The Many Faces of… Jack Nicholson

Overview in pictures of the roles and movies of actor Jack Nicholson

Jack Nicholson was born on April 22, 1937 in New Jersey. Growing up he always thought that his grandparents actually were his parents and that his mother were his sister. He found the truth after they had died. In high school he was the class clown and always got in trouble, one year resulting in him having to visit detention every day. When he moved to Hollywood he worked as a gopher at MGM animation studios and was offered a job as an animator, which he refused to pursue acting. His first movie appearance was in The Cry Baby Killer in 1958. He worked with Roger Corman and in a documentary about Corman he thanked him for giving him his career. His career in front of the camera first didn’t seem to pan out and he wrote screenplays. He got his big break when he appeared in Easy Rider. He has since starred in a big number of movies including The Shining, The Departed, Five Easy Pieces, Chinatown, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Batman, A Few Good Men, About Schmidt, Anger Management and The Bucket List. He has won 3 Oscars.

Overview of the roles and movies of Jack Nicholson
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What’s your favorite Jack Nicholson role?

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14 thoughts on “The Many Faces of… Jack Nicholson

  1. Hi, Nostra:

    Still think Nicholson did his best work just before and during when he became a household name.

    Most humane role(s): Three way tie between ‘The Last Detail’, ‘The Missouri Breaks’ and ‘One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest’.

    Widest range: ‘The Shining’. Followed by ‘Five Easy Pieces’.

    Most over the top: ‘A Few Good Men’.

    Most disgusting, though memorable role: ‘The Departed’.

    Funniest: His cameo in Roger Corman’s original ‘The Little Shop of Horrors’ and ‘As Good as it Gets’.

    • Hey Jack, I’ve not seen his very early work, but interesting to hear your thoughts on it. A Few Good Men might be over the top, but “You can’t handle the truth!” is one of those classic movie lines people remember.

      Loved The Departed and his role there was very cool and felt very different.

  2. Gotta love a bit of Jack! Cuckoo’s Nest would be my favourite but he’s done so many memorable roles that it’s a very difficult choice. He’s always been one of my absolute favourite actors. He’s up there with the likes of DeNiro.

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