Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook) plays the lead in the American Sniper movie.
The movie American Sniper is based on the NY Times #1 Best Selling Non-Fiction book of the same name by the late Chris Kyle.
The American Sniper movie recounts the military career of Chris Kyle who was known as the most lethal sniper in American military history, with 255 kills.
The full title of the book is “American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History.”
When Chris Kyle was 8, his father taught him to shoot. As a youth, he trained as a bronco rider for the rodeo, which he gave up after a serious injury to his arm. He had intended to volunteer and enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps, and was recruited by the U.S. Army, but eventually enlisted with the U.S. Navy. Chris Kyle served four tours in the second Iraq war, and was awarded the Bronze and Silver Star medals multiple times. Iraqi insurgents dubbed him the “Devil of Ramadi” and offered an increasing bounty for his head. He was shot twice, and was involved in six IED attacks.
Chris Kyle decided to spend time with his family and was honorably discharged from the U.S. Navy in 2009. He remained in the spotlight after leaving the Navy and wrote a New York Times bestselling autobiography, American Sniper.
Chris Kyle was shot and killed at a shooting range by a fellow veteran on February 2, 2013, near Chalk Mountain, Texas.
