Jeffrey Leon Bridges (born December 4, 1949) is a four-time Academy Award-nominated American actor and musician. His most notable films include The Last Picture Show, Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, Tron, Starman, The Fisher King, Fearless, The Big Lebowski, The Contender, Seabiscuit, Surf's Up, Iron Man and How to Lose Friends & Alienate People.

Personal life

Bridges was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Dorothy Dean (née Simpson) and actor Lloyd Bridges. He shared a close relationship with his brother, actor Beau Bridges, who acted as a surrogate father during his earlier life when their real father was busy with work. He is an uncle of Jordan Bridges. He married Susan Geston on June 5, 1977 after meeting her on the set of Rancho Deluxe in 1975, filmed on a ranch where Geston worked as a maid. The couple have 3 daughters, Isabelle (b. 1981), Jessica (b. 1983), and Hayley (b. 1985).

Film career

Bridges's first major role was in the 1971 movie The Last Picture Show for which he garnered a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He was nominated again for the same award for his performance opposite Clint Eastwood in the 1974 film Thunderbolt and Lightfoot. One of his better known roles was in the 1982 science-fiction cult classic Tron, in which he played Kevin Flynn, a video game programmer. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1984 for playing the alien in Starman. He was also acclaimed for his roles in the thriller Against All Odds and the crime drama Jagged Edge. His role in Fearless is recognized by some critics to be one of his best performances. One critic dubbed it a masterpiece; Pauline Kael wrote that he 'may be the most natural and least self-conscious screen actor that has ever lived'. He also appeared as "The Dude" in the Coen Brothers' classic cult film ''The Big Lebowski.

In 2000, Bridges was nominated for his fourth Academy-Award for his role in The Contender. He also starred in the 2005 Terry Gilliam movie Tideland, his second with the director (the first being 1991's The Fisher King). He plays the role of Obadiah Stane/Iron Monger in the 2008 Marvel motion picture, Iron Man. In July of 2008 he was shown in the Comic Con teaser for TR2N, the upcoming sequel to Tron; leading fans to assume he would once again reprise the role of Flynn from the 1982 classic film.

Other work

In his off time while on set, he has been known to document the filmmaking process by photographing fellow actors and on-set staff with a Widelux panoramic camera. He began doing this during the filming of Starman at the suggestion of co-star Karen Allen. He has published many of these photographs online and in print titled "Pictures".