Washington's Literary Inspiration

Hollywood icon Denzel Washington draws on legendary American investigative reporters CARL BERNSTEIN and BOB WOODWARD when preparing for relevant screen roles.

The TRAINING DAY star found Woodward's influence particularly useful when he was preparing to star in 1993 thriller THE PELICAN BRIEF opposite JULIA ROBERTS.

Bernstein and Woodward wrote ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN, the account of how they exposed the Watergate scandal in the 1970s.

The 49-year-old actor says, "I use their investigative skills when I'm working out how to portray a certain character. Just before I filmed The Pelican Brief I went to the WASHINGTON POST (newspaper) to hang out with Bob Woodward, and he'd always go outside to talk to somebody by a tree or something.

"I never knew what he was saying. I was like, 'Who's that? Who is out there?'"