Graduated from Los Angeles High School in 1955. Went to Santa Monica City College where he dropped out after a year due to bad grades. But before he did, he took an acting course because he was told that "nobody flunks acting." Also received some training at Los Angeles Conservatory of Music. Decided to go into acting because he did not want to work or go into the service. Trained at The Pasadena Playhouse for two years.
Rain Man (1988): $5,800,000+% of gross
Papillon (1973): $1,250,000
John and Mary (1969): $425,000
Midnight Cowboy (1969): $250,000
The Graduate (1967): $17,000
Was considered for the role of Michael Corleone in The Godfather. During the filming of Wag the Dog Hoffman, his co-star Robert De Niro and director Barry Levinson had an impromptu meeting with President Bill Clinton at a Washington hotel. "So what's this movie about?" Clinton asked De Niro. De Niro looked over to Levinson, hoping he would answer the question. Levinson, in turn, looked over to Hoffman. Hoffman, realizing there was no one else to pass the buck to, is quoted as saying, "So I just started to tap dance. I can't even remember what I said." Ranked #41 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list. [October 1997] Father of Jake Hoffman. Father of Rebecca Hoffman. Father of Max Hoffman. Father of Jenna Byrne. His parents named him Dustin after actor Dustin Farnum. Slept over at Gene Hackman and his wife's apartment in Manhattan when he was a struggling actor. In January 1999, Hoffman was awarded $3m in damages and compensation in a case against Los Angeles Magazine, because they had printed a digitally-altered image of Hoffman in a dress. (cf. Tootsie). In July 2001, a federal appeals court overturned the verdict. The United States 9th Circuit Court of Appeals found that because the photo appeared in an article, not an advertisement, the use of the actor's likeness did not constitute "commercial speech" and was entitled to the full protection of the 1st Amendment. Brother-in-law of producer Lee Gottsegen. Was in early consideration for the role of Rick Deckard in _Blade Runner (1982)_ . The role eventually went to Harrison Ford. Has known Gene Hackman since 1956. Has a house in the Kensington area of London. On March 6 1970, he and his wife Anne Byrne Hoffman were living in a brownstone on 11th Street in New York City's Greenwich Village when the house next door blew up. Luckily, he and his family weren't home. Members of the radical 1960s domestic terror group, The Weathermen, were living in that house unbeknownst to anyone and had stored a large cache of explosives that accidentally detonated, killing 3 of the group's members. Henry Fonda's ex-wife, Susan Wager, was also a neighbor in that block who witnessed the explosion. He was a neighbor of Mel Brooks in New York and was set to play the role of Franz Liebkind in Brooks's first film, The Producers. Just before production was to commence, Hoffman was offered the role of Ben Braddock in The Graduate, co-starring Brooks' wife Anne Bancroft and asked to be let out of his contract. The role of Liebkind eventually went to Kenneth Mars' . Met actor Gene Hackman in the first month at Pasadena Playhouse. Had several classes with him. Hackman failed out after 3 months and moved to New York to continue being a stage actor. After The Pasadena Playhouse, Hoffman decided to move to New York and looked up Gene Hackman. The two of them roomed together in New York at Hackman's 1-bedroom apartment on 2nd ½ and 26th Street. Hoffman slept on the kitchen floor. Originally, Hackman had offered to let him stay a few nights, but Hoffman would not leave. Hackman had to take him out to look for his own apartment. Another thespian he roomed with in New York was Robert Duvall. As roommates, Hoffman and Gene Hackman would often go to the apartment rooftop and play the drums. Hoffman played the bongo drums while Hackman played the conga drums. They did it out of their love for Marlon Brando, who they had heard played music in clubs. They wanted to be like Brando and were big fans of his. Entered into The Guinness Book of World Records as "Greatest Age Span Portrayed By A Movie Actor" for Little Big Man in which he portrayed a character from age 17 to age 121. Despite being old friends and roommates Hackman' back in the 1960s, it was literally decades before he appeared on screen with him. He finally starred with Hackman in _Runaway Jury (2003). He was voted the 28th Greatest Movie Star of all time by Entertainment Weekly. Was interested in playing Shylock in Michael Radford's adaptation of William Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice": The Merchant of Venice. However, by the time he contacted Radford, Al Pacino had already been cast for the role. While filming Finding Neverland lost the tip of a finger and performed one day of shooting on morphine. In 1984 he played the part of Willie Loman in a revival of "Death of a Salesman" on Broadway. The production won a Tony for Best Reproduction. However, his performance was looked down upon by critics and was snubbed by the Tony committee, even though he won a Drama Desk award. In 1985 he reprised this role for TV and got his revenge on the theater world by winning an Emmy and a Golden Globe Award for his performance. In 1990, he played Shylock in a revival of William Shakespeare's "The Merchant Of Venice" on Broadway, for which he received a Tony nomination as Best Actor (Play). Has appeared in two films about Peter Pan (Hook and Finding Neverland). Following his appearance in "Hook", his close friend and former roommate Gene Hackman began calling him "Hook" in a jocular manner. The name stuck and his contemporaries call him by his nickname to this day. Both he and Robert Duvall said one of the best reasons why they went to acting classes were the girls. When they were young, the classes were a gold mine to them. Recipient of a Lincoln Center tribute in April 2005. Had expressed an early desire to play the title role in Gandhi, but was offered Tootsie the same year and ended up taking the latter role. He eventually lost the Oscar that year to Ben Kingsley who played Gandhi. In 1993 he, together with Anne Bancroft, accepted the Oscar for "Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium", on behalf of Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, who wasn't present at the awards ceremony. He was so boyish looking at age 30 that he played a generation younger than Anne Bancroft in The Graduate, even though she is only six years older than him. He is from a family of Polish Jews. Was considered for the role of Beau Burruoghs in Rumor Has It..., but the part eventually went to Kevin Costner. Oscar-winning director John Schlesinger envisioned a cast of Al Pacino, Julie Christie and Laurence Olivier for "Marathon Man" (1976). Pacino has said that the only actress he had ever wanted to work with was Christie, who he claimed was "the most poetic of actresses." Producer Robert Evans, who disparaged the vertically challenged Pacino as "The Midget" when Francis Ford Coppola wanted him for The Godfather and had thought of firing him during the early shooting of the now-classic film, vetoed Pacino for the lead. Instead, Evans insisted on the casting of the even-shorter Dustin Hoffman! On her part, Christie -- who was notoriously finicky about accepting parts, even in prestigious, sure-fire material -- turned down the female lead, which was then taken by Marthe Keller (who, ironically, became Pacino's lover after co-starring with him in Bobby Deerfield). Of his dream cast, Schlesinger only got Olivier, who was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar. His performance as "Ratso" Rizzo in "Midnight Cowboy" (1969) is ranked #7 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006). His performance as Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels in Tootsie is ranked #33 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006). His performance as Raymond Babbitt in Rain Man is ranked #88 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time. His performance as Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels in Tootsie is ranked #39 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time. His performance as "Ratso" Rizzo in Midnight Cowboy is ranked #33 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time. Two of his films are on the American Film Institute's 100 Most Inspiring Movies of All Time. They are Rain Man at #63 and All the President's Men at #34. While having dinner with Paul McCartney, Dustin Hoffman told the story of the death of Pablo Picasso and his famous last words, "Drink to me, drink to my health. You know I can't drink anymore." Paul had a guitar with him and immediately played an impromptu chord progression while singing the quote. Thus, "Picasso's Last Words", one of the highlights of the "Band On The Run" album, was made. Is active in a commercial campaign with the Swedish clothing company KappAhl. Won the 1969 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Performance for his performance in the Broadway play "Jimmy Shine". During performances, his female fans would pelt him with roses. On an episode of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Dustin Hoffman said that his cameo in the film "The Holiday" was not scripted and unplanned. He was driving by the Blockbuster shown in the film and saw all of the cameras and equipment so he decided to stop in and see what was happening. Because he knew director Nancy Meyers, they worked up a scene which ultimately made the final cut. Was Warner Brothers' first consideration for the Penguin in Batman Returns (1992). Was an L.A. high school classmate of Johnnie L. Cochran Jr.. Was in talks to appear in "The Verdict" (1982).