Caryn Elaine Johnson, better known by her stage name, Whoopi Goldberg (born November 13, 1955 (although many sources imply 1949), in New York City), is a easily-known American movie actress, comedian, and singer. Although her father was the Protestant preacher, Goldberg says that her family is of mixed religious heritage - including Catholic, Buddhist and Jewish ancestry.

Background
When succeeding as a stand-up comedian in the San Francisco Bay Area, Goldberg created a of these woman indicate around 1983 called The Spook Show. This indicate caught a attention of Mike Nichols who produced a of these-one-persin indicate for Goldberg on Broadway, called only Whoopi Goldberg, which ran from either October 24, 1984 to March 10, 1985, for a aggregate of 156 performances. Goldberg's performance caught a eye of Steven Spielberg, who was inspired to cast Goldberg around her film debut, an adjustment of the award-winning novel The Color Purple by Alice Walker. This performance garnered her an Oscar nomination for best actress inside 1986. She followed higher this performance by having the sell-out, extremely acclaimed of these-one-man indicate in Broadway. A majority of the films she processed in the 1980s featured her in hard-woman comedic roles (Burglar, Fatal Beauty, ''Jumpin' Jack Flash), though she regularly balanced them retired by performing around personal-oriented films (Clara's Heart).

Within danger of fading from either public eclat, she revitalized her career in the role of the fake "spiritualist" world health organization manages to actually locate a dead in the tear-jerker Ghost, for which she won her first Oscar award for best supporting actress. She cemented her status as a legendary comedic actress within 1992 as the lounge singer who is hidden inside a convent (& consequently revitalises their choir) inside Sister Act. She experienced the revenant role in Star Trek: The Next Generation as Guinan, which she also reprised around 2 of the Star Trek feature films. The life-womb-to-tomb Star Trek'' fan, as a girl she saw Nichelle Nichols portraying Lieutenant Uhura, and exclaimed, "Momma! Everybody! Come quick— there's a black lady on television, and she ain't no maid!"

Goldberg hwhen appeared around 149 films as of October 2002. She has received ii Oscar nominations & won 1. She has received 5 Daytime Emmy nominations, winning one. She has received 5 Emmy nominations. She has received troika Golden Globe nominations, winning two. She has won 3 People's Choice Awards. Inside 1999 she received the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Vanguard Award for her continued work around supporting a homophile & sapphic community. She has been nominated for 5 American Comedy Awards with two wins. Within 2001 she won the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. She likewise hosted a Oscars inside 1994, 1996, 1999 and 2002.

Goldberg was paired by owning Jean Stapleton in the CBS sitcom Bagdad Café (with a plot differing from the 1987 movie in several respects), which lasted two seasons (1990-1991). She hosted the syndicated talk show (The Whoopi Goldberg Indicate) inside 1992-1993. She as well starred in the sitcom, Whoopi, which began broadcasting in fall 2003 in NBC. Whoopi starred when Mavis Rae, the creator of a little New York Hotel (called a Le Mont Hotel). An ex-singer around a girl class action, Turdus philomelos wwhen as much of the prima donna going the hotel as she was in the group’s glory times. A sitcom was cancelled due to moo ratings within May 2004.

Like than a traditional autobiography, Goldberg wrote Book around October 1997, a collection of stories from either her past & opinions. She occurs as heavy supporter of abortion rights being that she has admitted to getting vi of the babies publicly. Around August 2004, Goldberg announced that she would become reviving her 1-one-man indicate in Broadway at a Lyceum Theatre.

Goldberg besides hosts a Arts & Amusement subdivision of Trivial Pursuit Unhinged, the PC game from either Atari.

Goldberg appeared within TV ads as a spokeswoman for Slim Fast diet shakes, but a company dropped her around July 2004 after she made unrefined comments all about President George W. Bush's last name during a Democratic fund-raiser.

Her stage title apparently come from either her early tendency to stand flatulency onstage ("whoopy" existence slang for "flatulence").

Her virtually all recent appearance in film is in the super expressed The Aristocrats, which features over Centred comedian doing their interpretations of an old, like filthy joke.

Filmography
Citizen (1982) The Color Purple (1985) ''Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986) Burglar (1987) Fatal Beauty (1987) The Telephone (1988) Clara's Heart (1988) Comicitis (1989) (short subject) Beverly Hills Brats (1989) (cameo) Homer & Eddie (1989) Ghost (1990) The Long Walk Home (1990) Wisecracks (1991) (documentary) Blackbird Fly (1991) (short subject) Soapdish (1991) The Player (1992) Sister Act (1992) Sarafina! (1992) The Magical World of Chuck Jones (1992) (documentary) Naked in New York (1993) (Cameo) National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1 (1993) (cameo) Made in America (1993) Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit (1993) Liberation (1994) (documentary) (teller) The Lion King (1994) (voice) The Little Rascals (1994) Corrina, Corrina (1994) Star Trek: Generations (1994) The Pagemaster (1994) (voice) Boys on the Side (1995) The Celluloid Closet (1995) (documentary) Moonlight and Valentino (1995) Theodore Rex (1995) Eddie (1996) Tales from the Crypt: Bordello of Blood (1996) (cameo) Bogus (1996) The Associate (1996) Ghosts of Mississippi (1996) Pitch (1997) (documentary) Mary Pickford: A Life on Film (1997) (documentary) (storyteller) In & Out (1997) (Cameo) An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn (1997) (cameo) Alegria (1998) How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998) Junket Whore (1998) (documentary) The Rugrats Movie (1998) (voice) Get Bruce (1999) (documentary) The Deep End of the Ocean (1999) Girl, Interrupted (1999) The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle (2000) (cameo) A Second Chance at Life (2000) (documentary) (teller) More Dogs Than Bones (2000) Golden Dreams (2001) (short subject) Kingdom Come (2001) Monkeybone (2001) Rat Race (2001) Searching for Debra Winger (2002) (documentary) Showboy (2002) (Cameo) Star Trek: Nemesis (2002) Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives (2003) (documentary) (teller) Bitter Jester (2003) (documentary) Pauly Shore Is Dead (2003) Beyond the Skyline (2003) (short subject) Blizzard (2003) (voice) Pinocchio 3000 (2004) (voice) The N-Word (2004) (documentary) SuperBabies: Baby Geniuses 2 (2004) (cameo) Jiminy Glick in La La Wood (2004) (cameo) The Aristocrats (2005) (documentary) Racing Stripes (2005) (voice)

TV work
Whoopi Goldberg: Direct from Broadway (1985) Carol, Carl, Whoopi, and Robin (1987) Whoopi Goldberg: Fontaine... Why Am I Straight (1988) (also writer) Star Trek: The Next Generation (1988-1993) My Past Is My Own (1989) Kiss Shot (1989) Tales from the Whoop: Hot Rod Brown Class Clown (1990) Bagdad Cafe (1990–1991) Captain Planet and the Planeteers (1990-1993) (voice) Defenders of Dynatron City (1992) (voice) The Whoopi Goldberg Show (1992-1993) Yuletide in the 'hood (1993) (voice) A Cool Like That Christmas (1994) (voice) The Sunshine Boys (1995) (Cameo) Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child (1995-1999) (voice) Mother Goose: A Rappin' and Rhymin' Special (1997) (voice) Cinderella (1997) A Knight in Camelot (1998) Hollywood Squares (center square from 1998-2002) (also producer) Alice in Wonderland (1999) Jackie's Back! (1999) Foxbusters (1999-2000) (voice) The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns (1999) What Makes a Family (2001) (also executive producer) Call Me Claus (2001) (also executive producer) Madeline: My Fair Madeline (2002) (voice) It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie (2002) Good Fences (2003) (also producer) Whoopi (2003–2004) (also executive producer) Littleburg (2004) (canceled after 5 episodes) Whoopi: Back to Broadway - the 20th Anniversary (2005) (also executive producer & writer)

She has manufactured many guest appearances in Sesame Street, and guest hosting Live with Regis and Kelly.

Discography
Original Broadway Recording (1985) Sister Act 2 - Soundtrack'' (1993)