Cuba Gooding Jr. Biography, Life, Interesting Facts

Childhood And Early Life

American actor Cuba Gooding Jr was born on the 2 January 1968 in The Bronx, New York. He has three siblings: Omar, Tommy, and April. His parents were Shirley Sullivan and Cuba Gooding. Both of his parents were musical and sang in groups. The Gooding family moved to Los Angeles in 1972 for his father’s career. Later, his parents divorced, and his mother raised Cuba Gooding.

Education

Cuba Gooding Jr attended school at North Hollywood High School, Tustin High School. He also studied martial arts for three years.

Rise To Fame

In 1984 at the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Cuba Gooding Jr got a gig as a break dancer appearing alongside Lionel Ritchie in the closing ceremony.

Career

Gooding’s acting career started with guest roles in Hill Street Blues, Amen, and MacGyver. His breakthrough role was as Tre Styles in the film Boyz in the Hood (1991) which was a box office success. He then appeared in A Few Good Men (1992), Judgement Night (1993), Lightning Jack (1994), Outbreak (1995) and Jerry MaGuire (1996).

Jerry MaGuire (1996) which starred Tom Cruise was nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture, and Gooding won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. He subsequently went on to appear in many roles in film and on television. These include: As Good As It Gets (1997), What Dreams May Come (1998), Men of Honor (2000), Boat Trip (2002), The Fighting Temptations (2003), Shadowboxer (2005), The Butler (2013), Freedom (2014) and Selma (2014).

Awards And Achievements

In 2002 Cuba Gooding Jr was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Cuba Gooding Jr has won some awards and nominations. Starting in 1997 when he won an Oscar for the best performance by an actor in a supporting role in Jerry MaGuire (1996) The same year he was nominated for a Golden Globe for actor in a best supporting in a motion picture for Jerry Maguire. He also won an American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture for Jerry Maguire.

In 2016 he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Leader Actor in a Limited Series or a Movie for American Crime Story (2016) for his portrayal of O.J. Simpson.

Personal Life

Cuba Gooding Jr was married to Sara Kapfer in 1994. They divorced in 2017, having legally separated in 2014. The couple had three children together.