Adam Goldberg Photo Gallery
Goldberg was born in Santa Monica, California and was raised near Hollywood. His father is Jewish and his mother is a Catholic of Irish, French, and German descent. He was raised in the Jewish faith, though is fairly non-observant. In fact, he refused to have a bar mitzvah, stating that it would have been disrespectful to Judaism, as it would not have been a sincere gesture on his part. He had a fairly normal upper-middle class upbringing that included private school, music lessons, surfing and skiing. After seeing a school drama class Shakespeare production, Goldberg became fascinated with show business and began studying acting at various workshops in his early teens. He was active in campus theatrical productions during his years attending Sarah Lawrence College.

Adam Charles Goldberg (born October 25, 1970) is an American actor/director/producer. He typically plays the quintessential 'young New York Jew' in many movies and TV programs of the 1990s and 2000s; including the title role of the self-parodying 'Jewsploitation' movie The Hebrew Hammer.

Career

Goldberg's first major screen role occurred in 1992's Billy Crystal film Mr. Saturday Night. His career-making role was arguably that of the tough, wise-cracking infantryman Mellish in Steven Spielberg's 1998 blockbuster Saving Private Ryan. Ironically, then, he has expressed disappointment that he seems to be typecast as the "nervous Jew." The role of Mordechai Jefferson Carver (aka "The Hebrew Hammer") in 2003 provided him the ultimate response to this perceived typecasting: a stereotype-laden Jewish protagonist that is nevertheless assertive , strong and self-confident--much like a Jewish version of Sweet Sweetback or Shaft from the blaxploitation films of the '70s. Perhaps this is why most of his "post-Hammer" roles have called for less of an overt Jewish identity, thus allowing the actor more range in his craft.

While having capably played lead characters, as in the ill-fated 2005 FOX series Head Cases and Hebrew Hammer, Goldberg has mostly been cast in strong supporting roles. Memorable roles include Jerry, the miserable undead servant to Christopher Walken's Gabriel character in the supernatural thriller, The Prophecy and the borderline-psychotic Eddie on the sitcom, Friends. Goldberg has also worked alongside preeminent voice artists like Dan Castellaneta and Charlie Adler, lending his voice talent to the box office hit Babe: Pig in the City and cartoons like the Fox cult favorite, Eek! The Cat.

Goldberg has also been associated with the band The Flaming Lips. He is good friends with the lead singer, Wayne Coyne. Goldberg appeared extensively in the Flaming Lips documentary, Fearless Freaks, and will have a supporting role in the upcoming film Christmas on Mars, a film written and directed by Coyne. Goldberg plays the "Mars Psychiatrist".

Behind the lights and cameras, Adam Goldberg has accomplished much. He wrote, produced, directed and edited the features Scotch and Milk and I Love Your Work, as well as various television projects, notably including the philosophical travelogue, Running with the Bulls for IFC. A talented guitarist and songwriter, Goldberg composed and arranged the music to I Love Your Work and Running with the Bulls and provided a song for the Hebrew Hammer soundtrack. He is known to travel with a cheap acoustic guitar, as can be seen in the aforementioned, ...Bulls. Having released rock and jazz albums, including the critically-lauded Changes with respected Latin jazz percussionist Phil Maturano, Goldberg has proven himself a serious and dedicated musician.

Personal life

Goldberg was in a relationship with actress Christina Ricci until early 2006. Ricci told W magazine in mid 2006 they were back together, saying "...I love him and I feel like we were meant for each other. Two new Goldberg film projects (Zodiac and Two Days are being prepared for early 2007 releases. He has been discussing with director Jonathan Kesselman the possibility of producing a Hebrew Hammer sequel tentatively known as Hebrew Hammer 2: Hammer vs. Hitler.

Filmography

Christmas on Mars (2007)
Deux jours à Paris (2007)
Déjà Vu (2006)
Stay Alive (2006)
My Name Is Earl (February 2, 2006) TV Series (Episode 15 - Something To Live For) - Philo
Man About Town (2005)
Fearless Freaks (2005)
Frankenstein (2004)
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days .... Tony (2003)
The Hebrew Hammer .... Mordechai Jefferson Carver (2003)
I Love Your Work (2003)
The Salton Sea .... Kujo (2002)
A Beautiful Mind .... Sol (2001)
According to Spencer .... Feldy (2001)
Fast Sofa .... Jack Weis (2001)
All Over the Guy .... Brett Miles Sanford (2001)
Waking Life (voice) .... One of Four Men (2001)
Sunset Strip .... Marty Shapiro (2000)
Edtv .... John (1999)
Babe: Pig in the City (voice) .... Flealick (1998)
Saving Private Ryan .... Pvt. Stanley Mellish (1998)
Some Girl .... Freud (1998)
Scotch and Milk .... Jim (1998)
Relativity (TV series) .... Doug Kroll (1996-1997)
Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco (voice) .... Pete (1996)
The Prophecy .... Jerry (1996)
Higher Learning .... David Isaacs (1995)
Dazed and Confused (film) .... Mike Newhouse (1993)
Son in Law .... Indian (1993)
Mr. Saturday Night .... Eugene Gimbel (1992)