53 Facts About Richard Dreyfuss

Richard Dreyfuss emerged from the New Hollywood wave of American cinema, finding fame with a succession of leading man parts in the 1970s.

Richard Dreyfuss has received an Academy Award, a BAFTA, and a Golden Globe Award.

Richard Dreyfuss won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Elliot Garfield in the 1977 romantic comedy The Goodbye Girl, and was Oscar-nominated in the same category for his title role in the 1995 drama Mr Holland's Opus.

On television, Richard Dreyfuss starred as the title character on the CBS drama series The Education of Max Bickford, for which he was nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor.

Richard Dreyfuss portrayed Fagin in the 1997 Disney adaptation of Oliver Twist, Meyer Lansky in HBO's Lansky, Alexander Haig in Showtime's The Day Reagan Was Shot, and Bernie Madoff in the ABC miniseries Madoff.

Richard Dreyfuss was born on October 29,1947, in Brooklyn, New York City, the second and younger son of Norman Richard Dreyfuss, an attorney, restaurateur and plastics company owner originally from a "violent gang culture in Brooklyn", and Geraldine, a peace activist.

Richard Dreyfuss had an older brother, Lorin, who was an actor, film producer and screenwriter, and a younger sister, Cathy.

Richard Dreyfuss left the family when his son was 21 years old, and remarried more than once; he and his son were not on speaking terms at the time of his death.

Richard Dreyfuss's family is Jewish, descended from immigrants from Russia and Poland; the Dreyfuss family was from Rzeszow.

Richard Dreyfuss has commented that he "grew up thinking that Alfred Dreyfus and [he] are from the same family" and that his great-grand aunt was Hesya Helfman, one of the assassins of Tsar Alexander II of Russia and the only one to escape execution for the deed.

Richard Dreyfuss's father disliked New York, and moved the family first to Europe, and later to Los Angeles when Dreyfuss was nine.

Richard Dreyfuss began acting in his youth, at Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills Arts Center and the Westside Jewish Community Center, under drama teacher Bill Miller.

Richard Dreyfuss debuted in the TV production In Mama's House, when he was fifteen.

Richard Dreyfuss attended San Fernando Valley State College, now California State University, Northridge, for a year, and was a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War, working in alternate service for two years, as a clerk in a Los Angeles hospital.

Richard Dreyfuss played a larger role in an episode in the second season of Judd, for the Defense.

Richard Dreyfuss appeared in the play The Time of Your Life, which was revived on March 17,1972, at the Huntington Hartford Theater in Los Angeles, and directed by Edwin Sherin.

Richard Dreyfuss's first film role was a small, uncredited appearance in The Graduate.

In mid-1972, Richard Dreyfuss filmed a supporting role in The Second Coming of Suzanne, but the movie did not premiere for two years.

Richard Dreyfuss subsequently appeared in Dillinger, and landed a key role in the 1973 George Lucas hit American Graffiti, acting with other future stars such as Harrison Ford.

Richard Dreyfuss played his first lead role in the Canadian film The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, receiving positive reviews, including praise from Pauline Kael.

Richard Dreyfuss went on to star in box office blockbusters Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, both directed by Steven Spielberg.

Richard Dreyfuss won the 1978 Academy Award for Best Actor at the 50th Academy Awards ceremony for his portrayal of a struggling actor in The Goodbye Girl, becoming the youngest actor to do so, besting Marlon Brando, who had won his first Oscar in 1955 at the age of 30 years, 360 days old.

In five years, between 1973 and 1978, the films that Richard Dreyfuss appeared in grossed upwards of $900 million.

Richard Dreyfuss made his producing debut with The Big Fix, in which he starred.

Richard Dreyfuss's addiction came to a head in 1982, when he was arrested for possession of the drug after he blacked out while driving, and his Mercedes-Benz 450 SL struck a tree.

Richard Dreyfuss entered rehabilitation and eventually made a Hollywood comeback with the films Down and Out in Beverly Hills in 1986 and Stakeout the following year.

Richard Dreyfuss was nominated for a Golden Globe playing a defense lawyer in the courtroom thriller Nuts.

In 1989, Richard Dreyfuss reunited with Spielberg on Always, a remake of A Guy Named Joe in which he co-starred with Holly Hunter, and reunited with his Close Encounters co-star Teri Garr for the comedy Let It Ride.

That same year, Richard Dreyfuss produced and starred as Georges Picquart in Prisoner of Honor, an HBO movie about the historical Dreyfus Affair.

Richard Dreyfuss recited Kaddish as part of a performance of Leonard Bernstein's Third Symphony with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Gilbert Levine.

Richard Dreyfuss received his second Oscar nomination for his performance as Glenn Holland in Mr Holland's Opus.

In 1997, Richard Dreyfuss recorded a voiceover for the Apple Computer "Think Different" ad campaign, and provided the voice of the narrator in The Call of the Wild: Dog of the Yukon.

In 1999, Richard Dreyfuss made his London West End debut starring alongside Marsha Mason in Neil Simon's The Prisoner of Second Avenue at the Theatre Royal Haymarket.

Richard Dreyfuss spent four years as a research adviser at St Antony's College, Oxford, from 2004 until 2008.

Richard Dreyfuss was scheduled to appear in a 2004 production of The Producers in London, but withdrew from the production a week before opening night.

The media noted that Richard Dreyfuss was suffering from problems relating to an operation for a herniated disc, and that the part of Max Bialystock in the play was a physically demanding one.

Richard Dreyfuss ultimately made his West End return at The Old Vic in 2009.

Richard Dreyfuss's performance was subject to some controversy, owing to his use of an earpiece onstage, reportedly because of his inability to learn his lines in time.

Richard Dreyfuss was focused on learning the lines of his script at the time and did not notice any harassment.

Richard Dreyfuss guest-voiced as himself in the "Three Kings" episode of Family Guy in 2009, and later appeared again in the episode "Peter-assment".

Richard Dreyfuss guest starred in the sixth season of Weeds as Warren Schiff, Nancy's high school teacher to whom she had lost her virginity.

Richard Dreyfuss was inducted as a "star" on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on October 10,1996.

Richard Dreyfuss portrayed Bernie Madoff in the miniseries Madoff, co-starring Blythe Danner.

Richard Dreyfuss followed it up with roles in the hit comedy Book Club opposite Candice Bergen and the Netflix movie The Last Laugh with Chevy Chase and Andie MacDowell.

Richard Dreyfuss married writer and producer Jeramie Rain in the early 1980s, and they had three children.

In 2006, Richard Dreyfuss discussed his diagnosis of bipolar disorder in the documentary Stephen Fry: The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive, in which Fry interviewed Richard Dreyfuss about his experience being bipolar.

Richard Dreyfuss and Russian-born Svetlana Erokhin married in 2006 and as of February 2020 they reside in the San Diego area, although they have frequently visited New York City, London, and Sun Valley, Idaho.

Richard Dreyfuss seeks to revive civics education to teach future generations about the power of their citizenship and the principles that hold America together.

On November 17,2006, Richard Dreyfuss appeared on HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher as a panel member to discuss teaching Civics in schools.

In 2007, Richard Dreyfuss appeared in the youth voting documentary film 18 in '08.

In 1995, Richard Dreyfuss co-authored with science-fiction writer Harry Turtledove the book The Two Georges, a novel set in the year 1995 of a timeline in which the American Revolution was peacefully avoided.

Richard Dreyfuss has been outspoken regarding the media's influence in shaping public opinion, policy, and legislation.

In 2011 and 2014, Richard Dreyfuss was elected to the Common Cause National Governing Board.