Dustin Diamond life and biography

Dustin Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable types of characters.

He first drew critical praise for the 1966 Off-Broadway play Eh? for which he won a Theatre World Award and a Drama Desk Award. This was soon followed by his breakthrough movie role as Benjamin Braddock in The Graduate (1967). Since then Hoffman's career has largely been focused in cinema with only sporadic returns to television and the stage. Some of his most noted films are Papillon, Marathon Man, Midnight Cowboy, Little Big Man, Lenny, All the President's Men, Kramer vs. Kramer, Tootsie, Rain Man, Wag the Dog, and Meet the Fockers.

Hoffman has won two Academy Awards (for his performances in Kramer vs. Kramer and Rain Man), five Golden Globes, three BAFTAs, three Drama Desk Awards, a Genie Award, and an Emmy Award. Dustin Hoffman received the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1999.

Hoffman was born in Los Angeles, the second son of Lillian (née Gold) and Harry Hoffman. His father worked as a prop supervisor/set decorator at Columbia Pictures before becoming a furniture salesman. Hoffman was named after stage and silent screen actor Dustin Farnum. His older brother, Ronald, is a lawyer and economist. Hoffman is from an Ashkenazi Jewish family of immigrants from Ukraine and Romania. His upbringing was not religious or observant. He graduated from Los Angeles High School in 1955 and enrolled at Santa Monica College with the intention of studying medicine, leaving after a year to join the Pasadena Playhouse.

All-told he's been nominated seven times for the best actor Oscar, and he stays busy in Hollywood as a reliable character actor or versatile lead. His recent films include Runaway Jury (2003, opposite Gene Hackman), Meet the Fockers (2004, starring Ben Stiller) and Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium (2007, with Natalie Portman).

After a brief but successful return to the stage in Death of a Salesman and The Merchant of Venice, Hoffman starred in his huge Hollywood smash, Rain Man, in 1988 alongside Tom Cruise. Hoffman's portrayal of an autistic genius remains one of his most iconic performances.

The 1990s brought appearances a series of big-budget movies that proved largely disappointing at the box office. Hoffman's next critically acclaimed role wouldn't come around until 1997 with the political satire, Wag the Dog. In this role, the Academy Award winner masterfully played an unscrupulous Hollywood executive out to fool the country into believing they were at war. In 2004, Hoffman again exhibited his comedic prowess when he starred with Lily Tomlin in an offbeat movie about a detective team that solves existential crises, I Heart Huckabees. Further cementing his new direction, he later starred in the Meet the Fockers trilogy and the children's fantasy Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium.

Hoffman continues to star in blockbuster films like Stranger than Fiction (2006), but also seeks out new and different projects, such as lending his voice to animated children's movies (Kung Fu Panda) and narrating documentaries.

With his characteristic dry humor, Hoffman once mused, "One thing about being successful is that I stopped being afraid of dying. Once you're a star you're dead already. You're embalmed."

Filmography and awards:

2008 : Kung Fu Panda
Annie Award for Best Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production
The Tale of Despereaux Roscuro voice
Last Chance Harvey Harvey Shine Nominated Golden Globe Award for Best Actor Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
2010 : Barney's Version
Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Jews and Baseball: An American Love Story
Little Fockers Bernie Focker
2011 : Kung Fu Panda 2 ; The Giver

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