Richard Dreyfus

Dreyfus has married thrice till date. His first was marriage to Jeramie Rain in early 1980s. The couple was blessed with three children, Emily, Benjamin and Harry. They separated in 1995.

In 1999, Dreyfus married Janelle Lacey but the two divorced in 2005.

In 2006, he married Russian-born Svetlana Erokhin and since then the couple lives in San Diego.

Richard Stephen Dreyfus was born on October 29, 1947, in Brooklyn, New York to Geraldine and Norman Dreyfus. His mother was a peace activist while his father was an attorney and restaurateur.

Dreyfus was brought up as a Jewish. Due to his father’s aversion towards New York City, the family first moved to Europe and later settled at Los Angeles. Young Dreyfus gained his early education from Beverly Hills High School.

Dreyfus’ career as an actor began early. At the age of 15, Dreyfus made his debut for the television production, ‘In Mama’s House’. Following this, he briefly attended San Fernando Valley State College, (now California State University), for a year.

During Vietnam War, Dreyfus worked as a clerk in a Los Angeles hospital. He returned to acting, making guest appearance in television shows such as ‘Peyton Place’, ‘Gidget’, ‘That Girl’, ‘Bewitched’ and ‘The Big Valley’.

Drefus made his debut on the big screen with a small, uncredited role in the 1967 film ‘The Graduate’. Next, he featured in ‘Valley of the Dolls’ (1967) wherein he had a small role yet again.

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Dreyfus performed on stage on Broadway, Off-Broadway, repertory, and improvisational theatre. He shared the stage with Henry Fonda, Gloria Grahame, Ron Thompson, Strother Martin, Jane Alexander, Lewis J. Stadlen, Richard X. Slattery and Pepper Martin for the play ‘The Time of Your Life’.

In 1973, Dreyfus played a significant role in the flick, ‘American Graffiti’. The movie was a major hit and had him share the screen space with Harrison Ford and Ron Howard.

Dreyfus most promising work as an actor came in 1977 with the film, ‘The Goodbye Girl’. A romantic film, it had him play the character of an out-of-work actor Elliot Garfield. Dreyfus’ spellbinding performance earned him an Academy, BAFTA and Golden Globe award. Dreyfus became the youngest actor to receive an Academy, a record which he held for 25 years before it was broken by Adrian Brody in 2003.

In 1995, Dreyfus capped the role of Glenn Holland, a determined and inspiring musical teacher who aims to compose one great piece of music, in ‘Mr. Holland's Opus’. The authenticity that he imparted to the character and the magnificence that he showed on screen earned him nomination for Best Actor in both Academy and Golden Globe Awards.