Adam Goldberg

Biography: With a creative vision and boundless passion, actor and filmmaker Adam Goldberg has become one of the industry's most promising talents in front of and behind the camera. His flourishing career includes a breakout performance in the independent classic "Dazed and Confused," roles in numerous studio and independent features, and his own directorial debut "Scotch and Milk." In director Steven Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan" for DreamWorks/ Paramount, Goldberg portrayed 'Private Mellish,' the cynical New Yorker who taunts the German soldiers with his Jewish heritage. In one of the film's more heart-wrenching death scenes, 'Mellish' has a knife mercilessly plunged into his heart while his buddy cowers on the stairs. Goldberg recently co-starred opposite Russell Crowe in Universal Pictures' and Imagine Entertainment's Academy Award-winning film, Beautiful Mind, A (2001), for director Ron Howard. The casting marks Goldberg's second collaboration with Howard, having previously worked together on Edtv (1999). "A Beautiful Mind" is the story of 'John Forbes Nash Jr.' a brilliant mathematician (Crowe) whose life and career suffers a devastating blow when he succumbs to schizophrenia. Goldberg plays 'Sol', a sharp, up-and-coming mathematician who is a fellow student with 'Nash' at Princeton and later a co-worker. The busy actor has most recently landed a starring role opposite Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey in Paramount Pictures' romantic comedy How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003), for Lynda Obst Productions and The Robert Evans Company. He plays the best friend of a ladies man (McConaughey) who he bets cannot stay in a relationship for more than 10 days. Unluckily for him, the girl he picks (Hudson) just happens to try to get rid of him almost immediately (using many of the "rules" from the book "How to Love a Guy in 10 Days.") Production is currently underway in New York City and Toronto. Goldberg wrapped production this spring on the starring role in ContentFilm's action comedy, Hebrew Hammer, The (2002). The Jewxploitation spoof is the story of 'Mordechai' (Goldberg), a handsome Orthodox Jew who goes on a mission to save Hanukkah from an evil Santa. He recently had a supporting role opposite Val Kilmer in Castle Rock Entertainment's upcoming Salton Sea, The (2002), for Warner Bros. He plays a delusional speed freak in this character-driven thriller about an unlikely hero's search for redemption following the murder of his wife. Goldberg made his directing and screenwriting debut with Scotch and Milk (1998), a neo-noir drama on which he also served as executive producer, co-editor and star. Shot in black and white, the jazz-laden film tells the story of a group of disaffected and lovelorn friends in their twenties who, unable to cope with the banality of everyday life in contemporary Los Angeles, model their lives on hipster films of the '50s and '60s. Goldberg stars in the film with fellow "Dazed and Confused" alumni Nicky Katt and Cole Hauser as well as Clea Lewis, Giovanni Ribisi, Rio Hackford, Robert Pastorelli, jazz great Jimmy Scott, Hubert Selby, Jr., and director Richard Linklater. "Scotch and Milk" made its world premiere at the 1998 L.A. Independent Film Festival to rave reviews and continues to garner acclaim as it makes the film festival circuit. The film won the Grand Jury First Prize as Best Feature at the 1998 Idyllwild Film Festival, and took top honors at the 1998 Flagstaff Film Festival as well. In its review of "Scotch and Milk", Daily Variety proclaimed, "Goldberg, whose evident influences include not only film noir but early Cassavetes and the French New Wave, has delivered a picture dripping with intoxicated, romantically forlorn malaise." Born in Santa Monica, California and raised in Hollywood, Goldberg was six years old when he started performing plays for his parents. At the age of 14, he began studying with Tracy Roberts, and the following year he enrolled in the Lee Strasberg Institute in Los Angeles. While attending Sarah Lawrence College, he starred in a number of stage productions, including "Six Characters in Search of an Author", "In Search of Justice" and "The Informer" before returning to Los Angeles to pursue his career. Goldberg made his feature film debut in 1991 as Billy Crystal's younger brother-in-law in Mr. Saturday Night (1992) . In 1993, he starred in Richard Linklater's critically acclaimed coming-of-age film Dazed and Confused (1993), about high school in the 1970s. "I had been completely obsessed with getting a part in this movie because the people involved were so genuine. I remember blasting Neil Young on the way to every audition," says Goldberg, who landed the role of 'Mike,' a neurotic high school junior who tries to reconcile his intellect with his machismo. To date, Goldberg's extensive feature credits include John Singleton's Higher Learning (1995), Prophecy, The (1995) with Christopher Walken, "Sunset Strip", Lions Gate Films' romantic comedy "All Over the Guy" and Universal's Babe: Pig in the City (1998), in which he lent his voice to the wheelchair-bound Jack Russell terrier 'Flealick'. For television, he recently appeared in a recurring role on NBC's "Will & Grace", playing an attorney who bullied 'Will' in grade school. Goldberg was previously a regular on the ABC series "Relativity," playing roommate 'Doug Kroll.' On NBC's "Friends", Goldberg had a recurring role as 'Eddie', the obsessive new roommate of 'Chandler' (Matthew Perry). He has also guest starred on such series as "ER" (1994) in which he played a schizophrenic patient, "NYPD Blue", "Love and War", "Murphy Brown" and "Designing Women," and was a series regular on "Double Rush" (1995), playing 'Leo,' a role created for him by Shukovsky/English Entertainment. On stage, Goldberg appeared opposite Robert Pastorelli in "Act One", the critically-hailed series of one-act plays at the Met Theater in Los Angeles. Goldberg recently completed his latest screenplay, I Love Your Work (2003), which he will direct. A jazz aficionado, Goldberg spends his rare free time listening to favorites like John Coltrane, Bill Evans and Charles Mingus, or playing his guitar. When he's not racing to the editing room or on a film set, he'll go see a movie or a band, play his guitar or "just stare at the wall like everyone else."… Expand