on us and we project them back. It is that surrender of our feelings to him that creates that wonderful bond we have with him: therefore, We Know Jack... For my younger friends reading this who only know his work from his recent films, where he has played on the ''Jack'' persona instead of getting into a fresh character, I urge you to go back into the past and discover his genius from his 70's period. Before ''Easy Rider'' propelled him to the forefront of acting, Jack spent a good 10 years slugging it out in the Hollywood trenches, through some God-awful ''B'' movies, looking for his break. This period can be excused : you have to take whatever role you get to pay the rent. Start then with '' Five Easy Pieces'', his first film after ''Easy Rider''. In ''Five Easy Pieces'', released in 1970, Jack was a mirror for a lost generation just finding its way out of the turbulant 60's. The Baby Boomers needed an actor to express their dissatisfaction of what life had become. The deep divisions in this country over civil rights and the war in Vietnam had found a voice in music, but, not in the movies. Youth needed an actor to show it was throwing off the shackles of the previous generations ideals. Jack sang, with his acting, all of those hopes and dreams and anti-establishment feelings that was in the core of the Boomers. Take his classic moment in the diner in ''Five Easy Pieces''. Every serious film fan knows, or, should know this movie moment. It involves Jack simply trying to get toast for his order. The snotty waitress-- representing the establishment of doing things ''our way''-- rudely tells him he can't get his toast and just has to except what the menu tells him he gets. With precision type authority, Jack tells the waitress off . I will not ruin the moment if you have never seen it. YouTube it. It is priceless.But, that moment shows, as in many Nicholson movies, that he is speaking up for us up there on-screen. We have all been through those moments of authority telling us we can't do something, even though it is hurting no one, and we have earned the right to have our damn toast anyway we want it. Jack is our Fighter, voicing our rage at outrage.The blue-collar guy fighting our battles for us... Bad Ass Jack on-screen also shows a soft, caring heart. Witness the tender moment in ''Terms Of Endearment'', when after rejecting Shirley Maclaine, he shows up unannounced to hold her and comfort her when she needs him the most. Witness the sweet moments in ''As Good As It Gets'', when after learning to care for his gay friend whom he has always rejected, Jack takes him into his home and shelters him. Or, the moment at dinner when he tells Helen Hunt that he is taking the pills he hates for her, so, he can become a better man for her. Or, in the underrated movie ''About Schmidt'', where he plays a lonely man haunted by his wife's death and his inability to bond with his estranged daughter. These moments in these fine movies show a tender heart beating beneath the swagger, something many of us have. These moments  poignancy and human caring forever cement our audience relationship with Jack.... The great actor Gene Hackman once said that the reason he goes to a Jack Nicholson movie is that he feels that Jack knows a secret about the world, or, about relationships, or, about being the essence of cool, and, Hackman believes that every movie Jack makes he will impart that secret to all of us, the audience. He never does, says Hackman, and that is why Hackman will watch his movies over and over: to find that secret of life.... Part of Nicholson's charisma comes from his much discussed personal life. That image of him that spices up his performances. By all accounts, Jack spent most of his adult life as a swinging bachelor who constantly draws women into his orbit. With his pals Marlon Brando and Warren Beatty, they were the most notorious Hollywood ladies men of the last 50 years. These famous and rich men-- who were neighbors, inspiring the Beverly Hills police department to label their street ''Bad Boy Lane'' because of the endless parties and women--- enjoyed with relish all of the trappings of success. Beatty eventually settled down, Brando, of course, died, but, Jack still keeps the hedonistic flame burning up there on Mulholland Drive. Women report that he takes care of them, both in the bedroom and out. He has had many children with many women, and, seems to be a doting father. The Rascal Jack still remains, though. Every once in a while, you will hear of a lady he is dating--usually several decades his junior. The flaw in his relationships with women is his inability to stay faithful. He never hid this fact from them, but, his carousing of thousands of women [ by his own account] has stopped him from having a serious, long term companion at this stage of his life. Jack still enjoys playing the Rogue. Maybe, it is tied into his characters in his movies: you can't control a Rebel. As a fellow guy who loves women I give Jack high marks at his age, still in there pitching..... It is not necessary to enjoy the person and their personal exploits in order to enjoy their work. That is the ultimate statement of any artist. The work. And, Jack Nicholson has the largest canvass of quality work of any film actor for the last 40 plus years. A review: a drifter who embodies a lost generation in ''Five Easy Pieces''. A career sailor bent on showing a poor soul one last good time in ''The Last Detail.'' Private eye Jake Gittes plowing through corruption, and finally learning, a secret that shocks his soul in his best movie, ''Chinatown.'' The ultimate rebel against the establishment, McMurphy, in his second best movie, ''One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest.'' A madman on the loose in ''The Shining''. '' That astronaut who loves Shirley Maclaine in ''Terms Of Endearment.'' The dumb, comic hitman in ''Prizzi's Honor''. A bum haunted by his past in the great ''Ironweed''. A wild comic turn in ''Batman''. His few good scenes in the otherwise laughable ''A Few Good Men''. A blistering performance as Jimmy Hoffa in ''Hoffa''. The father who seeks revenge against the man who killed his daughter accidentally in the interesting Sean Penn directed movie ''The Crossing Guard''. That angry and isolated artist who learns about friendship and love in ''As Good As It Gets''. A retired man who finds himself, late in life, in ''About Schmidt''. And, his no-holds barred performance in Martin Scorsese's ''The Departed''. These works brought Jack 3 Academy Awards and the respect of the industry. He is, by common consensus, the most admired and popular man in the Hollywood community. When he comes down from Mulholland Drive to work, a ripple runs through the industry and the public. He is Our Jack, the beloved symbol of the times we have lived in.... In closing I do have a Jack story. I was an extra on ''Hoffa'' in 1992, when it filmed in Chicago for 2 weeks. It was a night shoot, so the actual work started in the wee hours. One night, I saw Jack, uh, ''altered'' from the ''spices of life''. I was standing next to him and Danny DeVito, who was directing. DeVito asked Jack if he was ok. Jack smiled that killer smile of his and said yes. I did not talk to Jack that night, my error, but, it was fun to be in his presence and to see him work. The nights I saw him act he was flawless. Never a mistake. Prepared and punctual. Except for one night he was late... You see, the Bulls were playing Portland in the championship and we were waiting for him. This was the time before cell phones, so, one of the extras called home on a pay phone and spoke with his wife. The man said, yes, we were waiting for Nicholson. Nobody knew where he was. The wife then told her husband that she was watching him at that moment on T.V. He was sitting in the crowd, shades on, with a beautiful woman next to him. High on life. Rebel to the end.... Happy Birthday, Jack!!!!!