Jeff Bridges
American actor and singer with a seven-decade career.
Jeffrey Leon Bridges is an American actor and singer known for his leading man roles in film and television. In a career spanning more than seven decades, he has received an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and the Cecil B. DeMille Award. He is best known for films such as The Big Lebowski, Crazy Heart, and True Grit.
Quick Facts
- Birth name
- Jeffrey Leon Bridges
- Born
- 4 December 1949
- Birthplace
- Los Angeles, California, U.S.
- Occupation
- Actor
- film producer
- singer
- Years active
- 1951–present
- Spouse
- Susan Geston (1977)
- Children
- 3
- Parents
- Lloyd Bridges; Dorothy Bridges
Facts from the source article.
Early life and education
Jeffrey Leon Bridges was born on December 4, 1949, in Los Angeles to actor Lloyd Bridges and actress and writer Dorothy Bridges. He is one of four children, including older brother Beau Bridges, also an actor. Raised in the Holmby Hills section of Los Angeles, he graduated from University High School in 1967. At age 17 he toured with his father in a stage production of Anniversary Waltz, then studied acting at the Herbert Berghof Studio in New York City. He served in the United States Coast Guard Reserve as a boatswain's mate from 1967 to 1975.
Career
Bridges made his first screen appearance in an uncredited role in The Company She Keeps (1951). In his youth, he appeared on his father's show Sea Hunt and The Lloyd Bridges Show. His first major role came in The Last Picture Show (1971), earning his first Academy Award nomination. He received further Oscar nominations for Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974), Starman (1984), The Contender (2000), True Grit (2010), and Hell or High Water (2016). He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for Crazy Heart (2009). He starred in King Kong (1976), Tron (1982), The Big Lebowski (1998), and big-budget films such as Seabiscuit (2003), Iron Man (2008), and Tron: Legacy (2010). On television, he earned Primetime Emmy Award nominations for A Dog Year (2009) and The Old Man (2022–2024).
Interests
Bridges studied piano at a young age, encouraged by his mother. Before his first lead role, he sold two songs to Quincy Jones, who used 'Lost in Space' for the 1970 film John and Mary. While filming Heaven's Gate, he played guitar with Kris Kristofferson; his Crazy Heart character was partly based on Kristofferson. In 1982, he voiced Prince Lír in The Last Unicorn and sang on two songs. He released his debut album Be Here Soon on January 1, 2000. In 2005, he performed the film's theme song at a Lebowski Fest. In 2010, he performed 'I Don't Know' on The Tonight Show and sang on the charity single 'We Are the World'. He signed with Blue Note Records in 2011 and released his second album, Jeff Bridges, on August 16, 2011, produced by T Bone Burnett. He played Austin City Limits in support of that album.
Personal life
Bridges and his siblings inherited their family house in Malibu, which burned down in the Palisades Fire in January 2025; the property was listed for sale in 2026. He also owns a ranch in Paradise Valley, Montana. He dated Candy Clark after meeting on the set of Fat City in 1972. He married Susan Geston in 1977; they have three daughters. Bridges has studied Buddhism and co-wrote a book with Zen master Bernie Glassman, but does not consider himself a formal Buddhist. He meditates for half an hour before work on most days. In October 2020, he announced a diagnosis of non-Hodgkin lymphoma; in September 2021, he announced his cancer was in remission. He also contracted COVID-19 while in treatment. In 1984, he co-founded the End Hunger Network and later became spokesman for the No Kid Hungry campaign. He supports environmental causes such as the Amazon Conservation Team.
More in Production & Real-World Impact
Elsewhere in House of Cards
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced