5 Things You Didn't Know: Robert Downey Jr.

There's A Lot Of Surprises In RDJ's Past

Page 2 of 2

3. Robert Downey Jr. released a solo album

Another thing you didn't know about Robert Downey Jr. is that in 2004 he released a solo album on Sony, entitled The Futurist. Although he had contributed music to both film and television, the album marked his debut as a singer/songwriter and it featured, in his words: "highbrow pop with jazz and classical influences."

In 2006, Downey Jr. told the Guardian (arguably tongue-in-cheek): "I don't see why I'd want to do another album. The Futurist came out and made its money back, but I worked my ass off and I was not compensated in the fashion I was accustomed to."

4 . He bought Charlie Chaplin's house in 1988

In 1988, a few years before taking on the role that brought him so much acclaim, Robert Downey Jr. was living large as a young, rich and successful Hollywood actor. That year, Rolling Stone published a profile that at times reads as disturbing in light of what was known about his lifestyle. In it, his publicist revealed that he was in the process of buying a Spanish-deco home that had originally been built for Charlie Chaplin.

5. He buried his Less Than Zero clothes in his backyard

The last thing you didn't know about Robert Downey Jr. is what he's got buried in his backyard. Following his filming of Chaplin, Robert Downey Jr. buried the clothes he'd worn during the filming of 1987's Less Than Zero as a means of symbolically cutting ties with his debauched Brat Pack past.

He related the aftermath to GQin 1993, saying: "The next day I was, like: 'F*ck, why did I do that?' But four days later, I felt something drift away. (The burial) represents acknowledging how a lack of self-nurturing leads to gruesome results. It's one thing to see the train coming, and another to get out of the way."

6. He hates ambitious press nerds asking inane, probing questions about his troubled past during run-of-the-mill press junkets

Like this, for instance: