Nick Nolte was once a terrific sex symbol, but he’s now best recognized for playing tough-guy characters.

Yesterday, the beautiful actor turned 82, and I must say that he no longer looks like the heartthrob he was in the 1970s.

To me, Nick Nolte is undoubtedly one of the greatest actors in American cinema history, and I have the highest regard for his tremendous talent.

His firm, square jaw, angulus orbital bones and forehead, and free-flowing, unruly hair give him the image of a powerful, almost barbarian character from a Shakespeare play, which I find appealing.

His work is intriguing because of the passion and pain in his eyes and his range as an actor. Nick constantly gives genuine acting performances, and his resume demonstrates that many of us respect his acting ability.

In 1991, actor Nick Nolte won the Golden Globe for Best Performance in a Drama Film. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor in 1991 for his performance in the lead movie The Prince of Tides.

Nolte was also nominated for an Oscar for his role in Affliction and Warrior. Yesterday’s Golden Globe-winning actor is almost unrecognizable today.

After publishing his infamous disheveled mug shot in 2002, he lost a lot of credibility. His reputation suffered as a result of legal and personal concerns.

It’s challenging to see Nolte as the definitive incarnation of the all-American hero ideal for a modern audience in the 1970s. People magazine awarded him the title of “Sexiest Man Alive.”

Even Nolte admits that as a child, he was timid and struggled to find his place in groups. He worked in school and was not correctly diagnosed with dyslexia until much later.

Nolte, born on February 8, 1941, in Omaha, Nebraska, had his big break in the television miniseries Rich Man, Poor Man. (1976). He was a rising talent who became an overnight sensation in the United States.

However, in the 1960s, he established a modeling career. During the Clairol hair dye “Summer Blonde” advertising campaign in 1972, he and Sigourney Weaver appeared in some of his most iconic images. In the view of 1980s kids, that commercial was the only time a man adorned the cover of a package of women’s hair dye.

Despite being a relative unknown at the time of his casting in Rich Man, Poor Man, Nolte proved to be an excellent choice for the character of Rudy’s brother Tom. He delivered a tremendous performance as Jordache that could only come from a real American hero.

The show changed Nolte’s life, as his portrayal of Tom, the quintessential bad boy, enthralled and enchanted women. Nolte also had to make significant investments in his physical well-being. He weighed roughly 150 pounds early in the production when he played the major role of a young man.

“The thing about 48 Hours that isn’t often thought about is that it’s the first film in which the black and white criticize each other,” Nolte stated in 2011.

“It was very awkward for whites and blacks after Civil Rights.” We didn’t know how to communicate with one another.”

In the 1990s, Nolte’s career was at its peak. He amassed a fortune and rose to the top of the acting profession as a true A-lister.