Men who are naughty, nice

THE American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language describes a Casanova as a “man who is amorously and gallantly attentive to women” and as a “promiscuous man; a philanderer.” Both definitions are based on the overheated life of Giovanni Jacopo Casanova de Seingalt, an Italian adventurer who lived 1725-98 and vividly wrote about his conquests of beautiful women.

Given the subject matter, it’s no surprise that Casanova and various womanizers have long been a popular subject in literature, plays and films.

Heath Ledger, who plays the title role in the new lighthearted, romantic take on the Casanova tale, is just the latest in the list of famous actors who have played hedonistic womanizers on the big screen.

Here’s a rogues’ gallery of actors who have swept women off their feet in the movies -- and frequently adopted the same behavior off-screen.

Michael Caine/

Jude Law

The British actors share a role in common -- that of the callous Cockney lady-killer in the comedy-drama “Alfie.”

Caine shot to international superstardom -- and his first Oscar nomination -- in the 1966 version.

Law proved to be catnip to women in London in the poorly received 2004 remake, but unlike Caine’s more cynical approach to the character, Law sported a boyish charm and even developed a conscience when he realized the devastating effects of his love-’em-and-leave-’em attitude.

Of course, Law found himself in a very “Alfie” situation earlier this year, when it was discovered he’d had an affair with his children’s nanny while he was engaged to “Alfie” costar Sienna Miller.

Johnny Depp

The popular actor vividly illustrates both sides of the philandering coin in two distinctly different films.

In the 1995 “Don Juan DeMarco,” Depp captures both the comedic elements and poignancy of his character -- a young mental patient who believes he is the greatest lover in the world.

Depp travels to the lower depths in “The Libertine,” which opens Jan. 13. As the famed rake the Earl of Rochester, Depp creates a truly depraved hedonist whose hard-living and -loving ways literally eat away at him like a cancer.

John Barrymore

To say that Drew Barrymore’s grandfather was perfectly cast in 1926’s “Don Juan” is something of an understatement. “The Great Profile,” as John Barrymore was nicknamed, was married several times and had a long list of conquests, including his “Don Juan” leading lady Mary Astor. As the notorious lover in this lavish swashbuckler, Barrymore delivers some 191 kisses to various women -- which means he puckers up on average every 53 seconds.

Donald Sutherland

The “Commander in Chief” star played the notorious scoundrel in Federico Fellini’s 1976 film, “Il Casanova di Federico Fellini.” The lengthy extravaganza, based on Casanova’s autobiography, isn’t among Fellini’s best, but Sutherland is an interesting, atypical choice to play this libertine.

Sutherland, though, seemed to have much more fun playing nurse-chasing doctor Capt. “Hawkeye” Pierce in Robert Altman’s 1970 comedy classic “MASH.”

Bob Hope

Perhaps nobody could play the comedic sheep in wolf’s clothing better than Hope.

In the 1954 comedy “Casanova’s Big Night” he plays a meek, high-strung tailor named Pippo Popolino, who believes he can finally have some success with the ladies if he pretends he’s Casanova. The ruse is that Pippo doesn’t know that Casanova is deeply in debt.

Hope played a more contemporary lothario in the 1961 comedy hit “Bachelor in Paradise,” which finds him cast as the popular writer of the “Bachelor Book” series, in which he travels the world reporting about the romantic life of a bachelor in various locales. Due to a tax snafu, he’s forced to return to the U.S., where he decides to write about bachelors living in suburbia.

Gary Cooper

Though he was a sophisticate in real life, in reel life Cooper was usually cast as genial, shy characters such as Longfellow Deeds in “Mr. Deeds Goes to Town.”

But he did go the rogue route with uneven results in the 1938 Ernst Lubitsch comedy, “Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife.” (The film’s tagline was: “He married in haste and repeated in pleasure!”)

Nineteen years later, Billy Wilder cast Cooper in his tribute to Lubitsch -- “Love in the Afternoon.” In this romantic comedy classic, many critics considered Cooper too long in the tooth but say he still managed to give one of his best performances from the late 1950s as a swinging bachelor who finds love with a young Parisian woman (Audrey Hepburn).

Hugh Grant

The contemporary cinema’s answer to Cary Grant, this British actor has cornered the market on playing rogues -- especially as Bridget Jones’ snake-charming boss in both “Bridget Jones” movies and as the slacker in the 2002 comedy-drama “About a Boy.”

Douglas Fairbanks

One of the superstars of the silent era -- along with wife Mary Pickford -- the athletic, charming and romantic actor had a hard time in the sound era. He made his last film at the age of 51 -- the disappointing 1934 Alexander Korda production “The Private Life of Don Juan.” Critics noted that Fairbanks, who had romanced his way through such swashbucklers as “The Mark of Zorro” and “The Black Pirate,” seems tired and far older than his years.

Errol Flynn

Just like John Barrymore, Flynn was a notorious philanderer -- even ending up in court on statutory rape charges.

By the time he made 1948’s “Adventures of Don Juan,” his lifestyle was beginning to catch up with him. Despite his less-than-fit body and dissipated handsomeness, Flynn is still quite charming as the famed lover in this Technicolor souffle. And he delivers the film’s final line with his customary devil-may-care finesse: “My dear friend, there’s a little bit of Don Juan in every man, and since I am Don Juan, there must be more of it in me!”