Little Known Facts About Johnny Depp of Pirates of the Caribbean Fame

You've heard him play in rock bands, you've seen him act in movies such as "A Nightmare on Elm Street" and "Platoon". Then, you saw him star as Captain Jack Sparrow in the Disney box office hits, the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies. Read this informative article and learn some little known facts about Johnny Depp you probably don't know!

Early Life
Unlike many other celebrities like John Wayne, Tom Cruise and Charlie Sheen, Johnny Depp kept his real name instead of changing it when he entered showbusiness. He was born John Christopher Depp II on June 9, 1963 in Owensboro, Kentucky. (He grew up in Florida.) His father was an engineer and his mother Betty Sue worked as a waitress. (His parents later divorced when he was 15.) A brother Danny, and sisters Debbie and Christie rounded out the Depp family.

His Teenage Years
A little known fact about Johnny Depp is that he began smoking cigarettes at the young age of twelve. He now smokes his own rolleys, preferring Bali Shag brand tobacco and Rizla cigarette paper.

At the same age, Johnny Depp decided to teach himself how to play the guitar. It took him two years to do it, but he finally succeeded.

While other teens who loved rock 'n roll had posters of their favorite artists plastered across their bedroom walls, Depp's bedroom looked like an art museum instead. He thinks highly of Vincent Van Gogh and had reproductions of his art hung up instead.

Of course, being that Depp is a musician himself, he has always loved music. His favorite rocker is Keith Richards. In fact, he designed his Jack Sparrow character in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies to be a mixture of Richards, cartoon skunk "Pepe Le Pew" and Dean Martin.

School life was rather exciting with Depp around. He mooned a teacher and got suspended. At age 17, Johnny Depp dropped out of high school to pursue his love of music and start a rock band.