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John Goodman

John Goodman
Date of Birth
20 June 1952, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Birth Name
John Stephen Goodman

Height
6' 2" (1.88 m)

Spouse
Annabeth Hartzog (27 October 1989 - present) 1 child

Trade Mark

[Late 1990s] Occasionally impersonated Linda Tripp on "Saturday Night Live" (1975) during the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Frequently plays the sympathetic friend of the lead character.

Girth and deep voice

Trivia

Is one of the favorite hosts on "Saturday Night Live" (1975), hosting the show 11 times and making numerous surprise appearances starting from the 1989-1990 season to the present.

Daughter Molly Evangeline Goodman (born August 31st 1990) with Annabeth Hartzog.

His first job was as a bouncer.

Graduated from Southwest Missouri State with a drama degree.

Went to Affton High School in Affton, Missouri.

His first TV appearance was for a Burger King commercial in which he had no lines. He only had to bite into a Whopper sandwich with glee.

He was in the original Broadway cast of the 1985 musical "Big River", which is based on The Adventures of Huckelberry Finn. He played Pap Finn and can be heard on the cast recording singing "Guv'ment".

He was regarded as being so crucial to the feature film version of The Flintstones (1994) that the project would have been shelved if he had turned down the role of Fred.

Has played both the King of England (in King Ralph (1991)) and the President of the United States (in certain episodes of "The West Wing" (1999)).

Dan Conner, Goodman's character on "Roseanne" (1988), was ranked #13 in TV Guide's list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" [20 June 2004 issue].

Resides in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Appeared in "A Streetcar Named Desire" with Alec Baldwin. Baldwin, who played the role originated by Marlon Brando, has played Robert De Niro on "Saturday Night Live" (1975). Goodman has played Brando and De Niro on "Saturday Night Live".

Moved to New York City shortly after college and lived in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood. One of the jobs he held down as a struggling actor was as a waiter.

Was ordered by his doctors to lose a lot of weight in 2005. He referred to this as his biggest challenge since quitting smoking in 2003.

Was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon national fraternity (Missouri Eta chapter - Southwest Missouri State University).

Bought his home in New Orleans, Louisiana, from Trent Reznor, the brain behind the rock band Nine Inch Nails.

Was the first guest on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" (1993) when the show premiered on 13 September 1993.

On "Inside the Actors Studio" he revealed that of all the projects he has worked on, "The Big Lebowski" is his favorite.

Had to lose weight in order to play Babe Ruth.

Is a huge fan of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team.

Bought a $4.6 million dollar home in Pacific Palisades, California (2008).

Born to Leslie Goodman, Sr, a postal worker (died in 1955), and his wife Virginia, a store clerk and waitress, he has a sister, Elisabeth (born after father's death), and a brother, Leslie, Jr (14 years senior to John).

His unique style of throwing darts, holding the pointing tip of the dart with his thumb and index finger and then throwing the dart with the opposite end pointing to the board, so that the dart makes a 180-degree in mid air, with the pointed end to the stuck board, can be seen in many of his movies such as King Ralph (1991).

Started off in a small theater in Springboro, Ohio called the Miami Valley Dinner Theater now called La Comedia Dinner Theater. He appeared in the show "1776" in 1975.

Was considered for the role of Buck Russell in Uncle Buck (1989).


News | What members say | Filmography

John Goodman - news / articles


  • Sarandon and Goodman team up with Pacino - 14 July 2009
    -Veteran actress Susan Sarandon will reunite with her Speed Racer co-star John Goodman in Al Pacino's forthcoming drama, You Don't Know Jack.- -Pacino is set to play 'suicide doctor' Jack Kevorkian in an upcoming TV biopic, about the medic who created the 'Mercy Machi


  • Goodman and Cusack join Confessions crew - 5 March 2008
    The Big Lebowski star John Goodman and Grosse Point Blank's Joan Cusack are to team up as the parents of Wedding Crashers actress Isla Fisher for a new comedy, according to reports in Hollywood.-Industry paper Variety says Goodman and Cusack, who also appeared in High

John Goodman - what members say


  • Fallen
  • Fallen review by A customer from Englan
    Rated - 5 stars Watch this but bring an open mind!!!! 21 July 2006
    ...l film, not a bum note througout. Great performances by actors you can rely on (John Goodman, Donald Sutherlan) and a great cameo from Gandolfini. Embeth Davidtz is wonderf...  
  • The Big Lebowski
  • The Big Lebowski review by from Sheffield
    Rated - 5 stars Dude! 13 September 2003
    ...Dude, John Turturro bags the most memorable scene (although there are many) and John Goodman, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Steve Buscemi turn spectacular and hilarious perfor...  
  • Coyote Ugly
  • Coyote Ugly review by A customer from newcastle upon tyne, england
    Rated - 4 stars coyote ugly 6 June 2007
    ...good story with a good cast even though there are no big names in it except for John Goodman. the music is good. good mixture of comedy and romance. Well worth seeing ...  

John Goodman - filmography


  • Gigantic on DVD (2009)
    Starring: Paul Dano,  Zooey Deschanel,  John Goodman
    Director: Matt Aselton
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    Gigantic is a funny, oddly romantic love story about the unanticipated anxiety that comes when two crazy people unexpectedly collide. Brian Weathersby (Paul Dano) is a 28 year-old salesman at a high-end Swedish mattress company. The afterthought child to elderly parents (Ed Asner, Jane Alexander)..read more »
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 53% from 494 members
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  • In the Electric Mist (2009)
    Starring: Tommy Lee Jones,  John Goodman,  Peter Sarsgaard
    Director: Bertrand Tavernier
    Certificate: Certificate: TBC
    Academy Award winner Tommy Lee Jones leads an all-star cast in this psychological thriller based on the bestselling novel by James Lee Burke. While on an investigation into a series of grisly murders, veteran detective Dave Robicheaux (Jones) navigates his way through the Louisiana bayou and the ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 58% from 18 members
    Due for release on 25th January 2010
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  • Evan Almighty - HD DVD Version (2007)
    Starring: Steve Carell,  Lauren Graham,  Jimmy Bennett
    Director: Tom Shadyac
    Certificate: Certificate: PG
    Steve Carell (The 40-Year-Old Virgin), reprising his role as the polished, preening newscaster Evan Baxter of Bruce Almighty, is the next one anointed by God to accomplish a holy mission in the hilarious new comedy Evan Almighty. Blockbuster comedy director Tom Shadyac (The Nutty Professor, Liar ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 62% from 702 members
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  • Death Sentence on DVD (2007)
    Starring: Kevin Bacon,  Garrett Hedlun,  Kelly Preston
    Director: James Wan
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    Nick Hume (Kevin Bacon) is a mild-mannered executive with a perfect life, until one gruesome night he witnesses something that changes him forever. Transformed by grief, Hume eventually comes to the disturbing conclusion that no length is too great when protecting his family.
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 65% from 27,284 members
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  • Dirty Deeds on DVD (2002)
    Starring: Bryan Brown,  John Goodman,  Toni Collette
    Director: David Caesar
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    DIRTY DEEDS is an Aussie gangster flick set against the booming casino underworld of late 1960s Sydney. Bryan Brown (COCKTAIL, THE THORN BIRDS) stars as Barry Ryan, an Australian mobster who controls the city's gambling scene and is making a killing from the casino slot machines. His profitable ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 56% from 1,050 member
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  • Coyote Ugly on DVD (2000)
    Starring: Piper Perabo,  Maria Bello,  Izabella Miko
    Director: David McNally
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    Moving to New York to pursue her dream of becoming a famous songwriter, Violet Sanford (Perabo) finds herself desperate and broke. Through a twist of fate the shy, innocent Violet lands a job as one of the barmaids at the hottest nightclub in town - the down and dirty, wild and fun Coyote Ugly. ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 68% from 7,122 members
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  • The Runner on DVD (1999)
    Starring: Ron Eldard,  Courteney Cox,  John Goodman
    Director: Ron Moler
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    A young man who is addicted to gambling has a large debt to pay off. His uncle gets him a job as a 'runner' who places bets with bookies and for the best part of the time he behaves himself. Unfortunately he wants to buy a ring for his girlfirend and his boss' money looks very tempting...
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 48% from 75 members
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  • Bringing Out The Dead on DVD (1999)
    Starring: Nicolas Cage,  Patricia Arquette,  John Goodman
    Director: Martin Scorsese
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    Martin Scorsese exhilaratingly adapts Joe Connelly's novel about Frank (Nicolas Cage), a paramedic working among the filth and mental desolation of New York City's Hell's Kitchen in the early 1990s. Lately he has been haunted by the visions of a beautiful 18-year-old girl whom he was unable to ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 57% from 4,212 members
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  • The Jack Bull on DVD (1999)
    Starring: John Cusack,  John Goodman,  L.Q. Jones
    Director: John Badham
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    At a time in the West when colonies dreamt of statehood and men forged their own laws with power and pride, a honest rancher is forced to face the injustices of a power-hungry neighbor. John Cusack stars as Myrl Redding, a just and forthright horse trader who becomes the brutal victim of his ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 62% from 556 members
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  • Mother Night on DVD (1996)
    Starring: Nick Nolte,  Sheryl Lee,  Alan Arkin
    Director: Keith Gordon
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    Keith Gordon's darkly comic film version of Kurt Vonnegut Jr.'s highly original novel stars Nick Nolte as Howard J. Campbell Jr., an unusual antihero with a twisted story to tell. The tale begins in a Israeli prison cell, where Campbell is on trial for WWII war crimes. Campbell is given a ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 62% from 210 members
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  • Matinee on DVD (1992)
    Starring: John Goodman,  Cathy Moriarty,  Simon Fenton
    Director: Joe Dante
    Certificate: Certificate: PG
    It's 1962 and 15-year-old horror film fan Gene Loomis (Simon Fenton) is the new kid in a small Key West town; the Cuban Missile Crisis is happening in his own backyard; an intriguing girl (Lisa Jakub) is actually looking his way, and best of all, master showman Lawrence Woolsey (John Goodman) is in ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 61% from 329 members
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  • Born Yesterday on DVD (1992)
    Starring: Melanie Griffith,  Don Johnson,  John Goodman
    Director: Luis Mandoki
    Certificate: Certificate: PG
    The story of a Las Vegas showgirl whose lack of sophistication worries her boyfriend. He fears her ignorance will ruin his business opportunities. He hires an intelligent journalist to educate her in the ways of the world, but she soon learns there is more to life than mink coats and diamond rings.
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 53% from 249 members
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  • Stella (1990)
    Starring: Bette Midler,  John Goodman,  Trini Alvarado
    Director: John Erman
    Certificate: Certificate: TBC
    Brassy barmaid Stella Claire charms the pants off blueblood Stephen Dallas, and eventually they have a child. Because of their different values and personalities, Stella and Stephen do not marry. She, however, decides to raise their daughter, Jenny, by herself. Although the feisty mother and Jenny ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 73% from 40 members
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  • King Ralph on DVD (1990)
    Starring: John Goodman,  Peter O'Toole,  John Hurt
    Director: David S. Ward
    Certificate: Certificate: PG
    When a freak accident wipes out the entire royal family, an exhaustive search of the bloodline reveals a distant heir: Ralph Jones. A good-natured, down-to-earth Las Vegas lounge singer, Ralph is quickly given a crash course in royal manners. But his unconventional behavior provides fuel for a ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 58% from 593 members
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  • Sea Of Love on DVD (1989)
    Starring: Al Pacino,  Ellen Barkin,  John Goodman
    Director: Harold Becker
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    Two detectives, one from New York, the other from Long Island join forces to track down a bizarre serial killer. Convinced of a beautiful suspect's innocence, the New York detective starts an affair with her, despite hard evidence linking her to the murders.
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 66% from 3,344 members
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  • Punchline on DVD (1988)
    Starring: Sally Field,  Tom Hanks,  Kim Greist
    Director: David Seltzer
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    Lilah Krytsick (Sally Field) is a New Jersey housewife and mother of three who has been told all her life that she is funny. Steven Gold (Tom Hanks) is a failed medical student whose natural comedic talent has allowed him to steal the spotlight at New York comedy club the Gas Station, thus keeping ..read more »
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 54% from 368 members
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  • The Big Easy on DVD (1987)
    Starring: Dennis Quaid,  Ellen Barkin,  Ned Beatty
    Director: Jim McBride
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    In this steamy, spicy mystery a prosecutor is sent to New Orleans to investigate police corruption. All the evidence points to a Cajun detective she falls in love with immediately, and though the trial forces him temporarily off the squad it doesn't stop him from investigating the case or from ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 61% from 1,447 member
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  • Sweet Dreams on DVD (1986)
    Starring: Jessica Lange,  Ed Harris,  P.J. Soles
    Director: Karel Reisz
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    In Karel Reisz's SWEET DREAMS, Jessica Lange stars as Patsy Cline, the ill-fated country singer whose trembling, emotion packed renditions of 'Crazy', 'Sweet Dreams', and 'I Fall to Pieces', made her one the most enduring voices in all of American popular music. Starting out by performing more ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 69% from 334 members
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  • Roseanne - Series 3 (4 discs) on DVD
    Starring: Roseanne Barr,  John Goodman,  Laurie Metcalf
    Certificate: Certificate: 12
    All hail the domestic goddess! In this top-rated third series, Roseanne Conner and family continue to push the sitcom envelope as they deliver one of the most acclaimed and daring shows in television history. Relive all the classic hilarity as Roseanne explains the facts of life to Darlene, Dan ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 70% from 354 members
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  • Roseanne - Series 2 (4 discs) on DVD
    Starring: Roseanne Barr,  John Goodman,  Laurie Metcalf
    Certificate: Certificate: 12
    One of the major family sitcoms of the late 1980s/early 1990s, 'Roseanne' became popular for its no-nonsense attitude and its humorously honest portrayal of American life. With a set resembling the living room of countless family homes across the United States, the show concerned itself the antics ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 67% from 376 members
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  • Roseanne - Series 4 (4 discs) on DVD
    Starring: Roseanne Barr,  John Goodman,  Laurie Metcalf
    Certificate: Certificate: 12
    One of the major family sitcoms of the late 1980s/early 1990s, ROSEANNE became popular for its no-nonsense attitude and its humorously honest portrayal of American life. With a set resembling the living room of countless family homes across the United States, the show concerned itself the with the ..read more »
    Rate this: 4 stars out of 5 79% from 141 members
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John Goodman facts

5 most recent films

The Princess and the Frog - 4.0 stars
Gigantic - 2.5 stars
Confessions of a Shopaholic - 3.5 stars
In The Electric Mist - BLU-RAY Version - 4.0 stars
Confessions of a Shopaholic - BLU-RAY Version - 3.0 stars

5 highest-rated films

Monsters, Inc. - BLU-RAY Version - 4.0 stars
Big Lebowski, The - HD DVD Version - 4.0 stars
Roseanne - Series 4 - 4.0 stars
Monsters, Inc. - 4.0 stars
The Big Lebowski - 3.5 stars

5 lowest-rated films

Roseanne - Series 9 - 2.5 stars
In the Electric Mist - 3.0 stars
Roseanne - Series 7-8 - 3.0 stars
Bee Movie - HD DVD Version - 3.0 stars
True Stories - 3.5 stars

Most frequent co-stars

Roseanne Barr - 44 times - show films
Laurie Metcalf - 36 times - show films
Sara Gilbert - 30 times - show films
Sarah Chalke - 14 times - show films
Michael Fishman - 14 times - show films

Most frequent directors

none - 22 times - show films
Mark K. Samuels - 14 times - show films
Andrew D. Weyman - 9 times - show films
Philip Charles Mackenzie - 9 times - show films
Gail Mancuso - 9 times - show films


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