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Jack Black

Born 1969-08-28 in Redondo Beach, CA
An Actor

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In Brief:

Jack Black (born Thomas Black, Jr., August 28, 1969), is an American actor and musician. Black and Kyle Gass are the comedy/rock duo Tenacious D. He is considered a core member of the Frat Pack, a group of comedians active in today's Hollywood films. Black has made cameos in several Foo Fighters music videos, as well as a video for Eagles of Death Metal and Queens of the Stone Age.

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Bio:

Black was born in Redondo Beach, California, to Jewish parents, Thomas William Black and Judith Love Cohen. He grew up in Hermosa Beach in a tumultuous home environment where his parents’ constant battling left him scarred. In a last-ditch effort to save the marriage, his parents briefly joined a polyamorous group, Family Synergy. They divorced when he was ten; both parents eventually remarried. As a child, Black appeared in an early Atari Pitfall commercial, which was later shown during an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Jack moved to Culver City with his father but frequently visited his mother’s home until the end of his first year of college when his father’s family moved abroad. Black started taking drugs in an attempt to fit in and stole money from his mother to buy cocaine, but realized he had a problem and started therapy soon after.

At the beginning of his freshman year in high school, Black eagerly accepted his parents' suggestion to attend the Poseidon School, a private academy. His reasoning included a fear of bullies in the public school and a need to deal with his drug problem. Black also attended Crossroads School, where he excelled in drama. When Jack dropped out of UCLA in his sophomore year to pursue a career in the entertainment business, Black’s father discontinued financial support. Fellow UCLA veteran Tim Robbins later cast Jack in Bob Roberts, his first film role. Black also had recurring roles on the HBO sketch comedy series Mr. Show.

Black took on small roles in The Cable Guy, Bob Roberts, Waterworld, The Jackal, Bye, Bye Love and Enemy of the State before a breakthrough role as Barry, the pretentious co-worker to John Cusack's record store owner in High Fidelity. His career soon led to leading roles in films such as School of Rock, Shallow Hal and King Kong. Black's most recent film is Nacho Libre, where he plays a Mexican friar following his childhood dream of wrestling and pursuing true victory by fighting for the children of an orphanage. The movie opened on June 16, 2006.

Black has appeared numerous times on the "untelevised TV network" short film festival Channel101, starring in the shows Computerman, Timebelt, and Laserfart.

He also provided an introduction for the unaired sketch comedy, Awesometown, donning a colonial-era military uniform. In the introduction, he claims to be George Washington (and takes credit for the accomplishments of other American Presidents such as Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln) and gives viewers a general idea as to what they should expect from the show. Black has also guest starred in the Adult Swim show Tom Goes to the Mayor as a bear trap store owner.

In Season 3 Episode 3 of the X-Files, titled "D.P.O.", he played Zero, friend to Darin, a teen who could cause lightning strikes, played by Giovanni Ribisi.

Black recently hosted the 2006 Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards on April 1, 2006.

Black is the lead singer for the folk-rock comedy band Tenacious D, which perhaps owes much of their popularity to Black's unorthodox, humorous lyrics. Tenacious D's fans often cite his skilled satire of hard rock and metal as much as they do the band's musicianship. Black's singing style is often described as being an odd scat type of music. For example, in the song "Wonderboy", one of his lines is "Rrrigga-gyu-gyu Rrrigga-gyu-gyu", an example of his verbalized guitar solo. This type of singing appears in many Tenacious D songs in place of a melodic or ripping guitar sound. Black has dubbed this form of singing the "ventrili-solo." Black has also performed a two-part scat with bandmate Kyle Gass in the song Tribute. Tenacious D has only released one album, the self-titled Tenacious D.

Black dated actress and comedian Laura Kightlinger from 1997 until 2005. In January 2006, he became engaged to his current wife Tanya Haden (daughter of the famous jazz double bassist Charlie Haden), whom he began dating after his split from Kightlinger in 2005. Haden and Black eloped in March 2006; Black spent US$220,000 on a ring for her. Their first child, son Samuel Jason, was born on June 10, 2006.

Black has admitted to using ecstasy during the filming of King Kong with another member of the crew whose identity he refuses to reveal. He has clarified that it does not reflect on his overall behavior during filming. Black supports the legalization of marijuana and referred to those who wished to keep it banned as "old fucking shrivs" in the Tenacious D song, "City Hall". He was also a supporter of John Kerry during the 2004 U.S. presidential elections.

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Filmography:

• Kung Fu Panda - Voice (2008)
• Be Kind Rewind (2007)
• Them (2007)
• Master of Space and Time (2006)
• The Holiday (2006)
• Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny (2006)
• Nacho Libre (2006)
• King Kong (2005)
• Shark Tale - Voice (2004)
• Envy (2004)
• School of Rock (2003)
• Orange County (2002)
• Ice Age (2002)
• Shallow Hal (2001)
• Saving Silverman (2001)
• High Fidelity (2000)
• Jesus' Son (1999)
• Cradle Will Rock (1999)
• Enemy of the State (1998)
• The Jackal (1997)
• Mars Attacks (1996)
• The Cable Guy (1996)
• Waterworld (1995)
• Dead Man Walking (1995)
• The NeverEnding Story III (1994)
• Bob Roberts (1992)

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