Javier Bardem was a stripper before becoming an international star! He was so desperate for cash as a struggling actor so he did the striptease. Bardem, the Oscar-winning actor who stars in the lastest Woody Allen’s comedy, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona,” says he’s not ashamed about his early days as an exhibitionist.

more photos after the jump…

Javier says, “I danced one night in a place, there was a club. And they asked for a guy to kind of make a striptease and I did it… It was for ten minutes. I needed money.
“My mother was there in the audience. She was so proud.”

What a cool mamma! You do know that Javier is dating Penelope Cruz, right? A source close to the couple told Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper as reports by Hollyscoop : “Both Penelope and Javier are very excited about their future together. It has been rumored that Javier has already proposed – but he hasn’t asked Penelope to marry him yet.”

photos: Javier Bardem taken with Woody Allen and co-stars, Chris Messina, Penelope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson and Rebecca Hall at both the New York and L.A. premieres of Vicky Cristina Barcelona

photos: PR Photos