As one of those rare Hollywood figures that always seems to roll with the punches, ever since Whoopi Goldberg first became a star she has proven herself to be quite the survivor. Best known as a major movie star, Goldberg’s also accomplished an incredible amount as a comedian and TV host among other things
Unlike most people who’ve enjoyed a similar level of fame, Whoopi Goldberg has rarely been someone that was dogged by the paparazzi or tabloid reporters. For that reason, there are many pieces of information about her incredible life that even some of her most loyal fans seem to be completely unaware of. With that in mind, it is time to get to this list of 15 facts everyone forgets about Whoopi Goldberg.
15 Missed Opportunity
Every once in a while, an actor is so good in a role that it becomes impossible to imagine anyone else pulling it off. For example, Jim Carrey was so good as Ace Ventura that it is hard to fathom the idea that the character wasn’t written with him in mind. However, at one point the movie’s producers put serious thought into making Ace a female character and casting Whoopi Goldberg in the role.
14 Trek Inspiration
Arguably at the zenith of her acting career during the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, at that time Whoopi Goldberg joined the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Speaking to Yahoo about how Nichols’ performance in the original Trek show inspired her to take the role, Whoopi said: “When I was a little girl, it was like, 'Oh, we are in the future.' Uhura did that for me. So I want to be on your show.”
13 Product Line
Even though a lot of celebrities seem to make a fortune doing their day jobs, many of them have begun branching out into other business opportunities in recent years. A perfect example of that, Whoopi Goldberg and her partner Maya Elisabeth sell a line of medical marijuana products designed to alleviate menstrual cramps.
12 Romantic Resume
Unfortunately one of those people who seems to be unlucky in love, Whoopi Goldberg once said: “You can’t be in a marriage because everyone’s expecting you to”. On top of the men Whoopi walked down the aisle with, she also dated three famous male actors, Tim Dalton, Frank Langella, and Ted Danson.
11 Shaved Face
For the most part, when people think about someone shaving their face it is an image of a man tackling their beard hair that comes to mind. Perhaps for that reason, most people seem to forget the fact that Whoopi Goldberg has been shaving off her eyebrows for many, many years at this point.
10 Forced Into Role
If you are anything like us, then you find it hard to imagine Whoopi Goldberg being forced into doing anything that she doesn’t want to do. However, after Whoopi tried to back out of starring in the movie Theodore Rex during the early-‘90s, she was taken to court and forced to star in the film. On the bright side, she got paid $7 million to star in the stinker of a film and very few people sat through the movie which is a great thing since it is really bad.
9 Homeless Helper
Alongside Robin Williams and Billy Crystal, two of her most famous comedian friends, Whoopi Goldberg founded Comic Relief USA. A charity organization that put on star-studded events from 1986 until 2010 and sold clothing and merchandise to raise funds, Comic Relief USA raised millions of dollars to fight homelessness.
8 Different Sort Of Work
If you look into the backstory of a lot of film and television stars, many current celebrities had much more typical jobs like waiting tables earlier in life. In the case of Whoopi Goldberg, however, her pre-fame day job was pretty incredible. Employed by a mortuary, it was Whoopi’s job to apply makeup to the deceased in an attempt to make them look more like their previous selves.
7 Body Ink
During most of Whoopi Goldberg’s appearances in public, she has most of her body covered up. For that reason, it took everyone by surprise when she appeared on the red carpet for the 2016 Oscars with more of her body exposed. After all, nobody expected her to be sporting a large tattoo on her shoulder. Remarkably enough, since Whoopi has mostly kept her ink covered since that event, many of us have forgotten all about it.
6 Member Of An Elite Group
As an all-around entertainer, we certainly hope that Whoopi Goldberg is motivated by a lot more than winning awards. That said, we have to admit that taking home any of the entertainment industry’s most sought after trophies would be amazing. No slouch in that department, Whoopi is one of the few celebrities that has earned an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Award which makes her an EGOT winner.
5 Difficult Times
Never somebody to mince words, Whoopi Goldberg has a history of being very forthright about her life, both the good and bad. As a result, many of the legendary comedian’s fans are aware that Whoopi dropped out of high school. On the other hand, many people seem to have forgotten that Whoopi has admitted that after dropping out she became addicted to heroin before cleaning herself up.
4 Accomplished Author
On top of all the success Whoopi Goldberg has enjoyed on the big and little screen and as a comedian, she also has a mastery of the written word. After all, not only did she pen a memoir called “Book”, but she wrote a book of comedy sketches, another one about relationships, and a long list of other books including 8 children’s stories.
3 Groundbreaker
When it comes to Hollywood, executives often try their best to replicate anything that has worked in the past. For that reason, it says an awful lot about Whoopi Goldberg that she is the first woman in history to host the Oscars by herself. Not only that, but Goldberg also hosted the popular awards show in 1994, 1996, 1999, and 2002.
2 What’s In A Name?
At the end of the day, Whoopi Goldberg is a star because of her many talents. However, it is interesting to think about how different her career might be if she went by her legal name, Caryn Elaine Johnson. As for why she adopted the name we know her best for, she told the New York Times “Here’s the thing. When you’re performing on stage, you never really have time to go into the bathroom and close the door. So if you get a little gassy, you’ve got to let it go. So people used to say to me, You are like a whoopee cushion. And that’s where the name came from”.
1 Early Motherhood
During Whoopi Goldberg’s rise to fame, her schedule must have been grueling as she seemed to be everywhere for a while. Amazingly enough, during that period of time, Goldberg also had to take care of her child as she gave birth to her only child when she was 18-years-old. In fact, due to having her child so early in life, Whoopi became a grandma when she was 34-years-old and a great-grandmother when she was 58-years-old.
Sources: mentalfloss, yahoo, tvovermind, hellomagazine, eightieskids, slashfilm