Whoopi Goldberg

Whoopi Goldberg (born Caryn Elaine Johnson, November 13, 1955), is an Academy Award, Daytime Emmy Award, Golden Globe, Tony, BAFTA and Grammy Award-winning American comedian and film actress. Although her father was a Protestant preacher, Goldberg says that her family is of mixed religious heritage - including Catholic, Buddhist and Jewish traditions , hailing from a "West Indian" immigrant community. Although she has a religious family heritage, she does not consider herself in any religious order. Her stage name was taken from 'whoopie cushion', which she initially wanted as her name, but chose the last moniker of Goldberg after her mother pointed out that her initial name pick would not look dignified enough to take seriously.

Whoopi is one of only a few individuals (including Barbra Streisand, Rita Moreno, Audrey Hepburn and Helen Hayes) who have won an Oscar, a Tony, an Emmy, and a Grammy. However, a 2006 Maxim magazine reader poll selected Goldberg as the "3rd Worst Comedian of All Time." Margaret Cho was selected as number two, and Sinbad was number one. ^*

Filmography

Citizen (1982)
The Color Purple (1985)
Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986)
Burglar (1987)
Fatal Beauty (1987)
The Telephone (1988)
Clara's Heart (1988)
Comicitis (1989) (short subject)
Beverly Hills Brats (1989) (Cameo)
Homer & Eddie (1989)
Ghost (1990)
The Long Walk Home (1990)
Wisecracks (1991) (documentary)
Blackbird Fly (1991) (short subject)
Sister Act (1992)
The Player (1992)
Soapdish (1992)
Sarafina! (1992)
The Magical World of Chuck Jones (1992) (documentary)
Naked in New York (1993)
Loaded Weapon 1 (1993) (Cameo)
Made in America (1993)
Back in the Habit (1993)
Liberation (1994) (documentary) (narrator)
The Lion King (1994) (voice)
The Little Rascals (1994) (cameo)
Corrina, Corrina (1994)
Generations (1994)
The Pagemaster (1994) (voice)
Boys on the Side (1995)
The Celluloid Closet (1995) (documentary)
Moonlight and Valentino (1995)
Theodore Rex (1995)
Eddie (1996)
Bordello of Blood (1996) (Cameo)
Bogus (1996)
The Associate (1996)
Ghosts of Mississippi (1996)
Pitch (1997) (documentary)
Mary Pickford: A Life on Film (1997) (documentary) (narrator)
Destination Anywhere (1997)
In & Out (1997) (Cameo)
Burn Hollywood Burn (1997) (Cameo)
Titey (1998) (short subject) (voice)
Alegría (1998)
How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998)
Junket Whore (1998) (documentary)
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Movie (1998) (voice)
The Rugrats Movie (1998) (voice)
''The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns (1999)....The Grand Banshee
Get Bruce (1999) (documentary)
The Deep End of the Ocean (1999)
Girl, Interrupted (1999)
The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (2000) (Cameo)
A Second Chance at Life (2000) (documentary) (narrator)
More Dogs Than Bones (2000)
Golden Dreams (2001) (short subject)
Kingdom Come (2001)
Monkeybone (2001)
Rat Race (2001)
The Hollywood Sign (2001) (Cameo)
Searching for Debra Winger (2002) (documentary)
Showboy (2002) (Cameo)
Nemesis (2002) (Cameo)
Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives (2003) (documentary) (narrator)
Pauly Shore Is Dead (2003)
Bitter Jester (2003) (documentary)
Beyond the Skyline (2003) (short subject)
Blizzard (2003) (voice)
Pinocchio 3000 (2004) (voice)
The N-Word (2004) (documentary)
Baby Geniuses 2 (2004) (Cameo)
Jiminy Glick in Lalawood (2004) (Cameo)
The Aristocrats (2005) (documentary)
Racing Stripes (2005) (voice)
Doogal (2006) (voice)

Upcoming:

It's Under My Skin (2006)
The Lasy Guy on Earth (2006)
Yankee Irving (2006) (voice)

TV work

Whoopi Goldberg: Direct from Broadway (1985)
Carol, Carl, Whoopi, and Robin (1987)
Whoopi Goldberg: Fontaine... Why Am I Straight (1988) (also writer)
The Next Generation (recurring guest star from 1988-1993)
My Past Is My Own (1989)
Kiss Shot (1989)
Tales from the Whoop: Hot Rod Brown Class Clown (1990)
Bagdad Cafe (1990 - 1991)
Captain Planet and the Planeteers (1990 - 1993) (voice)
Defenders of Dynatron City (1992) (voice)
The Whoopi Goldberg Show (1992 - 1993)
Yuletide in the 'hood (1993) (voice)
A Cool Like That Christmas (1994) (voice)
The Sunshine Boys (1995) (Cameo)
Fairy Tales for Every Child (1995 - 1999) (voice)
Mother Goose: A Rappin' and Rhymin' Special (1997) (voice)
Cinderella (1997)
A Knight in Camelot (1998)
Hollywood Squares (center square from 1998-2002) (also producer)
Alice in Wonderland (1999)
Jackie's Back! (1999)
Foxbusters (1999 - 2000) (voice)
Celebrity Dish (2000)
The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns (1999)
What Makes a Family (2001) (also executive producer)
Call Me Claus (2001) (also executive producer)
Madeline: My Fair Madeline (2002) (voice)
It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie (2002)
Good Fences (2003) (also producer)
Whoopi (2003 - 2004) (also executive producer)
Littleburg (2004) (canceled after five episodes)
Whoopi: Back to Broadway - the 20th Anniversary (2005) (also executive producer and writer)
Just for Kicks (only developer and executive producer)

She has made numerous guest appearances on Sesame Street, and guest hosting Live with Regis and Kelly.

Awards (only wins displayed)

Grammy Award - Whoopi, Direct from Broadway (1985)
National Board of Review - The Color Purple (1985, Best lead actress)
Golden Globe - The Color Purple (1986, Best lead actress)
Image Award - The Color Purple (1988, Outstanding lead actress
Image Award - Fatal Beauty (1990, Outstanding lead actress)
Academy Award - Ghost (1991, Best supporting actress)
Golden Globe - Ghost (1991, Best supporting actress)
Saturn Award - Ghost (1991, Best supporting actress)
Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award - Ghost (1991, Best supporting actress)
Image Award - Ghost (1992, Outstanding lead actress)
American Comedy Award - Ghost (1991, Funniest supporting actress)
Bafta Award - Ghost (1991, Best supporting actress)
Image Award - Special Award, Entertainer of the Year 1992
Aftonbladet TV Prize, Sweden (1992, Best Foreign TV personality)
Image Award - The Long Walk Home (1993, Outstanding lead actress)
American Comedy Award - Sister Act (1993, Funniest lead actress)
People's Choice Awards - Favorite Comedy Motion Picture Actress (1993)
People's Choice Awards - Favorite Motion Picture Actress (1993)
Hastings Pudding Theatricals (1993, Woman of the Year)
Image Award - Sister Act (1994, Outstanding lead actress)
People's Choice Awards - Favorite Comedy Motion Picture Actress (1994)
People's Choice Awards - Favorite Comedy Motion Picture Actress (1995)
Fantafestival - Theodore Rex (1996, Best Actress)
Image Award - How Stella got her groove back (1999, Oustanding supporting actress)
Walk of Fame - Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame (2001, Motion Picture)
Gracie Allen Awards - Strong Medicine (2003, Producer)
Daytime Emmy - Beyond Tara: The extraordinary life of Hattie Mcdaniel (2002, Outstanding special class special)
Image Award - Good Fences (2004, Outstanding Actress in a TV movie, Mini-series or Dramatic special)
MVP of the 2003 Kinko's Celebrity Softball Game

Discography

Whoopi: Original Broadway Recording (1985)
Sister Act 2 - Soundtrack (1993)

External links

Notes

Many sources indicate 1949 as her year of birth. However, this is thought to be because of her trying to appear older early in her career, to get better roles as she dropped out of high school at an early age. All recent sources including New York birth records and Goldberg herself says 1955 is correct.
In Book written by Whoopi about observations of hers, Goldberg claims that her family background also is multiracial of black, Russian Jewish, Seminole, white, and Chinese descent. However, on the PBS documentary African American Lives, a DNA test concluded that Goldberg is of 92% African heritage, with the other 8% being inconclusive. ^*