For many years Apple has promoted their iTunes digital music store by having celebrities publish playlists of songs. In 2005, actor Robert Downey Jr. revealed his playlist which included Harry Nilsson's "Me and My Arrow" which Downey describes as "a Gershwin-esque beautifully romatic song about a man's best friend ... his Arrow."
Robert John Downey Jr. (born April 4, 1965) is an American actor. He is known for his versatility across a wide range of films and characters. His films as a leading actor have grossed over $14.3 billion worldwide, making him one of the highest-grossing actors of all time. Downey was the highest-paid actor in Hollywood annually from 2013 to 2015. His accolades include an Academy Award, a Daytime Emmy Award, three Golden Globe Awards, and two British Academy Film Awards. At the age of five, Downey made his acting debut in his father Robert Downey Sr.'s film Pound (1970). He rose to prominence by working with the Brat Pack for the teen films Weird Science (1985) and Less than Zero (1987). His portrayal of Charlie Chaplin in the biopic Chaplin (1992) earned him the BAFTA Award for Best Actor and an Academy Award nomination. After spending less than a year at a treatment facility on drug charges, Downey joined the television series Ally McBeal in 2000, earning a Golden Globe for his performance. After he was dismissed from the show in 2001 following further drug-related arrests, he entered a court-ordered rehabilitation program and has remained sober since 2003. After Mel Gibson paid his insurance bond, Downey made his film comeback with The Singing Detective (2003). He gained global recognition for starring as Iron Man in ten Marvel Cinematic Universe films, from Iron Man (2008) to Avengers: Endgame (2019). Downey starred as the titular detective in Sherlock Holmes (2009), which earned him a Golden Globe. For his portrayal of Lewis Strauss in Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer (2023), he won an Academy Award, Golden Globe, and BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor. In 2024, he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for the miniseries The Sympathizer and made his Broadway debut in the title role of Ayad Akhtar's McNeal. Time named Downey one of the 100 most influential people in 2008 and Forbes featured him on the Celebrity 100 in 2013 and 2014. He has pursued music, releasing the jazz-pop album The Futurist (2004), which charted on the US Billboard 200. He was married to singer Deborah Falconer between 1992 and 2004 and has been married to film producer Susan Levin since 2005, with whom he co-founded the production company Team Downey. He has three children: one with Falconer and two with Levin. In 2025, Downey was named one of the greatest film actors of the 21st century by The Independent.
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