Richard Dreyfuss Is Alive

ORIGIN
Richard Dreyfuss is an American actor and political/social activist. He starred in a number of films, including Jaws (1975), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), and Mr. Holland’s Opus (1995). He won an Oscar for best actor for The Goodbye Girl (1977). Dreyfuss was born Richard Stephen Dreyfus on October 29, 1947, in Brooklyn, New York. The second “S” on his surname was added later on. His mother, Geraldine (d. 2000), was a peace activist, and his father, Norman, an attorney. He has two siblings, Cathy and Lorin. Dreyfuss spent his early years in Queens, New York, before moving to Los Angeles at age 9. While in L.A. he attended Beverly Hills High School. He spent one year at San Fernando Valley State College. He was registered as a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War.

CAREER
Dreyfuss began acting as a teenager. At age 15, he appeared in a stage production of ‘In Mama’s House’. His early television appearances include Karen, Gidget, Bewitched, The Big Valley, The Mod Squad, and Gunsmoke. His film debut was an uncredited role in Valley of the Dolls (1967). He portrayed bank robber “Baby Face Nelson” in the gangster film Dillinger (1973). Dreyfuss’ breakout role was as “Curt Henderson” in American Graffiti (1973). The film was directed by George Lucas and it made $140 million at the box office. He later starred as shark expert “Matt Hooper” in Steven Spielberg’s thriller Jaws (1975). He picked up a BAFTA Award nomination for that performance.

Dreyfuss starred as “Elliott Garfield” opposite Marsha Mason in the romantic-comedy, The Goodbye Girl (1977). That role earned him multiple awards, including a Golden Globe, a BAFTA, and an Academy Award for best actor. Other notable films include Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) with Teri Garr, Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986) with Nick Nolte, and Mr. Holland’s Opus (1995) with Glenne Headly. He portrayed “Dick Cheney” in Oliver Stone’s W. (2008). Dreyfuss produced and starred in the CBS series ‘The Education of Max Bickford’. The show ran for one season from September 2001 to June 2002. It earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for outstanding performance in a drama series. Dreyfuss portrayed U.S. Secretary of state ‘Alexander Haig’ in the TV film, The Day Reagan Was Shot (2001). His television credits also include Weeds, and Parenthood.

In addition to film and television, Dreyfuss is a theater actor and director. His directorial debut was a 1994 production of ‘Hamlet’ for the Birmingham Theatre Company in England. In 1996, he won both the Drama-Logue Award and the L.A. Drama Critics Circle Award for his role in “Three Hotels”. His stage credit also includes Total Abandon, Death and the Maiden, Sly Fox, The Producers, and Prophesy and Honor.

PERSONAL
Richard Dreyfuss has an estimated net worth of $5 million. He was worth as much as $55 million in his prime. In February 2017, the actor announced that he was broke. Dreyfuss is 5ft 4in tall and he’s of Jewish ancestry. He was married to actress ‘Jeramie Rain’ from 1983 to 1995. They have three children, Benjamin, Harry Spencer, and Emily. His second wife was Janelle Lacey (1999-2005). He wed his third and current wife ‘Svetlana Erokhin’ in March 2006.

Richard Dreyfuss Bio, Net Worth, Height