Richard Stephen Dreyfuss was born on October 29, 1947 in Brooklyn, New York. He is an Academy Award-winning American actor.

In the late 1970s Richard Dreyfuss was a top box office star, thanks to starring roles in the Steven Spielberg blockbusters Jaws (1975) and Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977).

He began his acting career in repertory theater and improvisational comedy, followed by Broadway and off-Broadway plays and guest appearances on television.

By the end of the '70s he was a box office draw, known more for his onscreen energy than for his good looks. He won a best actor Oscar for his performance in the romantic comedy The Goodbye Girl (1977).

He also starred in Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986) and Tin Men (1987). A sturdy character actor and sometime leading man, his films include What About Bob? (1991), Mr. Holland's Opus (1995) and Silver City (2004).

In 1996, Dreyfuss played one of his finest roles, as a high school music teacher, in 'Mr. Holland's Opus'. The role earned Dreyfuss another Oscar nomination.

From 1983 until 1995, Dreyfuss was married to Jeramie Rain. In 1999, he married Janelle Lacey. After divorcing Lacey, he married Russian-born Svetlana Erokhin on March 16, 2006.

Filmography

• Sweetwater (2008)
• My Life in Ruins (2008)
• "Tin Man" (2007)
• Suburban Girl (2007)
• Poseidon (2006)
• Unsung (2006)
• Copshop (2004)
• Silver City (2004)
• Coast to Coast (2003)
• "The Education of Max Bickford" (22 episodes, 2001-2002)
• The Day Reagan Was Shot (2001)
• Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer & the Island of Misfit Toys (2001)
• Who Is Cletis Tout? (2001)
• The Old Man Who Read Love Stories (2001)
• The Crew (2000)
• Fail Safe (2000)
• Lansky (1999)
• Krippendorf's Tribe (1998)
• Oliver Twist (1997)
• The Call of the Wild: Dog of the Yukon (1997)
• Night Falls on Manhattan (1997)
• Mad Dog Time (1996)
• James and the Giant Peach (1996)
• Mr. Holland's Opus (1995)
• The American President (1995)
• The Last Word (1995)
• "The Great Battles of the Civil War" (1994)
• Silent Fall (1994)
• Another Stakeout (1993)
• ost in Yonkers (1993)
• Lincoln (1992)
• Prisoner of Honor (1991)
• What About Bob? (1991)
• Once Around (1991)
• Postcards from the Edge (1990)
• Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead (1990)
• Always (1989)
• Let It Ride (1989)
• Moon Over Parador (1988)
• Nuts (1987)
• Stakeout (1987)
• Tin Men (1987)
• Stand by Me (1986)
• Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986)
• The Buddy System (1984)
• Whose Life Is It Anyway? (1981)
• The Competition (1980)
• Othello (1979)
• The Big Fix (1978)
• "Saturday Night Live" (1 episode, 1978)
• The Goodbye Girl (1977)
• Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
• Victory at Entebbe (1976)
• Jaws (1975)
• The Second Coming of Suzanne (1974)
• The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1974)
• Inserts (1974)
• "The New Dick Van Dyke Show" (1 episode, 1973)
• American Graffiti (1973)
• Dillinger (1973)
• Catch-22 (1973)
• "A Touch of Grace" (1 episode, 1973)
• "Gunsmoke" (1 episode, 1973)
• "The Mod Squad" (2 episodes, 1970-1973)
• Shadow of a Gunman (1972)
• Two for the Money (1972)
• "The Young Lawyers" (1 episode, 1971)
• Untold Damage (1971)
• "Room 222" (1 episode, 1970)
• "The Bold Ones: The New Doctors" (1 episode, 1970)
• "The New People" (1 episode, 1969)
• Hello Down There (1969)
• "The Ghost & Mrs. Muir" (1 episode, 1969)
• "Felony Squad" (1 episode, 1968)
• "Judd for the Defense" (1 episode, 1968)
• The Young Runaways (1968)
• The Graduate (1967)
• Valley of the Dolls (1967)
• "The Second Hundred Years"(1 episode, 1967)
• "Please Don't Eat the Daisies" (1 episode, 1967)
• "Hey, Landlord" (2 episodes, 1967)
• "That Girl" (1 episode, 1967)
• "Occasional Wife" (1 episode, 1967)
• "The Big Valley" (1 episode, 1967)
• "Bewitched" (1 episode, 1966)
• "Gidget" (1 episode, 1966)
• "Ben Casey" (1 episode, 1965)
• "Karen" (1964)

Awards

• Golden Satellite Best Actor in a Mini-Series or Movie "The Day Reagan Was Shot" 2001
• Italian Film Journalists Award Best Actor "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead" 1990
• BAFTA Award Best Actor "The Goodbye Girl" 1978
• Golden Globe Award Best Actor in a Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy) "The Goodbye Girl" 1977
• Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award Best Actor "The Goodbye Girl" 1977
• Oscar Best Actor "The Goodbye Girl" 1977