- Was in a relationship with Barbara Parkins between his first and second marriages. In the 1970s, he dated Anouk Aimée, Barbara Allen, Ursula Andress, Jacqueline Bisset, Florinda Bolkan, Juanita Brown, Barbara Carrera, Oona Chaplin, Julie Christie, Pat Cleveland, Joan Collins, Britt Ekland, Melanie Griffith, Sabrina Guinness, Christa Helm, Anjelica Huston, Lauren Hutton, Bianca Jagger, Claudine Longet, Diana Ross, Cybill Shepherd, Barbra Streisand, Diane von Fürstenberg, Tuesday Weld and Lana Wood. He was later involved with Leslie Stefanson while on a break from Farrah.
- Ryan O'Neal is credited with an 18-4, 13 knockouts amateur boxing record. However, he was introduced in 1970 for an exhibition match with Joe Frazier as having 14 victories. Muhammad Ali commented that O'Neal was definitely a good boxer.
- Father of Patrick O'Neal (full name at birth: Charles Samuel Eldridge Patrick Ryan O'Neal IV) with actress Leigh Taylor-Young.
- Father, with Joanna Moore, of daughter Tatum O'Neal and son Griffin O'Neal. Ex-father-in-law of John McEnroe.
- Four of his ex-lovers are former Bond girls: Ursula Andress, Barbara Carrera, Britt Ekland and Lana Wood.
- Prosecutors decided not to file charges against Ryan O'Neal following a row with his son and allegations of assault on February 3rd. (May 2007)
- His son Griffin O'Neal was involved in a speedboating accident mishap that killed Francis Ford Coppola's 23-year-old son Gian-Carlo Coppola in 1986. Griffin was indicted and charged with manslaughter, convicted on December 19, 1986 of the negligent operation of a boat but not guilty of a more serious charge of manslaughter, just receiving a $200 fine and placed on 18 months' probation.
- Friends with Lee Majors until his long-term relationship began with Majors' then-wife, actress Farrah Fawcett.
- Began his career as a stand-in and stuntman. He was reportedly considered for the role of Michael Corleone in The Godfather (1972) as well as for the role of Rocky Balboa in Rocky (1976). However, "Rocky" scriptwriter Sylvester Stallone had sold the film rights on the condition that he got to play the title role, so he and not O'Neal wound up starring in the picture.
- O'Neal stood 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighed 165 pounds during his boxing career. He is a Southpaw.
- O'Neal started amateur boxing at the CYO, The Catholic Youth Organization.
- In 1970, Ryan O'Neal boxed a two round exhibition with future Heavyweight World Champion, Joe Frazier. The referee was former two-time Heavyweight Champion, Floyd Patterson. Muhammad Ali and Mike Douglas scored the match as a win for Joe Frazier, even though O'Neal threw more punches. O'Neal was announced as a winner of 14 amateur fights.
- Was arrested on charges of assault with a deadly weapon and negligent discharge of a firearm after a fight with his son Griffin O'Neal. Griffin apparently tied his intoxicated younger brother Redmond O'Neal to a staircase in order to keep him from leaving the house to use more drugs. When Ryan returned home and saw his son tied to the staircase he became so enraged that he fired a warning shot in order to scare Griffin. (February 2007)
- He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7057 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on February 12, 2021.
- In the 1950s, O'Neal was an amateur boxer in the United States and Germany. He competed in Golden Gloves (Boxing) Tournaments in California, as well as amateur smokers (non-tournament bouts) in California and Germany. His boxing record was 18 wins, 13 by knockout(s) and 4 defeats. His best known opponent was future world light-heavyweight contender, Jimmy James (Rosette); they fought in Germany where James was stationed in the Navy and O'Neal was living and attending high school.
- Appeared in two films nominated for Best Picture Academy Award: Love Story (1970) and Barry Lyndon (1975).
- Patrick "Ryan" O'Neal attended and graduated from Munich American High School (established to serve the US military in the Southern Bavarian region after World War II) in 1959. His brother is Kevin O'Neal. Their father was a Hollywood writer who was doing a stint working for the famed communist-busting "Radio Free Europe," and he attended high school at Munich AHS alongside the children of servicemen stationed there.
- Treated for chronic myelogenous leukemia since 2001. O'Neal's spokeswoman Dede Binder told Reuters that O'Neal had been diagnosed with " ... chronic leukemia. It is treatable and he is doing very well". In April 2012, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
- Son of Patricia O'Neal and Charles O'Neal. Ryan's paternal grandfather, Charles Samuel Eldridge Patrick Ryan O'Neal, was born in South Carolina, and had Irish and English ancestry. His paternal grandmother, Elizabeth Maude Duffey, was born in Ireland, as was Ryan's maternal grandfather, Richard Edward O'Callaghan. His maternal grandmother, Mathilde Pius, was born in New York, to a Jewish family; Mathilde's father, Gustave Pius, was from Germany, and Mathilde's mother, Rebecca (or Regina) Iglick, was from Schrimm (now Srem, Poland).
- Resided with Farrah Fawcett from 1979 to 1997; the union produced a son, Redmond O'Neal. In 2001, the couple came back together after Ryan O'Neal was diagnosed with leukemia.
- Got his part in the film Partners after Tom Selleck dropped out.
- Although never able to convince Farrah Fawcett to marry him, O'Neal did propose various times. Fawcett died at 9:28 AM PST on June 25, 2009 at age 62 before she and O'Neal could carry out the ceremony.
- In 2016, O'Neal entered the boxing ring and sparred with former professional boxer John Scully at the Bright Futures Boxing Gym in Hartford, Connecticut.
- One of his best friends is Charlie Mattera.
- He and his son Redmond O'Neal were arrested on suspicion of narcotics possession. (September 2008)
- O'Neal presented the Best Supporting Actress Oscar at the 1985 ceremony. The winner was Dame Peggy Ashcroft for A Passage to India (1984), however she did not attend the ceremony and the award was accepted on her behalf by Angela Lansbury.
- O'Neal competed in the Junior Golden Gloves Boxing Tournament in California as a middleweight.
- Was sentenced to undergo 18 months of rehabilitation treatment after pleading guilty to drug possession in relation to his arrest in September 2008. (January 2009)
- In his 2nd amateur boxing match, O'Neal lost a 3-round decision to Jimmy Rossette (aka Jimmy James) a future world light heavyweight contender. This bout took place in California, even though some sources listed the bout in Germany.
- In 2011, Tatum published a book with her father and appeared with him on the TV show Ryan and Tatum: the O'Neals.
- His manager is Neil Hassman.
- O'Neal served 51 days of a 60-day sentence for assaulting a stranger during a New Year's Eve party in Los Angeles, California. (1960)
- O'Neal's brother Kevin, was also an amateur boxer and competed as a Bantamweight. The brothers were sparring and training partners.
- O'Neal's amateur boxing coach/trainer was "Cannonball" Green.
- Ex-brother-in-law of Dey Young and Lance Young.
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