Mickey Rourke Wins Golden Globe For The Wrestler

Mickey Rourke, whose comeback took a turn for the legitimate as he pinned down the win for Best Actor for The Wrestler, gave a Hollywood-outsider-style acceptance speech that, like Winslet’s overwhelmed batch of thank-yous, provided both amusing and heartfelt entertainment.

“Several years ago, I was almost out of this business, and a young man kinda got in touch with me, and he kinda put his whole career on the line, saying he wanted to represent me,” Rourke said. “So I want to thank David Unger for having the balls. And I want to thank his boss at ICM for not putting him back in the mailroom.”

Director Darren Aronofsky “brought the best out of me,” Rourke continued. “He hates it when I say he’s tough, but he’s one tough son of a bitch.” (Aronofsky rewarded the sentiment by good-naturedly giving his star the finger.) “If you’re not in shape, the man will bring you down, because I always say he’s smarter than the rest of us—maybe not Steven,” he added, meaning the night’s Cecil B. DeMille Award recipient, Steven Spielberg.