Like this one: 'Clint Eastwood' is an anagram for 'Old West Action.' | REUTERS 10 essential facts about Eastwood

Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood, who endorsed Mitt Romney earlier this month, has been confirmed as the Republican National Convention’s “mystery speaker” Thursday evening. But he’s more than just an actor and director: Over the years, he’s worked as a jazz pianist, a country song crooner, a public issues advocate and a politician.

( Also on POLITICO: Clint Eastwood to make Romney's day)


Here are POLITICO’s top 10 facts about Eastwood:

1. Has described himself more as a “ libertarian” and is pro-choice and supports gay marriage.

2. Was elected the nonpartisan mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, Calif., and was appointed to the California State Parks and Recreation Commission by Democratic Gov. Gray Davis.

3. Has had seven children with five different women but only been married twice.

4. Said in a 2000 interview on CNN that he supports certain forms of gun control, including mandatory waiting periods.

5. Was drafted into the U.S. Army during the Korean War, where he served as a lifeguard, and was aboard a military flight that crashed into the Pacific Ocean.

( PHOTOS: Clint Eastwood gets political)

6. Released an album in 1963 titled “ Rawhide’s Clint Eastwood Sings Cowboy Favorites.”

7. Became interested in acting because a friend told him about “the good-lookin’ chicks” in the field, he told Esquire.

8. Was approached to take the role of James Bond after Sean Connery left the franchise in the early 1980s but turned it down.

9. Has composed the score for a number of his films and even played Carnegie Hall in 1996.

10. “Clint Eastwood” is an anagram for “Old West Action.”