morgan freeman fun facts
Morgan Freeman, who attended a Paley Center event on Sept. 28, 2017 in New York City, will be awarded the SAG Life Achievement Award on Sunday night. Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images

Morgan Freeman is set to receive the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Life Achievement Award on Sunday, when the award show airs on TNT and TBS, to honor all that he’s accomplished in the world of entertainment.

Aside from having over 50 years of experience in the movie and TV industries, here are six other fun facts about the actor.

1. He co-founded a production company.

In 1996, Freeman started Revelations Entertainment with Lori McCreary as his partner with the goal of creating movies and shows that are thought-provoking and artistic. They’ve produced movies like “Along Came a Spider” in 2003, “Feast of Love” in 2009 and “5 Flights Up,” which was released in 2014. The company’s also responsible for the CBS series “Madam Secretary.”

2. He enlisted in the U.S Air Force.

Starting at a young age, the actor always enjoyed planes and the idea of flying, so he joined the Air Force in 1955 and began working as a radar technician. Eventually, he got to train as a fighter pilot, but he quickly learned that it wasn’t for him and he left in 1959.

3. He has a bee sanctuary.

Deciding that he wanted to do something to help the survival of the bee species, Freeman converted his 124-acre Mississippi property into a bee farm in 2014, beginning with 26 hives of the insects and many bee-friendly plants.

4. He co-owns a blues club.

The 80-year-old opened up the music venue Ground Zero in Mississippi with two partners in 2001 to help showcase the talent of local blues singers.

5. He’s quite the singer.

Clearly, there really isn’t anything that Freeman can’t do because he apparently has a great singing voice, on top of being an actor, business owner and beekeeper.

“He’s an amazing singer,” Freeman’s producing partner McCreary told The Hollywood Reporter. “We’re dying to get him in a musical.”

6. He was in the first all-African American production of “Hello, Dolly!”

The stage show opened on Jan. 16, 1964, but Freeman didn’t come in until 1967. He played the role of Rudolph, replacing David Hartman who portrayed the character when this production of the musical first started.

RELATED STORIES