Goldberg, Whoopi (1955-…), is an American actress and television personality. She won an Academy Award as best supporting actress for her performance in Ghost (1990).
Goldberg was born in New York City on Nov. 13, 1955. Her real name is Caryn Elaine Johnson. She made her first stage appearance at the age of 8. She attended the High School for the Performing Arts in New York City. She moved to California in 1974 and performed with the San Diego Repertory Company and the Blake Street Hawkeyes in Berkeley. She toured the United States and Europe in her one-woman Spook Show. She created a sensation with Whoopi Goldberg on Broadway in 1984 and 1985.
Goldberg made an acclaimed motion-picture debut in The Color Purple (1985). By the early 1990’s, she was one of the most highly paid film actresses in the world, largely performing in broad comic roles. Her movies include Soapdish (1991), The Player (1992), Sister Act (1992), Sister Act 2 (1993), Boys on the Side (1995), Ghosts of Mississippi (1996), For Colored Girls (2010), and Big Stone Gap (2014). Goldberg also provided the voice of Stretch the toy octopus in the animated feature film Toy Story 3 (2010). On television, she appeared in the series “Star Trek : The Next Generation” from 1988 to 1993. She was the host of a daytime talk show in 1992. In 2007, Goldberg joined the panel of the ABC daytime news and entertainment program “The View.”
