Whoopi Goldberg - Academy of Achievement

<!doctype html> <html lang="en-US" prefix="og: http://ogp.me/ns#"> <head><script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/bundle-playback.js?v=HxkREWBo" charset="utf-8"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/wombat.js?v=txqj7nKC" charset="utf-8"></script> <script>window.RufflePlayer=window.RufflePlayer||{};window.RufflePlayer.config={"autoplay":"on","unmuteOverlay":"hidden"};</script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/ruffle/ruffle.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> __wm.init("https://web.archive.org/web"); __wm.wombat("http://www.achievement.org:80/achiever/whoopi-goldberg/","20180628031752","https://web.archive.org/","web","/_static/", "1530155872"); </script> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/_static/css/banner-styles.css?v=S1zqJCYt" /> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/_static/css/iconochive.css?v=3PDvdIFv" />  <meta charset="utf-8"> <meta http-equiv="x-ua-compatible" content="ie=edge"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="57x57" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/apple-touch-icon-57x57.png"/> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="114x114" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/apple-touch-icon-114x114.png"/> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="72x72" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/apple-touch-icon-72x72.png"/> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="144x144" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/apple-touch-icon-144x144.png"/> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="60x60" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/apple-touch-icon-60x60.png"/> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="120x120" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/apple-touch-icon-120x120.png"/> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="76x76" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/apple-touch-icon-76x76.png"/> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="152x152" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/apple-touch-icon-152x152.png"/> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/favicon-196x196.png" sizes="196x196"/> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/favicon-96x96.png" sizes="96x96"/> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/favicon-32x32.png" sizes="32x32"/> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/favicon-16x16.png" sizes="16x16"/> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/favicon-128.png" sizes="128x128"/> <meta name="application-name" content="Academy of Achievement"/> <meta name="msapplication-TileColor" content="#000000"/> <meta name="msapplication-TileImage" content="http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/mstile-144x144.png"/> <meta name="msapplication-square70x70logo" content="http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/mstile-70x70.png"/> <meta name="msapplication-square150x150logo" content="http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/mstile-150x150.png"/> <meta name="msapplication-wide310x150logo" content="http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/mstile-310x150.png"/> <meta name="msapplication-square310x310logo" content="http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/favicon/mstile-310x310.png"/> <link href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752cs_/https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Source+Sans+Pro:400,600,400italic,600italic,700,700italic" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"> <title>Whoopi Goldberg - Academy of Achievement</title>  <meta name="description" content="Today, Whoopi Goldberg is one of America's best known and most cherished entertainers. Her films The Color Purple, Ghost and Sister Act have won her an international following. Her appearances as host of the annual Oscar broadcast and as a regular on such television programs as Star Trek: The Next Generation and The Hollywood Squares have brought her into the homes of millions of Americans. Over the course of a turbulent early life, she survived poverty, drug addiction, single motherhood and a stint on welfare in the 1970s to become the world's most highly paid actress in the early 1990s. She has also become a highly visible spokesperson for humanitarian causes, campaigning for the rights of children and the homeless, and supporting the struggles against AIDS and substance abuse. Over the course of her career, Whoopi Goldberg has achieved success as a comedian, dramatic actress, writer and producer, and has won the top honors in her profession, including an Oscar and the Mark Twain Award for American Humor. Millions of Americans watch her every day as co-host of the daily television discussion program The View."/> <link rel="canonical" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/whoopi-goldberg/"/> <meta property="og:locale" content="en_US"/> <meta property="og:type" content="article"/> <meta property="og:title" content="Whoopi Goldberg - Academy of Achievement"/> <meta property="og:description" content="<p class="inputTextFirst">Today, Whoopi Goldberg is one of America's best known and most cherished entertainers. Her films <i>The Color Purple</i>, <i>Ghost</i> and <i>Sister Act </i>have won her an international following. Her appearances as host of the annual Oscar broadcast and as a regular on such television programs as <i>Star Trek: The Next Generation</i> and <i>The Hollywood Squares</i> have brought her into the homes of millions of Americans.</p> <p class="inputText">Over the course of a turbulent early life, she survived poverty, drug addiction, single motherhood and a stint on welfare in the 1970s to become the world's most highly paid actress in the early 1990s. She has also become a highly visible spokesperson for humanitarian causes, campaigning for the rights of children and the homeless, and supporting the struggles against AIDS and substance abuse.</p> <p class="inputText">Over the course of her career, Whoopi Goldberg has achieved success as a comedian, dramatic actress, writer and producer, and has won the top honors in her profession, including an Oscar and the Mark Twain Award for American Humor. Millions of Americans watch her every day as co-host of the daily television discussion program <i>The View</i>.</p>"/> <meta property="og:url" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/whoopi-goldberg/"/> <meta property="og:site_name" content="Academy of Achievement"/> <meta property="og:image" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-Feature-Image-2800x1120.jpg"/> <meta property="og:image:width" content="2800"/> <meta property="og:image:height" content="1120"/> <meta name="twitter:card" content="summary"/> <meta name="twitter:description" content="<p class="inputTextFirst">Today, Whoopi Goldberg is one of America's best known and most cherished entertainers. Her films <i>The Color Purple</i>, <i>Ghost</i> and <i>Sister Act </i>have won her an international following. Her appearances as host of the annual Oscar broadcast and as a regular on such television programs as <i>Star Trek: The Next Generation</i> and <i>The Hollywood Squares</i> have brought her into the homes of millions of Americans.</p> <p class="inputText">Over the course of a turbulent early life, she survived poverty, drug addiction, single motherhood and a stint on welfare in the 1970s to become the world's most highly paid actress in the early 1990s. She has also become a highly visible spokesperson for humanitarian causes, campaigning for the rights of children and the homeless, and supporting the struggles against AIDS and substance abuse.</p> <p class="inputText">Over the course of her career, Whoopi Goldberg has achieved success as a comedian, dramatic actress, writer and producer, and has won the top honors in her profession, including an Oscar and the Mark Twain Award for American Humor. Millions of Americans watch her every day as co-host of the daily television discussion program <i>The View</i>.</p>"/> <meta name="twitter:title" content="Whoopi Goldberg - Academy of Achievement"/> <meta name="twitter:image" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-Feature-Image-2800x1120.jpg"/> <script type="application/ld+json">{"@context":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20180628031752\/http:\/\/schema.org","@type":"WebSite","@id":"#website","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20180628031752\/http:\/\/www.achievement.org\/","name":"Academy of Achievement","alternateName":"A museum of living history","potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20180628031752\/http:\/\/www.achievement.org\/search\/{search_term_string}","query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}</script> <script type="application/ld+json">{"@context":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20180628031752\/http:\/\/schema.org","@type":"Organization","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20180628031752\/http:\/\/www.achievement.org\/achiever\/whoopi-goldberg\/","sameAs":[],"@id":"#organization","name":"Academy of Achievement","logo":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20180628031752\/http:\/\/162.243.3.155\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/academyofachievement.png"}</script>  <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://s.w.org/"/> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/web/20180628031752cs_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/dist/styles/main-5a94a61811.css"> </head> <body class="achiever-template-default single single-achiever postid-2403 whoopi-goldberg sidebar-primary">  <header class="main-header bg-black"> <div class="search-container clearfix"> <div class="container"> <a class="brand" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/"> <img class="logo" src="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/logo@2x.png" alt="Academy of Achievement"/> </a> <div class="search-form__container"> <form action="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/" method="get" class="search-form"> <input type="search" name="s" id="search" class="form-control transparent-input" placeholder="Search" autocomplete="off" value=""/> <label for="s"><i class="icon-icon_search"></i></label> </form> </div> <ul id="menu-header-navigation" class="header-menu list-unstyled"><li class="menu-item menu-home"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/">Home</a></li> <li class="active menu-item menu-item-has-children menu-our-members"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/">Our Members</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li class="active menu-item menu-member-interviews"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/">Member Interviews</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-the-arts"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.the-arts">The Arts</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-business"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.business">Business</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-science-exploration"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.science-exploration">Science & Exploration</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-public-service"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.public-service">Public Service</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-sports"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.sports">Sports</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-achiever-universe"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/universe/">Achiever Universe</a></li> </ul> </li> <li class="menu-item menu-item-has-children menu-the-summit"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/">The Summit</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li class="menu-item menu-summit-overview"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/">Summit Overview</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-2017"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/2017/">2017</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-2014"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/2014/">2014</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-2012"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/2012/">2012</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-2010"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/2010/">2010</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-2009"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/2009/">2009</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-2008"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/2008/">2008</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-2007"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/2007/">2007</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-2006"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/2006/">2006</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-2005"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/2005/">2005</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-2004"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/2004/">2004</a></li> </ul> </li> <li class="menu-item menu-item-has-children menu-our-history"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/">Our History</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li class="menu-item menu-about-the-academy"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/">About The Academy</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-academy-patrons"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/patrons/">Academy Patrons</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-delegate-alumni"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/alumni/">Delegate Alumni</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-directors-our-team"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/director-staff/">Directors & Our Team</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-golden-plate-awards-council"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/awards-council/">Golden Plate Awards Council</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-golden-plate-awardees"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/">Golden Plate Awardees</a></li> </ul> </li> <li class="menu-item menu-item-has-children menu-keys-to-success"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/">Keys to Success</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li class="menu-item menu-overview"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/">Overview</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-passion"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/passion/">Passion</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-vision"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/vision/">Vision</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-preparation"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/preparation/">Preparation</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-courage"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/courage/">Courage</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-perseverance"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/perseverance/">Perseverance</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-integrity"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/integrity/">Integrity</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-the-american-dream"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/the-american-dream/">The American Dream</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-recommended-books"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/recommended-books/">Recommended Books</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-find-my-role-model"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/find-my-role-model/">Find My Role Model</a></li> </ul> </li> </ul> <div class="nav-toggle"> <div class="icon-bar top-bar"></div> <div class="icon-bar middle-bar"></div> <div class="icon-bar bottom-bar"></div> </div> <div class="search-toogle icon-icon_search" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#searchModal" data-gtm-category="search" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Header Search Icon"></div> </div> </div> </header> <div class="" role="document"> <div class="content"> <main class="main"> <div class="feature-area__container"> <header class="feature-area feature-area--has-image ratio-container ratio-container--feature"> <figure class="feature-box"> <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image feature-area__image" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-Feature-Image-2800x1120-380x152.jpg [(max-width:544px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-Feature-Image-2800x1120.jpg [(max-width:992px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-Feature-Image-2800x1120-1400x560.jpg"></div> <div class="display--table"> <div class="display--table-cell"> <figcaption class="feature-area__text ratio-container__text container"> <div class="feature-area__text-inner text-white"> <h2 class="serif-8 feature-area__text-subhead back"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever">All achievers</a></h2> <h1 class="serif-1 entry-title feature-area__text-headline">Whoopi Goldberg</h1> <h5 class="sans-6 feature-area__blurb">Actress and Activist</h5> </div> </figcaption> </div> </div> </figure> </header> </div>  <nav class="in-page-nav row fixedsticky"> <ul class="nav text-xs-center clearfix" role="tablist"> <li class="nav-item col-xs-3"> <a class="nav-link active" data-toggle="tab" href="#biography" role="tab" data-gtm-category="tab" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever Biography">Biography</a> </li> <li class="nav-item col-xs-3"> <a class="nav-link" data-toggle="tab" href="#profile" role="tab" data-gtm-category="tab" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever Profile">Profile</a> </li> <li class="nav-item col-xs-3"> <a class="nav-link" data-toggle="tab" href="#interview" role="tab" data-gtm-category="tab" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever Interview">Interview</a> </li> <li class="nav-item col-xs-3"> <a class="nav-link" data-toggle="tab" href="#gallery" role="tab" data-gtm-category="tab" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever Gallery">Gallery</a> </li> </ul> </nav> <article class="post-2403 achiever type-achiever status-publish has-post-thumbnail hentry careers-actor"> <div class="entry-content container clearfix">  <div class="tab-content"> <div class="tab-pane fade in active" id="biography" role="tabpanel"> <section class="achiever--biography"> <div class="row"> <header class="editorial-article__header col-md-8 col-md-offset-2 text-xs-center"> <i class="icon-icon_bio text-brand-primary"></i> <h3 class="serif-3 quote-marks">I feel a bit like the golden child. But you only know that when you look back, and see the people who touched you, and how friends, camp counselors, people who denied you humanity that you overcame. People who said you couldn't, and you shouldn't, and you won't, and you will never — and you did.</h3> </header> </div> <div class="row"> <aside class="col-md-4 sidebar clearfix"> <h2 class="serif-3 p-b-1">Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award Winner</h2> <div class="col-xs-12 sidebar--chunk p-b-2"> <dt class="serif-7">Date of Birth</dt> <dd class="sans-2"> November 13, 1955 </dd> </div> </aside> <article class="editorial-article col-md-8"> <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"> <html><body><p class="inputTextFirst">Whoopi Goldberg was born Caryn Johnson in New York City. Her mother, a nurse and teacher, raised her daughter and a son on her own after Whoopi’s preacher father left the family. The future star spent the first years of her life in a public housing project in Manhattan. Drawn to the theater from earliest childhood, she made her performing debut at age eight with the Helena Rubinstein Children’s Theatre at the Hudson Guild. After dropping out of high school at 14, she lied about her age to find work as a summer camp counselor, and to sing in the choruses of the Broadway shows <i>Hair</i>, <i>Jesus Christ Superstar</i> and <i>Pippin.</i> After surviving an early experience with drug addiction, she married at age 18, and gave birth to a daughter, Alexandrea.</p> <figure id="attachment_27739" style="width: 1280px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27739 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo1_1280.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27739 size-full lazyload" alt="1985: Steven Spielberg directing Whoopi Goldberg in the period drama film "The Color Purple," based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name by Alice Walker. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times awarded the film four stars, calling it "the year's best film." He also praised Whoopi Goldberg, calling her role "one of the most amazing debut performances in movie history."" width="1280" height="855" data-sizes="(max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo1_1280.jpg 1280w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo1_1280-380x254.jpg 380w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo1_1280-760x508.jpg 760w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo1_1280.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1985: Steven Spielberg directing Whoopi Goldberg in <em>The Color Purple</em>, based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Alice Walker. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times awarded the film four stars, calling it “the year’s best film.” He praised Whoopi Goldberg, calling her role “one of the most amazing debut performances in movie history.”</figcaption></figure><p class="inputText">After breaking with her husband, she and Alexandrea moved to California in 1974. The following year she helped found the San Diego Repertory Theatre and joined the improvisational theater group Spontaneous Combustion. It was at this time that Caryn Johnson adopted her distinctive stage name — Whoopi Goldberg — and began to develop the character monologues that were to make her famous. After moving to the San Francisco Bay Area, she joined another improvisational group, the Blake Street Hawkeyes, and acquired a large local following for her work as a stand-up comedian. Soon she was touring the U.S. and Europe with her one-woman production, <i>The Spook Show.</i></p> <figure id="attachment_27735" style="width: 2048px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27735 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/still-of-whoopi-goldberg-and-danny-glover-in-the-color-purple-1985-large-picture.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27735 size-full lazyload" alt="1985: Whoopi Goldberg and Danny Glover in a scene from "The Color Purple."" width="2048" height="1367" data-sizes="(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/still-of-whoopi-goldberg-and-danny-glover-in-the-color-purple-1985-large-picture.jpg 2048w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/still-of-whoopi-goldberg-and-danny-glover-in-the-color-purple-1985-large-picture-380x254.jpg 380w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/still-of-whoopi-goldberg-and-danny-glover-in-the-color-purple-1985-large-picture-760x507.jpg 760w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/still-of-whoopi-goldberg-and-danny-glover-in-the-color-purple-1985-large-picture.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1985: Whoopi Goldberg and Danny Glover in a dramatic scene from the hit motion picture <em>The Color Purple</em>.</figcaption></figure><p>In 1983, Whoopi Goldberg brought <i>The Spook Show </i>to New York’s Dance Theater Workshop, where it attracted immediate critical attention. The legendary director Mike Nichols saw her perform, and the following year presented her on Broadway in a revised version of her solo act, titled simply <i>Whoopi Goldberg</i>. The one-woman show played to sold-out audiences into 1985, and brought her to the attention of director Steven Spielberg. Spielberg cast her in the leading role in his film of Alice Walker’s acclaimed novel <i>The Color Purple.</i> Making her film debut in this coveted role instantly established Goldberg as one of Hollywood’s leading dramatic actresses. Her powerful performance brought her a Golden Globe and her first Oscar nomination.</p> <figure id="attachment_27737" style="width: 1600px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27737 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Ghost-1990-Trailer-Patrick-Swayze-Demi-Moore-and-Whoopi-Goldberg.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27737 size-full lazyload" alt="1990: Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze, and Whoopi Goldberg in the romantic fantasy thriller film "Ghost," the highest-grossing film of 1990." width="1600" height="1113" data-sizes="(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Ghost-1990-Trailer-Patrick-Swayze-Demi-Moore-and-Whoopi-Goldberg.jpg 1600w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Ghost-1990-Trailer-Patrick-Swayze-Demi-Moore-and-Whoopi-Goldberg-380x264.jpg 380w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Ghost-1990-Trailer-Patrick-Swayze-Demi-Moore-and-Whoopi-Goldberg-760x529.jpg 760w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Ghost-1990-Trailer-Patrick-Swayze-Demi-Moore-and-Whoopi-Goldberg.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1990: Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze, and Whoopi in the romantic thriller <em>Ghost</em>, the year’s highest-grossing film.</figcaption></figure><p class="inputText">Goldberg followed her triumph in <i>The Color Purple </i>with a successful comic vehicle, <i>Jumping Jack Flash</i>, but her next few comedies proved to be box office disappointments. Dramatic performances in the films <i>Clara’s Heart</i> and <i>The Long Walk Home</i> won her critical praise but also failed to find the large audiences the studios were banking on. At the close of the 1980s, Whoopi Goldberg was still very much in demand as a live performer, and with her friends Robin Williams and Billy Crystal, she headlined the popular <i>Comic Relief</i> television specials to support charities aiding the homeless.</p> <figure id="attachment_27727" style="width: 1460px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27727 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP910326043.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27727 size-full lazyload" alt="1991: Whoopi Goldberg holds her Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, won for her role in "Ghost," in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Bob Galbraith)" width="1460" height="1570" data-sizes="(max-width: 1460px) 100vw, 1460px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP910326043.jpg 1460w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP910326043-353x380.jpg 353w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP910326043-707x760.jpg 707w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP910326043.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1991: Whoopi Goldberg holds her Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, won for her role in <em>Ghost</em>, in Los Angeles.</figcaption></figure><p>In 1990, Goldberg began two seasons starring in the television sitcom <i>Baghdad Café</i>. In the same year, her faltering film career revived suddenly with her supporting role in the surprise hit <i>Ghost</i>. In the opinion of many critics, it was her performance as a phony — if well-intentioned — psychic that made the film a stand-out. Once again, the film industry was excited about Whoopi Goldberg, and she took home the year’s Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. She followed this victory with the box-office smash <i>Sister Act</i>, which cast her as a hard-boiled nightclub singer hiding out in a convent. The worldwide success of this comedy catapulted Whoopi Goldberg into the ranks of Hollywood’s top stars and led inevitably to a sequel. At the time of <i>Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit</i>, she was the highest paid actress in history.</p> <figure id="attachment_27723" style="width: 2280px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27723 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/4412531722_761627b6a2_o.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27723 size-full lazyload" alt="1992: Whoopi Goldberg in the comedy film "Sister Act." The film was a box office hit, becoming one of the most financially successful comedies of the early 1990s." width="2280" height="3420" data-sizes="(max-width: 2280px) 100vw, 2280px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/4412531722_761627b6a2_o.jpg 2280w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/4412531722_761627b6a2_o-253x380.jpg 253w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/4412531722_761627b6a2_o-507x760.jpg 507w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/4412531722_761627b6a2_o.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1992: Whoopi Goldberg in the motion picture <em>Sister Act, </em>one of the decade’s most financially successful comedies.</figcaption></figure><p class="inputText">Goldberg earned continued respect from critics as well, with her appearance as a police detective in Robert Altman’s <i>The Player.</i> She also enjoyed success on television, with a recurring guest role, “Guinan,” on <i>Star Trek: The Next Generation</i>, a character she reprised in two <i>Star Trek</i> movies. Her other film successes in the 1990s included <i>Made In America</i>; <i>Corinna, Corinna</i>; <i>Boys on the Side</i>; and a voiceover role in the animated classic <i>The Lion King</i>. A late night talk program, <i>The Whoopi Goldberg Show</i>, proved the comedian and actress to be a serious and thoughtful observer of the political scene, but was cancelled after a single season. Goldberg won rave reviews hosting the annual Oscar telecast in 1994 and hosted the program again in 1996, 1999 and 2002. The following year, she starred in the TV sitcom <i>Whoopi</i> for a single season. She has also produced television series such as <i>Strong Medicine</i> on the Lifetime channel and <i>Whoopi’s Littleburg</i> on Nickelodeon.</p> <figure id="attachment_27715" style="width: 2280px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27715 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-the-view.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27715 size-full lazyload" alt="2014: Whoopi Goldberg, Rosie Perez, Rosie O'Donnell, and Nicolle Wallace on ABC's daytime television talk show "The View." Since 2007, she has been the moderator of the show." width="2280" height="1520" data-sizes="(max-width: 2280px) 100vw, 2280px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-the-view.jpg 2280w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-the-view-380x253.jpg 380w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-the-view-760x507.jpg 760w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-the-view.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">2014: Whoopi Goldberg, Rosie Perez, Rosie O’Donnell and Nicolle Wallace on ABC’s television talk show <em>The View</em>.</figcaption></figure><p>On the 20th anniversary of her Broadway success, Whoopi Goldberg revived her one-woman show for another successful run at New York’s Lyceum Theatre. Over the course of her career, she has won every major honor awarded by the entertainment industry: the Oscar, Emmy, Grammy and Tony Awards. She has also received the Mark Twain Award for American Humor, presented in a 2001 ceremony at the Kennedy Center in Washington.</p> <figure id="attachment_27730" style="width: 2280px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27730 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/filename-1823.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27730 size-full lazyload" alt="February 28, 2016: Whoopi Goldberg and her daughter, Alex Martin, attend the 88th Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, California." width="2280" height="1515" data-sizes="(max-width: 2280px) 100vw, 2280px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/filename-1823.jpg 2280w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/filename-1823-380x253.jpg 380w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/filename-1823-760x505.jpg 760w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/filename-1823.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">February 28, 2016: Whoopi Goldberg and her daughter, Alex Martin, attend the 88th Annual Academy Awards.</figcaption></figure><p class="inputText">Whoopi Goldberg has long been one of the most recognizable and best-loved figures in American popular culture. Since the summer of 2007, she has been a daily presence in American homes, as co-host of ABC’s morning talk show <i>The View</i>. She has continued an active movie career, voicing the character of Stretchy in <em>Toy Story 3</em>, and appearing in the live-action film <i>Madea Goes to Jail</i> and 2010’s <i>For Colored Girls</i>, adapted from the celebrated play by Ntozake Shange. She has written a number of books, including a collection of humorous essays, <i>Book</i>, and the children’s books <i>Alice</i> and <i>Whoopi’s Big Book of Manners, </i>as well as the <i>Sugar Plum Ballerinas</i> series. In 2010, she published a book of humorous observations on contemporary manners, <i>Is It Just Me?: Or Is It Nuts Out There?</i></p></body></html> <div class="clearfix"> </div> </article> </div> </section> </div> <div class="tab-pane fade" id="profile" role="tabpanel"> <section class="clearfix"> <header class="editorial-article__header"> <figure class="text-xs-center"> <img class="inductee-badge" src="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/inducted-badge@2x.png" alt="Inducted Badge" width="120" height="120"/> <figcaption class="serif-3 text-brand-primary"> Inducted in 1994 </figcaption> </figure> </header> <div class="row"> <aside class="col-md-4 sidebar"> <dl class="clearfix m-b-0"> <div class="col-xs-12 sidebar--chunk p-b-2"> <dt class="serif-7">Career</dt> <dd class="sans-2"> <div><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.actor">Actor</a></div> </dd> </div> <div class="col-xs-12 sidebar--chunk p-b-2"> <dt class="serif-7">Date of Birth</dt> <dd class="sans-2"> November 13, 1955 </dd> </div> </dl> </aside> <article class="col-md-8 editorial-article clearfix"> <p class="inputTextFirst">Today, Whoopi Goldberg is one of America’s best known and most cherished entertainers. Her films <i>The Color Purple</i>, <i>Ghost</i> and <i>Sister Act </i>have won her an international following. Her appearances as host of the annual Oscar broadcast and as a regular on such television programs as <i>Star Trek: The Next Generation</i> and <i>The Hollywood Squares</i> have brought her into the homes of millions of Americans.</p> <p class="inputText">Over the course of a turbulent early life, she survived poverty, drug addiction, single motherhood and a stint on welfare in the 1970s to become the world’s most highly paid actress in the early 1990s. She has also become a highly visible spokesperson for humanitarian causes, campaigning for the rights of children and the homeless, and supporting the struggles against AIDS and substance abuse.</p> <p class="inputText">Over the course of her career, Whoopi Goldberg has achieved success as a comedian, dramatic actress, writer and producer, and has won the top honors in her profession, including an Oscar and the Mark Twain Award for American Humor. Millions of Americans watch her every day as co-host of the daily television discussion program <i>The View</i>.</p> </article> </div> </section> </div> <div class="tab-pane fade" id="interview" role="tabpanel"> <section class="clearfix"> <div class="col-md-12 interview-feature-video"> <figure> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"> <iframe class="embed-responsive-item embed-responsive--has-thumbnail" width="200" height="150" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752if_/https://www.youtube.com/embed/-_J_zte5Qfs?feature=oembed&autohide=1&hd=1&color=white&modestbranding=1&rel=0&showinfo=0&theme=light" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <div class="embed-responsive__thumbnail ratio-container__image lazyload" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_04_35_19.Still003-380x214.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_04_35_19.Still003-760x428.jpg"></div> <div class="video-tag sans-4"> <i class="embed-responsive__play icon-icon_play-full text-brand-primary"></i> <div class="video-tag__text">Watch full interview</div> </div> </div> </figure> </div> <header class="col-md-12 text-xs-center m-b-2"> <i class="icon-icon_bio text-brand-primary"></i> </header> <aside class="col-md-4 sidebar"> <h2 class="serif-3 achiever--biography-subtitle">Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award Winner</h2> <div class="sans-2">Las Vegas, Nevada</div> <div class="sans-2">June 17, 1994</div> </aside> <article class="editorial-article col-md-8">   <div class="achiever__interview-copy"> <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"> <html><body><figure id="attachment_28644" style="width: 2280px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><noscript><img class="size-full wp-image-28644 " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/wp-kennedy-GettyImages-973226331.jpg"></noscript><img class="size-full wp-image-28644 lazyload" alt="October 19, 1960: Democratic presidential nominee John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline, ride up Broadway in a ticker-tape parade. (Frank Hurley/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)" width="2280" height="1824" data-sizes="(max-width: 2280px) 100vw, 2280px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/wp-kennedy-GettyImages-973226331.jpg 2280w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/wp-kennedy-GettyImages-973226331-380x304.jpg 380w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/wp-kennedy-GettyImages-973226331-760x608.jpg 760w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/wp-kennedy-GettyImages-973226331.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1960: Democratic presidential nominee John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline, ride up Broadway in a parade. As a youngster, Whoopi Goldberg was inspired by Kennedy when he campaigned in her New York neighborhood.</figcaption></figure><p><strong>When you were growing up, was there a particular experience that meant a lot to you?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: Yeah. When John Kennedy was running for president he came to my neighborhood. It was the hottest day in a century. It was like 9,000 degrees. People came from all over Manhattan to my neighborhood to see this guy who talked about my country, and my part in it. This was the coolest thing.</p> <p><strong>What did seeing JFK tell you?</strong></p></body></html> </div>     <div class="achiever__video-block"> <figure class="achiever__interview-video"> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"> <iframe class="embed-responsive-item embed-responsive--has-thumbnail" width="200" height="150" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752if_/https://www.youtube.com/embed/TYmlQEmzLao?feature=oembed&autohide=1&hd=1&color=white&modestbranding=1&rel=0&showinfo=0&theme=light" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <div class="embed-responsive__thumbnail ratio-container__image lazyload" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_21_37_28.Still008-380x214.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_21_37_28.Still008-760x428.jpg"></div> <i class="embed-responsive__play icon-icon_play-full text-brand-primary"></i> </div> </figure>  <div class="achiever__interview-video__copy"> <p>This guy who was going to be the president was coming to my neighborhood to tell me that he was thinking of me. I mean, because I took it very personally. I thought it was very, very cool. I’m a big believer in whistle stops, you know. I believe it’s good for the people you’re supposed to represent to see you, to feel your essence. So that you as a politician know that when you’re setting legislation, you’re setting it for real people. People who will be affected by what you decide.</p> </div> </div>      <div class="achiever__interview-copy"> <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"> <html><body><figure id="attachment_27717" style="width: 3029px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27717 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/whoopi-goldberg-in-ghost-1990.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27717 size-full lazyload" alt="1990: Whoopi Goldberg in the romantic fantasy thriller film "Ghost." The film won awards for Best Supporting Actress for Goldberg and Best Original Screenplay. For her performance in "Ghost," Goldberg won the BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Saturn Awards in addition to the Oscar." width="3029" height="3600" data-sizes="(max-width: 3029px) 100vw, 3029px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/whoopi-goldberg-in-ghost-1990.jpg 3029w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/whoopi-goldberg-in-ghost-1990-320x380.jpg 320w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/whoopi-goldberg-in-ghost-1990-639x760.jpg 639w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/whoopi-goldberg-in-ghost-1990.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1990: Whoopi Goldberg in the film <em>Ghost</em>. It won awards for Best Supporting Actress for Goldberg and Best Original Screenplay. For her performance, Goldberg won the Golden Globe and Saturn Awards in addition to the Oscar.</figcaption></figure><p><strong>When did you know what you wanted to do?</strong></p></body></html> </div>     <div class="achiever__video-block"> <figure class="achiever__interview-video"> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"> <iframe class="embed-responsive-item embed-responsive--has-thumbnail" width="200" height="150" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752if_/https://www.youtube.com/embed/TteGFU-SZMI?feature=oembed&autohide=1&hd=1&color=white&modestbranding=1&rel=0&showinfo=0&theme=light" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <div class="embed-responsive__thumbnail ratio-container__image lazyload" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_07_55_12.Still011-380x214.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_07_55_12.Still011-760x428.jpg"></div> <i class="embed-responsive__play icon-icon_play-full text-brand-primary"></i> </div> <figcaption class="achiever__interview-video-terms"> <span>Keys to success —</span> <a class="comma-item" href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/passion/">Passion</a> </figcaption> </figure>  <div class="achiever__interview-video__copy"> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: Oh, from birth. I knew as soon as I hit that light. I was waving! It’s always been. It’s as much a part of my whole being as breathing. I always knew this was it. I didn’t know it was going to be like this, you know. But I always knew that I wanted to act.</p> </div> </div>      <div class="achiever__interview-copy"> <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"> <html><body><figure id="attachment_27734" style="width: 1280px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27734 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo2_1280.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27734 size-full lazyload" alt="1991: Denzel Washington presenting Whoopi Goldberg with the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in "Ghost" at the 63rd Annual Academy Awards." width="1280" height="1834" data-sizes="(max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo2_1280.jpg 1280w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo2_1280-265x380.jpg 265w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo2_1280-530x760.jpg 530w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo2_1280.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1991: Denzel Washington presenting Whoopi Goldberg with the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for <em>Ghost.</em></figcaption></figure><p><strong>Did you have support at home?</strong></p></body></html> </div>     <div class="achiever__video-block"> <figure class="achiever__interview-video"> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"> <iframe class="embed-responsive-item embed-responsive--has-thumbnail" width="200" height="150" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752if_/https://www.youtube.com/embed/knAEMVlJVHU?feature=oembed&autohide=1&hd=1&color=white&modestbranding=1&rel=0&showinfo=0&theme=light" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <div class="embed-responsive__thumbnail ratio-container__image lazyload" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_11_49_01.Still013-380x214.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_11_49_01.Still013-760x428.jpg"></div> <i class="embed-responsive__play icon-icon_play-full text-brand-primary"></i> </div> </figure>  <div class="achiever__interview-video__copy"> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: I grew up in a time when it would never have occurred to anyone to tell me there was anything I couldn’t do. You know, I grew up in a time when the country was very pro the people who lived in it. That’s why as many changes were able to happen… the March on Washington came into reality. People really believed that they had a stake in the country. So there were all kinds of invitations to make the country better. So there was never for me, anyone saying, “No, you’re going to fail,” or “No, there’s no place for you.” The only thing my mom every said to me was, “It may be tough, but what isn’t?”</p> </div> </div>      <div class="achiever__interview-copy"> <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"> <html><body><figure id="attachment_27726" style="width: 2280px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27726 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1994-Oscaruri-GettyImages-494820813.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27726 size-full lazyload" alt="1994: Actress and comedian Whoopi Goldberg, host of the 66th Academy Awards. (John D. Kisch/Separate Cinema Archive/Getty Images)" width="2280" height="2785" data-sizes="(max-width: 2280px) 100vw, 2280px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1994-Oscaruri-GettyImages-494820813.jpg 2280w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1994-Oscaruri-GettyImages-494820813-311x380.jpg 311w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1994-Oscaruri-GettyImages-494820813-622x760.jpg 622w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1994-Oscaruri-GettyImages-494820813.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1994: Actress and comedian Whoopi Goldberg, host of the 66th Academy Awards. (John D. Kisch/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure><p><strong>What do you say to kids who want to be actors?</strong></p></body></html> </div>     <div class="achiever__video-block"> <figure class="achiever__interview-video"> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"> <iframe class="embed-responsive-item embed-responsive--has-thumbnail" width="200" height="150" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752if_/https://www.youtube.com/embed/hmiP0kxNpMM?feature=oembed&autohide=1&hd=1&color=white&modestbranding=1&rel=0&showinfo=0&theme=light" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <div class="embed-responsive__thumbnail ratio-container__image lazyload" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_20_49_22.Still007-380x214.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_20_49_22.Still007-760x428.jpg"></div> <i class="embed-responsive__play icon-icon_play-full text-brand-primary"></i> </div> <figcaption class="achiever__interview-video-terms"> <span>Keys to success —</span> <a class="comma-item" href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/vision/">Vision</a> </figcaption> </figure>  <div class="achiever__interview-video__copy"> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: Come on! Come on! You know, be an actor because you love to act. Don’t be an actor because you think you’re going to get famous, because that’s luck. But if it’s what you want to do with your whole heart and soul, come on. Go everywhere, learn everything. Learn Shakespeare. Shakespeare is great fun. Don’t be thrown by the words. The words are the same words that we use with a little different implementation. Write things for yourself. Come on, it’s a great way to spend time. It’s a great way to learn history. It’s a great way to learn all kinds of things. But only come if you’re coming to play. If you’re not coming to play, you should get another gig to supplement your acting.</p> </div> </div>      <div class="achiever__interview-copy"> <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"> <html><body><p><strong>Were there any books that made a particular impression on you?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: I’m dyslexic, so there weren’t a whole lot of books in my early life. But I did love stories. I love fairy tales and I love spooky stories. Anything with a good 25- to 30-minute brain trip for me to go on. I still like to be read to.</p> <figure id="attachment_27718" style="width: 2065px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27718 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP950202066.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27718 size-full lazyload" alt="1995: Whoopi Goldberg has help putting her footprints in the wet cement in the forecourt of Mann's Chinese Theater in Hollywood, California. Goldberg's hands, feet and hair braids were imprinted in the sidewalk. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)" width="2065" height="3000" data-sizes="(max-width: 2065px) 100vw, 2065px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP950202066.jpg 2065w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP950202066-262x380.jpg 262w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP950202066-523x760.jpg 523w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP950202066.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1995: Whoopi Goldberg has help putting her footprints in the wet cement in the forecourt of Mann’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood, California. Goldberg’s hands, feet and hair braids were imprinted in the sidewalk. (AP)</figcaption></figure><p><strong>When did you find out you were dyslexic?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: When I was a grown woman.</p></body></html> </div>     <div class="achiever__video-block"> <figure class="achiever__interview-video"> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"> <iframe class="embed-responsive-item embed-responsive--has-thumbnail" width="200" height="150" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752if_/https://www.youtube.com/embed/9oTgK43OI60?feature=oembed&autohide=1&hd=1&color=white&modestbranding=1&rel=0&showinfo=0&theme=light" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <div class="embed-responsive__thumbnail ratio-container__image lazyload" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_07_11_14.Still009-380x214.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_07_11_14.Still009-760x428.jpg"></div> <i class="embed-responsive__play icon-icon_play-full text-brand-primary"></i> </div> <figcaption class="achiever__interview-video-terms"> <span>Keys to success —</span> <a class="comma-item" href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/perseverance/">Perseverance</a> </figcaption> </figure>  <div class="achiever__interview-video__copy"> <p>When I was a kid they didn’t call it dyslexia. They called it… you know, you were slow, or you were retarded, or whatever. And so, I learned from a guy who was running a program who I met one day and he had written out on a board a sentence. And I said to him, “You know, I can’t read that.” And he said, “Why not”? And I said, “Because it doesn’t make any sense to me.” So he said, “Well, write down what you see under each. Whatever you see, write exactly what you see underneath.” And so, he brought me to letters by coordinating what I saw to something called an A, or a B, or a C, or a D, and that was pretty cool. Once you got into the habit of doing it, it became much easier.</p> </div> </div>      <div class="achiever__interview-copy"> <p>Probably, by the time people see this in 2025, they will have been able to eliminate it. They will be able to eliminate it with just an adjustment, a little implant.</p> </div>     <div class="achiever__video-block"> <figure class="achiever__interview-video"> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"> <iframe class="embed-responsive-item embed-responsive--has-thumbnail" width="200" height="150" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752if_/https://www.youtube.com/embed/nDs9pCSbofE?feature=oembed&autohide=1&hd=1&color=white&modestbranding=1&rel=0&showinfo=0&theme=light" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <div class="embed-responsive__thumbnail ratio-container__image lazyload" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_05_43_18.Still004-380x214.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_05_43_18.Still004-760x428.jpg"></div> <i class="embed-responsive__play icon-icon_play-full text-brand-primary"></i> </div> </figure>  <div class="achiever__interview-video__copy"> <p>What you can never change is the effect that the words “dumb” and “stupid” have on young people. So we must always be vigilant when those two words get stuck in our throat. “Hey, dummy! God, you’re so stupid.” You know. Just remember that what those leave you with are forever, you know. Be it in 1810, or 4010, you know. The effect that they have is the same.</p> </div> </div>      <div class="achiever__interview-copy"> <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"> <html><body><figure id="attachment_27714" style="width: 1632px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27714 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP9511110836.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27714 size-full lazyload" alt="1995: Comedians and co-hosts, from left, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg and Robin Williams sing and dance the 1940s-era opening number to "Comic Relief VII" Saturday night in Los Angeles. The event, in its seventh year, is put on to raise awareness and funds for America's homeless men, women and children. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)" width="1632" height="2000" data-sizes="(max-width: 1632px) 100vw, 1632px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP9511110836.jpg 1632w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP9511110836-310x380.jpg 310w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP9511110836-620x760.jpg 620w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP9511110836.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">1995: Comedians and co-hosts, from left, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg and Robin Williams sing and dance the 1940s-era opening number to <em>Comic Relief VII</em> Saturday night in Los Angeles. The event, in its seventh year, is put on to raise awareness and funds for America’s homeless men, women and children. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)</figcaption></figure><p><strong>It doesn’t seem to have stopped you.</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: No. Because I knew I wasn’t stupid, and I knew I wasn’t dumb. My mother told me that. Everybody told me I wasn’t stupid or dumb. If you read to me, I could tell you everything that you read. They didn’t know what it was. They knew I wasn’t lazy, but what was it? It’s like in the early days when little girls complained about having cramps. Their mothers, and their mother’s mothers were just sort of left to deal with it, because it was all in your head.</p> <p>It took 25 or 30 years for people to understand that menstrual cramps are a real thing, that PMS is a real chemical change in the body. Think of all those little girls whose mother said to them, “Why do you just want attention?” It’s still new information that these things are actual body problems. Postpartum depression is a real, viable thing. Now they can help people.</p> <figure id="attachment_27720" style="width: 2280px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27720 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/1d3c0c94-f653-11e2-94e0-005056b70bb8.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27720 size-full lazyload" alt="2010: Thandie Newton and Whoopi Goldberg star in the drama film "For Colored Girls." (Quantrell Colbert)" width="2280" height="1520" data-sizes="(max-width: 2280px) 100vw, 2280px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/1d3c0c94-f653-11e2-94e0-005056b70bb8.jpg 2280w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/1d3c0c94-f653-11e2-94e0-005056b70bb8-380x253.jpg 380w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/1d3c0c94-f653-11e2-94e0-005056b70bb8-760x507.jpg 760w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/1d3c0c94-f653-11e2-94e0-005056b70bb8.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">2010: Thandie Newton and Whoopi Goldberg star in the drama motion picture <em>For Colored Girls</em>. (Colbert)</figcaption></figure><p><strong>What was the most exciting moment in your career?</strong></p></body></html> </div>     <div class="achiever__video-block"> <figure class="achiever__interview-video"> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"> <iframe class="embed-responsive-item embed-responsive--has-thumbnail" width="200" height="150" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752if_/https://www.youtube.com/embed/lKD_j6jukiI?feature=oembed&autohide=1&hd=1&color=white&modestbranding=1&rel=0&showinfo=0&theme=light" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <div class="embed-responsive__thumbnail ratio-container__image lazyload" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_04_02_17.Still002-380x214.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_04_02_17.Still002-760x428.jpg"></div> <i class="embed-responsive__play icon-icon_play-full text-brand-primary"></i> </div> </figure>  <div class="achiever__interview-video__copy"> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: Sitting at the table during <em>Color Purple</em> and looking up and suddenly realizing I was acting in front of Steven Spielberg was pretty cool. It was pretty good. Because it was like, suddenly, I got it. I was there. I was in a movie. Not only was I in a movie, but I had a big part in the movie, you know. And I just started laughing and laughing. It took about 25 minutes to compose myself, but it was pretty remarkable. Because, you know, there was an idea whose time had come, for me. And that it was with Steven Spielberg was pretty cool.</p> </div> </div>      <div class="achiever__interview-copy"> <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"> <html><body><p><strong>What did getting the Academy Award mean to you?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: It was pretty cool, I have to say. I liked it. I would like to do it again one day. It was very cool. I used to make speeches when I was a kid, you know, thanking all the little people. And suddenly, there I was having to make a real speech! I touch my Oscar every day. I move him from one place to the other and then back.</p> <figure id="attachment_27722" style="width: 1919px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><noscript><img class="wp-image-27722 size-full " src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752im_/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-whoopi-goldberg-31581577-1919-2560.jpg"></noscript><img class="wp-image-27722 size-full lazyload" alt="Comedian, actress and talk show host Whoopi Goldberg. (Timothy Greenfield-Sanders)" width="1919" height="2560" data-sizes="(max-width: 1919px) 100vw, 1919px" data-srcset="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-whoopi-goldberg-31581577-1919-2560.jpg 1919w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-whoopi-goldberg-31581577-1919-2560-285x380.jpg 285w, /web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-whoopi-goldberg-31581577-1919-2560-570x760.jpg 570w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://162.243.3.155/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-whoopi-goldberg-31581577-1919-2560.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award winner Whoopi Goldberg. (Timothy Greenfield-Sanders)</figcaption></figure><p><strong>You also hosted the awards.</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: Oh, yes. I liked it. When else are you going to get to play with several billion people? It’s just one more thing I can write in my diary: Dear Diary, played for two billion today. I have this whole book of things that I’ve gotten to do. I’ve gotten to play at the White House, which is kind of neat. I’ve been all over the world. I’ve met amazing people. Life can be grand. It can be tough, but it can be grand.</p> <p><strong>What does the American Dream mean to you?</strong></p></body></html> </div>     <div class="achiever__video-block"> <figure class="achiever__interview-video"> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"> <iframe class="embed-responsive-item embed-responsive--has-thumbnail" width="200" height="150" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752if_/https://www.youtube.com/embed/kKbGaAGSxXE?feature=oembed&autohide=1&hd=1&color=white&modestbranding=1&rel=0&showinfo=0&theme=light" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <div class="embed-responsive__thumbnail ratio-container__image lazyload" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_18_05_23.Still001-380x214.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Goldberg-Whoopi-1994-MasterEdit.00_18_05_23.Still001-760x428.jpg"></div> <i class="embed-responsive__play icon-icon_play-full text-brand-primary"></i> </div> <figcaption class="achiever__interview-video-terms"> <span>Keys to success —</span> <a class="comma-item" href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/the-american-dream/">The American Dream</a> </figcaption> </figure>  <div class="achiever__interview-video__copy"> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: I am the American Dream. I am the epitome of what the American Dream basically said. It said you could come from anywhere and be anything you want in this country. That’s exactly what I’ve done. The great divide between my era and the eras that come after me is that you are not getting the encouragement and the “hands-on” from your government. A lot of times your teachers have been left out in the cold. So it’s hard for them to focus the way that teachers were focused when I was a kid. There’s not a lot of work out there as there were when I was a kid. We had programs that were set up by the country. So, the fact that you’re making it now, makes you 5,000 times the person that those who came before you were. Because we had a lot of help, and there’s very little help out there now.</p> </div> </div>     <aside class="collapse" id="full-interview">    <div class="achiever__interview-copy"> <p><strong>What was your childhood like?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: I grew up in Manhattan, in New York, a place called Chelsea. And I grew up around lots of different people. So we all grew up speaking a smattering of Greek, Italian, Spanish, Indian, Chinese, Yiddish. I had a great time. There were all sorts of things to play with and to go and be part of. Which now you can do on interactive things like this. You couldn’t go and talk to Leonard Bernstein; you could only go watch him conduct. Something I’m very sorry for.</p> <p><strong>Were your parents comfortable?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: I can’t speak for what they were. I was comfortable. I knew we weren’t Rockefellers, but it was never an issue because we went to places we needed to go — Coney Island, we went on the Circle Line, we had Central Park. There were things you could do without tons of money.</p> <p>So, I truly don’t know what my mom was doing financially. I know that we ate, and times weren’t like they are now. I don’t know that my mother could have achieved all she achieved on her income today. In today’s market, at her income level, I’m sure we would be dirt poor. But back then we weren’t.</p> <p><strong>What was it about acting that you knew it was right for you?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: I have two theories on that. One theory I believe is that when people die the spirit flies from them and fragments, and goes into people who are just coming into being. I believe I got hit with a lot of fragments from various people, that’s my first theory.</p> <p><strong>Like who?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: John Garfield. I feel a very great affinity to him. That’s a whole other discussion.</p> <p><strong>That’s why you were so effective in <em>Ghost.</em></strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: Probably, because it’s my belief. I think probably that did help me a lot in <em>Ghost,</em></p> <p>I believe that we keep the circle. The circle doesn’t break, it just reinvents. The other thing is, I just love the idea that I could go be a princess from Greenland in the movies and it’s cool. There’s no one to say, no, you can’t be from Greenland. There’s no one saying, you can’t be from Hungary. So the idea that you can go into the past, the present and the future, you know, I just think it’s too cool.</p> <p><strong>You can be anybody.</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: Anybody, and anything. Who’s to say? I could be this great, big microphone, if I had to be. You never know.</p> <p><strong>What persons were important to you?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: I think I’m one of those people who was affected, really, truly, by everybody that I met, in a very magical kind of way, you know. I feel a bit like the golden child. But you only know that when you look back, and see the people who touched you and how friends, and camp counselors, and people who denied your humanity, that you overcame, you know. All those people who said you couldn’t, and you shouldn’t, and you won’t, and you will never — and you did. All those people affected me, and went into making me the sum total of what I became, and what I’ve become.</p> <p><strong>Are there teachers that stand out?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: No, not really. Just fragments of speech that I remember from various times, but can’t necessarily put faces to. But there are people whose goal in life was to instill the positive ideal that you could go forward. That anything you wanted was yours for the taking, with a commitment to hard work. And knowing that it wasn’t always going to be easy. People who taught me that the hardest thing to be in this world is someone who disagrees with popular people. To take unpopular stances in front of popular people. It’s easy to be unpopular with unpopular people, but it’s harder to be unpopular with popular people. The people that instilled that in me, I take my hat off to. Because that is the foundation that has allowed me to do exactly as I please, and be and look just like I want to.</p> <p><strong>I think you’re really talking about having guts.</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: I don’t know if it’s guts, I think it is. I think of guts as something that gives you that Kirk Douglas look. But I think what I mean is the knowledge that it is okay to feel differently than the pack. That that is a fundamental right. That it’s okay to disagree. It’s better to be able to disagree and have a dialogue, than to go along with the pack and be truly unhappy. I don’t want to be truly unhappy. I mean, there’s enough out there to piss me off. You know, to bother me. I’m sorry, there’s enough out there to bother me.</p> <p><strong>Do you remember the first time you acted on the stage?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: I was a teapot. I was a small teapot, short and stout, here was my handle, this was my spout. And I was like seven. It was the greatest. I was just bowing, and bowing. They had to come get me off the stage. I just kept bowing. “Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.” You know. All the other pots are gone. Born ham, that’s basically me. It’s the truth. My mom told me. I’d forgotten it. She also tells the story of my birth. I’m almost half kidding when I say I came out and waved. My mother says that I came out head, arm, other arm, thumb in mouth, immediately. They were astounded, because generally that’s not what you do. I was born clear, you know. They just kept calling people. I was just hanging out, thumb in my mouth. Some people are just born that way.</p> <p><strong>What characteristics do you think are most important for success?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: We’re born with success. It is only others who point out our failures, and what they attribute to us as failure. I think the idea that you know who your inner self is on a daily basis, because… you know. What’s good for you 25 years ago may not be good for you now. So, to keep in touch with that, I think that’s the first ingredient for success. Because if you’re a successful human being, everything else is gravy, I think.</p> <p><strong>What are the difficult aspects of your success?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: People expecting me to be more than I am. Expecting me to live up to their expectations, when perhaps I can’t. People forgetting that I get cranky, and I get crabby, and I don’t always want to be Whoopi Goldberg. Some days I’m just not in the mood. The lack of privacy is tough.</p> <p>I went to the bathroom once and people followed me in, and a lady put her hand up under the stall with a pen and a piece of paper, wanted my autograph. I said, could I just finish what I’m doing first? So sometimes people just forget, or they grab you and they don’t realize that, you know, you’re a person that feels. They grab my hair. People grab my hair and go, Whoopi!! And not realize that I don’t mind saying hello, but hey! That hurt, you know. Or when you’re rushing, or you’re preoccupied and you just can’t stop. People aren’t always understanding. And so you feel bad because you don’t want them to think ill of you. And you come to a place where you say, “You know what? Too bad. I have to go.” So that’s kind of tough.</p> <p><strong>Is it harder to be centered when you’re well known?</strong></p> <p>Whoopi Goldberg: The reality is, I’m quite off-center. It’s a daily workout trying to implement those things that you believe. It’s hard sometimes, and I’m cranky and crabby. I don’t always practice what I preach, but I do pay for it when I realize that I haven’t.</p> <p>It’s a lot of work just being human. You add celebrity on top of that and it’s like 45 lives.</p> <p><strong>Thank you, Whoopi. It’s been a pleasure.</strong></p> </div>  </aside>  <div class="read-more__toggle collapsed" data-toggle="collapse" data-target="#full-interview"><a href="#" class="sans-4 btn">Read full interview</a></div> </article> </section> </div> <div class="tab-pane fade" id="gallery" role="tabpanel"> <section class="isotope-wrapper">  <header class="toolbar toolbar--gallery bg-white clearfix"> <div class="col-md-6"> <div class="serif-4">Whoopi Goldberg Gallery</div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 text-md-right isotope-toolbar"> <ul class="list-unstyled list-inline m-b-0 text-brand-primary sans-4"> <li class="list-inline-item" data-filter=".photo"><i class="icon-icon_camera"></i>28 photos</li> </ul> </div> </header> <div class="isotope-gallery isotope-box single-achiever__gallery clearfix"> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.1930926216641" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/patrick-swayze-whoopi-goldberg-2002-19366.jpg" data-image-caption="2002: Patrick Swayze and Whoopi Goldberg at the New York opening night of "Thoroughly Modern Millie." Whoopi Goldberg credits her Oscar win to Patrick Swayze. On "The View," Goldberg revealed that she only got the role of Oda Mae Brown because Swayze fought for her. The producers resisted casting her, but Swayze told them he wasn’t doing the film unless Whoopi was in it, too, and that she was right for the part — even though at that point she and Swayze had never met. “And I won an Oscar because of Patrick Swayze,” Goldberg said. In her 1991 Oscar speech, she thanked Swayze, calling him “a stand-up guy.” (Jim Spellman/WireImage.com)" data-image-copyright="Jim Spellman" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/patrick-swayze-whoopi-goldberg-2002-19366-318x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/patrick-swayze-whoopi-goldberg-2002-19366-637x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.66842105263158" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo1_1280.jpg" data-image-caption="1985: Steven Spielberg directing Whoopi Goldberg in the period drama film "The Color Purple," based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name by Alice Walker. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times awarded the film four stars, calling it "the year's best film." He also praised Whoopi Goldberg, calling her role "one of the most amazing debut performances in movie history."" data-image-copyright="tumblr_nbyuw3x3by1rujq2eo1_1280" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo1_1280-380x254.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo1_1280-760x508.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.87631578947368" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP0203020524.jpg" data-image-caption="2002: Whoopi Goldberg reminisces about her career during the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado. Goldberg, who used to go by the name Caryn Johnson, said she didn't pick the name Whoopi. "It picked me," she said of her now-famous moniker. (AP Photo/E. Pablo Kosmicki)" data-image-copyright="GOLDBERG" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP0203020524-380x333.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP0203020524-760x666.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.69605263157895" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Ghost-1990-Trailer-Patrick-Swayze-Demi-Moore-and-Whoopi-Goldberg.jpg" data-image-caption="1990: Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze, and Whoopi Goldberg in the romantic fantasy thriller film "Ghost," the highest-grossing film of 1990." data-image-copyright="ghost-1990-trailer-patrick-swayze-demi-moore-and-whoopi-goldberg" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Ghost-1990-Trailer-Patrick-Swayze-Demi-Moore-and-Whoopi-Goldberg-380x264.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Ghost-1990-Trailer-Patrick-Swayze-Demi-Moore-and-Whoopi-Goldberg-760x529.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.3868613138686" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/celebs-golden-globes-whoopi-goldberg-ghost-1256577460.jpg" data-image-caption="1991: Whoopi Goldberg receives the award for Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture for her work on "Ghost."" data-image-copyright="celebs-golden-globes-whoopi-goldberg-ghost-1256577460" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/celebs-golden-globes-whoopi-goldberg-ghost-1256577460-274x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/celebs-golden-globes-whoopi-goldberg-ghost-1256577460-548x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.66710526315789" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/still-of-whoopi-goldberg-and-danny-glover-in-the-color-purple-1985-large-picture.jpg" data-image-caption="1985: Whoopi Goldberg and Danny Glover in a scene from "The Color Purple."" data-image-copyright="1985: Whoopi Goldberg and Danny Glover in a scene from The Color Purple." data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/still-of-whoopi-goldberg-and-danny-glover-in-the-color-purple-1985-large-picture-380x254.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/still-of-whoopi-goldberg-and-danny-glover-in-the-color-purple-1985-large-picture-760x507.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.4339622641509" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo2_1280.jpg" data-image-caption="1991: Denzel Washington presenting Whoopi Goldberg with the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in "Ghost" at the 63rd Annual Academy Awards." data-image-copyright="tumblr_nbyuw3x3by1rujq2eo2_1280" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo2_1280-265x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/tumblr_nbyuw3x3bY1rujq2eo2_1280-530x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.61447368421053" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/2016-oscars-goldberg.jpg" data-image-caption="Whoopi Goldberg arrives on the red carpet for the 88th Oscars on February 28, 2016 in Hollywood, California. (Valerie Macon/Getty Images)" data-image-copyright="US-OSCARS-ARRIVALS" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/2016-oscars-goldberg-380x233.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/2016-oscars-goldberg-760x467.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.75" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-386183-whoopi-goldberg.jpg" data-image-caption="Whoopi Goldberg is an award-winning comedian, actress and human rights advocate, as well as the longtime host of the daytime talk show "The View."" data-image-copyright="goldberg-386183-whoopi-goldberg" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-386183-whoopi-goldberg-380x285.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-386183-whoopi-goldberg-760x570.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.61052631578947" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP03080602145.jpg" data-image-caption="2003: Whoopi Goldberg, right, during a news conference announcing the start of production for a new comedy series entitled "Whoopi" at Kaufman Astoria Studios in the Queens borough of New York. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg looks on at left. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)" data-image-copyright="GOLDBERG BLOOMBERG" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP03080602145-380x232.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP03080602145-760x464.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.66447368421053" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/filename-1823.jpg" data-image-caption="February 28, 2016: Whoopi Goldberg and her daughter, Alex Martin, attend the 88th Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, California." data-image-copyright="filename-1823" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/filename-1823-380x253.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/filename-1823-760x505.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.66578947368421" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Still-of-Whoopi-Goldberg-and-Erika-Coleman-in-Big-Stone-Gap-2014.jpg" data-image-caption="2014: Whoopi Goldberg and Erika Coleman in a scene from the drama romantic comedy film "Big Stone Gap." (Picturehouse)" data-image-copyright="BIG STONE GAP" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Still-of-Whoopi-Goldberg-and-Erika-Coleman-in-Big-Stone-Gap-2014-380x253.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Still-of-Whoopi-Goldberg-and-Erika-Coleman-in-Big-Stone-Gap-2014-760x506.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.66578947368421" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/GettyImages-456491984.jpg" data-image-caption="2014: Whoopi Goldberg arrives at the 55th Annual CLIO Awards at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City. (Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images)" data-image-copyright="55th Annual CLIO Awards" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/GettyImages-456491984-380x253.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/GettyImages-456491984-760x506.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.0749646393211" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP910326043.jpg" data-image-caption="1991: Whoopi Goldberg holds her Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, won for her role in "Ghost," in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Bob Galbraith)" data-image-copyright="GOLDBERG" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP910326043-353x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP910326043-707x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.2218649517685" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1994-Oscaruri-GettyImages-494820813.jpg" data-image-caption="1994: Actress and comedian Whoopi Goldberg, host of the 66th Academy Awards. (John D. Kisch/Separate Cinema Archive/Getty Images)" data-image-copyright="Publicity Still Of Whoopi Goldberg" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1994-Oscaruri-GettyImages-494820813-311x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1994-Oscaruri-GettyImages-494820813-622x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.003963011889" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1990-rexfeatures_176871a.jpg" data-image-caption="1990: Whoopi Goldberg made her mark as a household name and a mainstay in Hollywood for her Oscar-winning role in the box office smash "Ghost." (Rex Features)" data-image-copyright="WHOOPI GOLDBERG - 1990" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1990-rexfeatures_176871a-378x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg_1990-rexfeatures_176871a-757x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.4990138067061" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/2016-Oscars.jpg" data-image-caption="2016: Whoopi Goldberg arrives at the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles." data-image-copyright="2016-oscars" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/2016-Oscars-253x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/2016-Oscars-507x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.4990138067061" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/4412531722_761627b6a2_o.jpg" data-image-caption="1992: Whoopi Goldberg in the comedy film "Sister Act." The film was a box office hit, becoming one of the most financially successful comedies of the early 1990s." data-image-copyright="4412531722_761627b6a2_o" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/4412531722_761627b6a2_o-253x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/4412531722_761627b6a2_o-507x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.3333333333333" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-whoopi-goldberg-31581577-1919-2560.jpg" data-image-caption="Comedian, actress and talk show host Whoopi Goldberg. (Timothy Greenfield-Sanders)" data-image-copyright="ap111027028153" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-whoopi-goldberg-31581577-1919-2560-285x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-whoopi-goldberg-31581577-1919-2560-570x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.4990138067061" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-and-Daughter-Alex-Martin-2016-oscars.jpg" data-image-caption="2014: Whoopi Goldberg and her daughter, Alex Martin, arrive at the 86th Annual Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre. (Dan MacMedan)" data-image-copyright="XXX 2014-ACADEMY-AWARDS-346.JPG A ENT USA CA" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-and-Daughter-Alex-Martin-2016-oscars-253x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Whoopi-Goldberg-and-Daughter-Alex-Martin-2016-oscars-507x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.66710526315789" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/1d3c0c94-f653-11e2-94e0-005056b70bb8.jpg" data-image-caption="2010: Thandie Newton and Whoopi Goldberg star in the drama film "For Colored Girls." (Quantrell Colbert)" data-image-copyright="1d3c0c94-f653-11e2-94e0-005056b70bb8" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/1d3c0c94-f653-11e2-94e0-005056b70bb8-380x253.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/1d3c0c94-f653-11e2-94e0-005056b70bb8-760x507.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.303602058319" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/100c4b2c-74e2-48fd-810d-70d394b2d6f8.jpg" data-image-caption="2011: Whoopi Goldberg is an award-winning comedian, actress and human rights advocate, as well as the longtime host of the daytime talk show "The View."" data-image-copyright="100c4b2c-74e2-48fd-810d-70d394b2d6f8" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/100c4b2c-74e2-48fd-810d-70d394b2d6f8-291x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/100c4b2c-74e2-48fd-810d-70d394b2d6f8-583x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.453154875717" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP950202066.jpg" data-image-caption="1995: Whoopi Goldberg has help putting her footprints in the wet cement in the forecourt of Mann's Chinese Theater in Hollywood, California. Goldberg's hands, feet and hair braids were imprinted in the sidewalk. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)" data-image-copyright="Goldberg" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP950202066-262x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP950202066-523x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.189358372457" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/whoopi-goldberg-in-ghost-1990.jpg" data-image-caption="1990: Whoopi Goldberg in the romantic fantasy thriller film "Ghost." The film won awards for Best Supporting Actress for Goldberg and Best Original Screenplay. For her performance in "Ghost," Goldberg won the BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Saturn Awards in addition to the Oscar." data-image-copyright="whoopi-goldberg-in-ghost-1990" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/whoopi-goldberg-in-ghost-1990-320x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/whoopi-goldberg-in-ghost-1990-639x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.66710526315789" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP060718022548.jpg" data-image-caption="2006: Whoopi Goldberg, the new face and voice of the Universal Studios tour, after taking a guest turn as guide aboard one of the studio's trams at Universal City, California. While staff guides usually lead the tour, Goldberg appears on TV monitors aboard the trams, explaining some of the sights visitors are seeing. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)" data-image-copyright="Whoopi Godlberg" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP060718022548-380x253.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP060718022548-760x507.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.66710526315789" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-the-view.jpg" data-image-caption="2014: Whoopi Goldberg, Rosie Perez, Rosie O'Donnell, and Nicolle Wallace on ABC's daytime television talk show "The View." Since 2007, she has been the moderator of the show." data-image-copyright="goldberg-the-view" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-the-view-380x253.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/goldberg-the-view-760x507.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="1.2258064516129" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP9511110836.jpg" data-image-caption="1995: Comedians and co-hosts, from left, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg and Robin Williams sing and dance the 1940s-era opening number to "Comic Relief VII" Saturday night in Los Angeles. The event, in its seventh year, is put on to raise awareness and funds for America's homeless men, women and children. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)" data-image-copyright="CRYSTAL GOLDBERG WILLIAMS" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP9511110836-310x380.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AP9511110836-620x760.jpg"></div>  </figure> <figure class="isotope-item ratio-container--gallery photo" data-category="photo" data-ratio="0.8" title="" data-gtm-category="photo" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Achiever - ">   <div class="lazyload ratio-container__image" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#imageModal" data-image-src="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/wp-kennedy-GettyImages-973226331.jpg" data-image-caption="October 19, 1960: Democratic presidential nominee John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline, ride up Broadway in a ticker-tape parade. (Frank Hurley/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)" data-image-copyright="Democratic presidential nominee John F. Kennedy and his wife" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/wp-kennedy-GettyImages-973226331-380x304.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/10/wp-kennedy-GettyImages-973226331-760x608.jpg"></div>  </figure>    </div> </section> </div> </div> <div class="container"> <footer class="editorial-article__footer col-md-8 col-md-offset-4"> <div class="editorial-article__next-link sans-3"> <a href="#"><strong>What's next:</strong> <span class="editorial-article__next-link-title">profile</span></a> </div> <ul class="social list-unstyled list-inline ssk-group m-b-0"> <li class="list-inline-item"><a href="" class="ssk ssk-facebook" data-gtm-category="social" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Shared Achiever on Facebook"><i class="icon-icon_facebook-circle"></i></a></li> <li class="list-inline-item"><a href="" class="ssk ssk-twitter" data-gtm-category="social" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Shared Achiever on Twitter"><i class="icon-icon_twitter-circle"></i></a></li>  <li class="list-inline-item"><a href="" class="ssk ssk-email" data-gtm-category="social" data-gtm-action="click" data-gtm-label="Shared Achiever via Email"><i class="icon-icon_email-circle"></i></a></li> </ul> <time class="editorial-article__last-updated sans-6">This page last revised on November 2, 2016</time> <div class="sans-4"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/how-to-cite" target="_blank">How to cite this page</a></div> </footer> </div> <div class="container interview-related-achievers"> <hr class="m-t-3 m-b-3"/> <footer class="clearfix small-blocks text-xs-center"> <h3 class="m-b-3 serif-3">If you are inspired by this achiever’s story, you might also enjoy:</h3> <div class="centered-blocks"> <div class="isotope-achiever the-arts the-arts the-arts poverty ambitious shy-introverted be-a-performer " data-year-inducted="2014" data-achiever-name="Burnett"> <div class="achiever-block view-grid"> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/carol-burnett/"> <figure class="ratio-container ratio-container--square bg-black"> <div class="lazyload box achiever-block__image" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/bur0-001a-190x190.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/03/bur0-001a-380x380.jpg"></div> <div class="achiever-block__overlay"></div> <figcaption class="text-xs-center achiever-block__text"> <div class="display--table"> <div class="display--table-cell"> <div class="achiever-block__text--center"> <div class="achiever-block__name text-brand-primary">Carol Burnett</div> <div class="achiever-block__known-as text-white sans-6">Television Hall of Fame</div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="text-white achiever-block__text--bottom"> <div class="achiever-block__year sans-4">Inducted in <span class="year-inducted">2014</span></div> </div> </figcaption> </figure> </a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="centered-blocks"> <div class="isotope-achiever the-arts the-arts the-arts ambitious curious extroverted spiritual-religious be-a-performer build-or-create-things help-mankind " data-year-inducted="2000" data-achiever-name="Hill"> <div class="achiever-block view-grid"> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/lauryn-hill/"> <figure class="ratio-container ratio-container--square bg-black"> <div class="lazyload box achiever-block__image" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/hill_760_ac-190x190.png [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/07/hill_760_ac-380x380.png"></div> <div class="achiever-block__overlay"></div> <figcaption class="text-xs-center achiever-block__text"> <div class="display--table"> <div class="display--table-cell"> <div class="achiever-block__text--center"> <div class="achiever-block__name text-brand-primary">Lauryn Hill</div> <div class="achiever-block__known-as text-white sans-6">Singer, Songwriter and Rapper</div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="text-white achiever-block__text--bottom"> <div class="achiever-block__year sans-4">Inducted in <span class="year-inducted">2000</span></div> </div> </figcaption> </figure> </a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="centered-blocks"> <div class="isotope-achiever the-arts racism-discrimination resourceful be-a-performer play-music " data-year-inducted="1984" data-achiever-name="Jones, Quincy"> <div class="achiever-block view-grid"> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/quincy-jones/"> <figure class="ratio-container ratio-container--square bg-black"> <div class="lazyload box achiever-block__image" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/jones_q_760_ac-190x190.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/04/jones_q_760_ac-380x380.jpg"></div> <div class="achiever-block__overlay"></div> <figcaption class="text-xs-center achiever-block__text"> <div class="display--table"> <div class="display--table-cell"> <div class="achiever-block__text--center"> <div class="achiever-block__name text-brand-primary">Quincy Jones</div> <div class="achiever-block__known-as text-white sans-6">Music Impresario</div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="text-white achiever-block__text--bottom"> <div class="achiever-block__year sans-4">Inducted in <span class="year-inducted">1984</span></div> </div> </figcaption> </figure> </a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="centered-blocks"> <div class="isotope-achiever the-arts the-arts extroverted be-a-performer ambitious analytical " data-year-inducted="2012" data-achiever-name="McDonald"> <div class="achiever-block view-grid"> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/audra-mcdonald/"> <figure class="ratio-container ratio-container--square bg-black"> <div class="lazyload box achiever-block__image" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/mcd0-001a-190x190.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/03/mcd0-001a-380x380.jpg"></div> <div class="achiever-block__overlay"></div> <figcaption class="text-xs-center achiever-block__text"> <div class="display--table"> <div class="display--table-cell"> <div class="achiever-block__text--center"> <div class="achiever-block__name text-brand-primary">Audra McDonald</div> <div class="achiever-block__known-as text-white sans-6">Six Tony Awards</div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="text-white achiever-block__text--bottom"> <div class="achiever-block__year sans-4">Inducted in <span class="year-inducted">2012</span></div> </div> </figcaption> </figure> </a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="centered-blocks"> <div class="isotope-achiever the-arts difficulty-with-school poverty racism-discrimination small-town-rural-upbringing ambitious curious extroverted resourceful be-a-performer " data-year-inducted="2014" data-achiever-name="Poitier"> <div class="achiever-block view-grid"> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sidney-poitier/"> <figure class="ratio-container ratio-container--square bg-black"> <div class="lazyload box achiever-block__image" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/poitier_760_ac-190x190.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/04/poitier_760_ac-380x380.jpg"></div> <div class="achiever-block__overlay"></div> <figcaption class="text-xs-center achiever-block__text"> <div class="display--table"> <div class="display--table-cell"> <div class="achiever-block__text--center"> <div class="achiever-block__name text-brand-primary">Sidney Poitier</div> <div class="achiever-block__known-as text-white sans-6">Oscar for Lifetime Achievement</div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="text-white achiever-block__text--bottom"> <div class="achiever-block__year sans-4">Inducted in <span class="year-inducted">2014</span></div> </div> </figcaption> </figure> </a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="centered-blocks"> <div class="isotope-achiever business the-arts poverty small-town-rural-upbringing ambitious extroverted be-a-performer make-films help-mankind " data-year-inducted="1989" data-achiever-name="Winfrey"> <div class="achiever-block view-grid"> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/oprah-winfrey/"> <figure class="ratio-container ratio-container--square bg-black"> <div class="lazyload box achiever-block__image" data-sizes="auto" data-bgset="/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/winfrey_760_ac-190x190.jpg [(max-width:576px)] | /wp-content/uploads/2016/04/winfrey_760_ac-380x380.jpg"></div> <div class="achiever-block__overlay"></div> <figcaption class="text-xs-center achiever-block__text"> <div class="display--table"> <div class="display--table-cell"> <div class="achiever-block__text--center"> <div class="achiever-block__name text-brand-primary">Oprah Winfrey</div> <div class="achiever-block__known-as text-white sans-6">Media Entrepreneur</div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="text-white achiever-block__text--bottom"> <div class="achiever-block__year sans-4">Inducted in <span class="year-inducted">1989</span></div> </div> </figcaption> </figure> </a> </div> </div> </div> </footer> </div> </div> </article> <div class="modal image-modal fade" id="imageModal" tabindex="-1" role="dialog" aria-labelledby="imageModal" aria-hidden="true"> <div class="close-container"> <div class="close icon-icon_x" data-dismiss="modal" aria-label="Close"></div> </div> <div class="modal-dialog" role="document"> <div class="modal-content"> <div class="modal-body"> <figure class="image-modal__container"> <div class="display--table"> <div class="display--table-cell"> <img class="image-modal__image" src="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/whoopi-goldberg/" alt=""/>  <figcaption class="p-t-2 container"> <div class="image-modal__caption sans-2 text-white"></div>  </figcaption> </div> </div> </figure> </div> </div> </div> </div> </main> </div> </div> <footer class="content-info main-footer bg-black"> <div class="container"> <div class="find-achiever" id="find-achiever-list"> <div class="form-group"> <input id="find-achiever-input" class="search js-focus" placeholder="Search for an achiever"/> <i class="icon-icon_chevron-down"></i> </div> <ul class="find-achiever-list list m-b-0 list-unstyled"> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/hank-aaron/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Hank Aaron</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/kareem-abdul-jabbar/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Kareem Abdul-Jabbar</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/edward-albee/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Edward Albee</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/tenley-albright-m-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Tenley Albright, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/julie-andrews/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Dame Julie Andrews</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/maya-angelou/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Maya Angelou</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/robert-d-ballard-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Robert D. Ballard, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sir-roger-bannister-2/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sir Roger Bannister</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/john-banville/"><span class="achiever-list-name">John Banville</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ehud-barak/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Ehud Barak</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/lee-r-berger-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Lee R. Berger, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sir-timothy-berners-lee/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sir Tim Berners-Lee</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/yogi-berra/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Yogi Berra</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/jeffrey-p-bezos/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Jeffrey P. Bezos</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/benazir-bhutto/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Benazir Bhutto</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/simone-biles/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Simone Biles</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/keith-l-black/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Keith L. Black, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/elizabeth-blackburn/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Elizabeth Blackburn, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/david-boies-2/"><span class="achiever-list-name">David Boies</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/norman-e-borlaug/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Norman E. Borlaug, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/benjamin-c-bradlee/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Benjamin C. Bradlee</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sergey-brin/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sergey Brin</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/carter-j-brown/"><span class="achiever-list-name">J. Carter Brown</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/linda-buck/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Linda Buck, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/carol-burnett/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Carol Burnett</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/george-h-w-bush/"><span class="achiever-list-name">George H. W. Bush</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/susan-butcher/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Susan Butcher</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/james-cameron/"><span class="achiever-list-name">James Cameron</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/benjamin-s-carson/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Benjamin S. Carson, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/jimmy-carter/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Jimmy Carter</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/johnny-cash/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Johnny Cash</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/william-j-clinton/"><span class="achiever-list-name">William J. Clinton</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/francis-s-collins/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/denton-a-cooley/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Denton A. Cooley, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/francis-ford-coppola/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Francis Ford Coppola</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ray-dalio/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Ray Dalio</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/olivia-de-havilland/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Dame Olivia de Havilland</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/michael-e-debakey-m-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Michael E. DeBakey, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/michael-dell/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Michael S. Dell</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ron-dennis/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Ron Dennis</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/joan-didion/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Joan Didion</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/rita-dove/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Rita Dove</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sylvia-earle/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sylvia Earle, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/elbaradei/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Mohamed ElBaradei</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/gertrude-elion/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Gertrude B. Elion, M.Sc.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/larry-j-ellison/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Larry J. Ellison</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/nora-ephron/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Nora Ephron</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/julius-erving/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Julius Erving</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/tony-fadell/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Tony Fadell</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/paul-farmer/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Paul Farmer, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/suzanne-farrell/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Suzanne Farrell</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sally-field/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sally Field</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/lord-norman-foster/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Lord Norman Foster</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/milton-friedman-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Milton Friedman, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/carlos-fuentes/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Carlos Fuentes</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/athol-fugard/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Athol Fugard</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ernest-j-gaines/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Ernest J. Gaines</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/william-h-gates-iii/"><span class="achiever-list-name">William H. Gates III</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/frank-gehry/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Frank O. Gehry</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/murray-gell-mann-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Murray Gell-Mann, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/carlos-ghosn/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Carlos Ghosn</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/vince-gill/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Vince Gill</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ruth-bader-ginsburg/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Ruth Bader Ginsburg</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/louise-gluck/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Louise Glück</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/whoopi-goldberg/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Whoopi Goldberg</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/jane-goodall/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Dame Jane Goodall</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/doris-kearns-goodwin/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Doris Kearns Goodwin, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/mikhail-s-gorbachev/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Mikhail S. Gorbachev</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/nadine-gordimer/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Nadine Gordimer</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/stephen-jay-gould/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Stephen Jay Gould, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/carol-greider-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Carol Greider, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/john-grisham/"><span class="achiever-list-name">John Grisham</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/dorothy-hamill/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Dorothy Hamill</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/demis-hassabis-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Demis Hassabis, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/lauryn-hill/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Lauryn Hill</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sir-edmund-hillary/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sir Edmund Hillary</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/reid-hoffman/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Reid Hoffman</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/khaled-hosseini/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Khaled Hosseini, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ron-howard/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Ron Howard</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/john-hume/"><span class="achiever-list-name">John Hume</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/louis-ignarro-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Louis Ignarro, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/daniel-inouye/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Daniel K. Inouye</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/jeremy-irons/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Jeremy Irons</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/john-irving/"><span class="achiever-list-name">John Irving</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/kazuo-ishiguro/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Kazuo Ishiguro</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sir-peter-jackson/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sir Peter Jackson</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/donald-c-johanson/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Donald C. Johanson, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/frank-m-johnson/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Frank M. Johnson, Jr.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/philip-johnson/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Philip C. Johnson</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/chuck-jones/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Chuck Jones</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/james-earl-jones/"><span class="achiever-list-name">James Earl Jones</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/quincy-jones/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Quincy Jones</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/paul-kagame/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Paul Kagame</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/thomas-keller-2/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Thomas Keller</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/anthony-m-kennedy/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Anthony M. Kennedy</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/b-b-king/"><span class="achiever-list-name">B.B. King</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/carole-king/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Carole King</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/coretta-scott-king/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Coretta Scott King</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/henry-kissinger-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Henry A. Kissinger, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/willem-j-kolff/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Willem J. Kolff, M.D., Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/wendy-kopp/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Wendy Kopp</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/henry-r-kravis/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Henry R. Kravis</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/nicholas-d-kristof/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Nicholas D. Kristof</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/mike-krzyzewski/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Mike Krzyzewski</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ray-kurzwell/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Ray Kurzweil</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/eric-lander-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Eric S. Lander, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/robert-s-langer-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Robert S. Langer, Sc.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/richard-leakey/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Richard E. Leakey</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/leon-lederman-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Leon Lederman, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/robert-lefkowitz-m-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Robert J. Lefkowitz, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/congressman-john-r-lewis/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Congressman John R. Lewis</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/maya-lin/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Maya Lin</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/george-lucas/"><span class="achiever-list-name">George Lucas</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/norman-mailer/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Norman Mailer</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/peyton-manning/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Peyton Manning</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/wynton-marsalis/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Wynton Marsalis</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/john-c-mather-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">John C. Mather, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/johnny-mathis/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Johnny Mathis</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ernst-mayr-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Ernst Mayr, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/willie-mays/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Willie Mays</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/frank-mccourt/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Frank McCourt</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/david-mccullough/"><span class="achiever-list-name">David McCullough</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/audra-mcdonald/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Audra McDonald</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/admiral-william-h-mcraven/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Admiral William H. McRaven, USN</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/w-s-merwin/"><span class="achiever-list-name">W. S. Merwin</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/james-a-michener/"><span class="achiever-list-name">James A. Michener</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/marvin-minsky-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Marvin Minsky, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/mario-j-molina-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Mario J. Molina, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/n-scott-momaday-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">N. Scott Momaday, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/story-musgrave/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Story Musgrave, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ralph-nader/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Ralph Nader</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/peggy-noonan/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Peggy Noonan</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/jessye-norman/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Jessye Norman</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/tommy-norris/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Lt. Thomas R. Norris, USN</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/joyce-carol-oates/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Joyce Carol Oates</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/pierre-omidyar/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Pierre Omidyar</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/jimmy-page/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Jimmy Page</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/larry-page/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Larry Page</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/arnold-palmer/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Arnold Palmer</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/rosa-parks/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Rosa Parks</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/suzan-lori-parks/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Suzan-Lori Parks</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/linus-pauling/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Linus C. Pauling, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/shimon-peres/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Shimon Peres</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/itzhak-perlman/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Itzhak Perlman</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/general-david-petraeus/"><span class="achiever-list-name">General David H. Petraeus, USA</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sidney-poitier/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sidney Poitier</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/general-colin-l-powell/"><span class="achiever-list-name">General Colin L. Powell, USA</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/harold-prince/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Harold Prince</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/venki-ramakrishnan-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Venki Ramakrishnan, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/lord-martin-rees/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Lord Martin Rees</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/lloyd-richards/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Lloyd Richards</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sally-ride-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sally K. Ride, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sonny-rollins/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sonny Rollins</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/anthony-romero/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Anthony Romero</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/james-rosenquist/"><span class="achiever-list-name">James Rosenquist</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/pete-rozelle/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Pete Rozelle</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/bill-russell/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Bill Russell</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/albie-sachs/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Albie Sachs</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/oliver-sacks-m-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Oliver Sacks, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/jonas-salk-m-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Jonas Salk, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/frederick-sanger-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Frederick Sanger, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/george-b-schaller-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">George B. Schaller, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/barry-scheck/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Barry Scheck</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/richard-evans-schultes-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Richard Evans Schultes, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/general-h-norman-schwarzkopf/"><span class="achiever-list-name">General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, USA</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/stephen-schwarzman/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Stephen A. Schwarzman</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/glenn-t-seaborg-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Glenn T. Seaborg, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/neil-sheehan/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Neil Sheehan</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/admiral-alan-shepard-jr/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Admiral Alan B. Shepard, Jr., USN</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ellen-johnson-sirleaf/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Ellen Johnson Sirleaf</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/carlos-slim/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Carlos Slim Helú</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/frederick-w-smith/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Frederick W. Smith</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/stephen-sondheim/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Stephen Sondheim</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/sonia-sotomayor/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Sonia Sotomayor</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/wole-soyinka/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Wole Soyinka</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/esperanza-spalding/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Esperanza Spalding</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/martha-stewart/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Martha Stewart</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/admiral-james-b-stockdale/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Admiral James B. Stockdale, USN</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/hilary-swank/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Hilary Swank</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/amy-tan/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Amy Tan</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/dame-kiri-te-kanawa/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Dame Kiri Te Kanawa</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/edward-teller-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Edward Teller, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/twyla-tharp/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Twyla Tharp</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/wayne-thiebaud/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Wayne Thiebaud</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/lt-michael-e-thornton-usn/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Lt. Michael E. Thornton, USN</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/charles-h-townes-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Charles H. Townes, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/david-trimble/"><span class="achiever-list-name">David Trimble</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/ted-turner/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Robert Edward (Ted) Turner</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/desmond-tutu/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Archbishop Desmond Tutu</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/john-updike/"><span class="achiever-list-name">John Updike</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/gore-vidal/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Gore Vidal</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/antonio-villaraigosa/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Antonio Villaraigosa</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/lech-walesa/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Lech Walesa</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/herschel-walker/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Herschel Walker</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/james-d-watson/"><span class="achiever-list-name">James D. Watson, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/andrew-weil-m-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Andrew Weil, M.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/leslie-h-wexner/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Leslie H. Wexner</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/elie-wiesel/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Elie Wiesel</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/edward-o-wilson-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Edward O. Wilson, Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/oprah-winfrey/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Oprah Winfrey</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/tom-wolfe/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Tom Wolfe</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/john-wooden/"><span class="achiever-list-name">John Wooden</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/bob-woodward/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Bob Woodward</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/shinya-yamanaka-m-d-ph-d/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Shinya Yamanaka, M.D., Ph.D.</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/general-chuck-yeager/"><span class="achiever-list-name">General Chuck Yeager, USAF</span></a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/andrew-young/"><span class="achiever-list-name">Andrew J. Young</span></a> </li> </ul> <div class="list__close"></div> </div> <div class="col-sm-6 col-lg-3"> <ul id="menu-footer-menu-col-1" class="menu list-unstyled"><li class="menu-item menu-item-has-children menu-our-history"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/">Our History</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li class="menu-item menu-about-the-academy"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/">About the Academy</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-academy-patrons"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/patrons/">Academy Patrons</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-delegate-alumni"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/alumni/">Delegate Alumni</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-directors-our-team"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/director-staff/">Directors & Our Team</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-golden-plate-awards-council"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/awards-council/">Golden Plate Awards Council</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-golden-plate-awardees"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/">Golden Plate Awardees</a></li> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="col-sm-6 col-lg-3"> <ul id="menu-footer-menu-col-2" class="menu list-unstyled"><li class="active menu-item menu-item-has-children menu-our-members"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/">Our Members</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li class="menu-item menu-the-arts"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.the-arts">The Arts</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-business"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.business">Business</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-science-exploration"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.science-exploration">Science & Exploration</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-public-service"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.public-service">Public Service</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-sports"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/#filter=.sports">Sports</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-achiever-universe"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/universe/">Achiever Universe</a></li> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="col-sm-6 col-lg-3"> <ul id="menu-footer-menu-col-3" class="menu list-unstyled"><li class="menu-item menu-item-has-children menu-keys-to-success"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/">Keys to Success</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li class="menu-item menu-keys-to-success"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/keys-to-success/">Keys to Success</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-find-my-role-model"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/find-my-role-model/">Find My Role Model</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-recommended-books"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/recommended-books/">Recommended Books</a></li> </ul> </li> <li class="menu-item menu-item-has-children menu-the-summit"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/">The Summit</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li class="menu-item menu-overview"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit/">Overview</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-summit-by-year"><a href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/summit#years">Summit by Year</a></li> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="col-sm-6 col-lg-3"> <div class="row"> <div class="menu-item-has-children"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/https://itunes.apple.com/us/institution/academy-of-achievement/id389592299" target="_blank">More from the Academy</a> </div> <ul class="list-unstyled more-from-academy-menu clearfix"> <li class=""> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/what-it-takes/id1025864075?mt=2" target="_blank"> <figure class="podcast clearfix"> <img class="podcast__image" src="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/what-it-takes-square@1x.jpg" alt="What it Takes Podcast"/> <figcaption class="podcast__title"><div>Podcast</div></figcaption> </figure> </a> </li> <li class=""> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/https://itunes.apple.com/us/institution/academy-of-achievement/id389592299" target="_blank"> <figure class="podcast clearfix"> <img class="podcast__image" src="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/itunes-u-square@1x.jpg" alt="iTunes U"/> <figcaption class="podcast__title"><div>iTunes U</div></figcaption> </figure> </a> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </footer> <footer class="bottom-footer p-t-3 p-b-3 text-xs-center text-lg-left"> <div class="container"> <div class="row"> <div class="col-lg-1 p-a-0"> <img width="95" height="92" src="/web/20180628031752im_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/assets/images/eagle-footer@2x.png" alt="Academy of Achievement"/> </div> <div class="col-lg-7 col-lg-offset-1 p-t-1"> <div class="serif-6 text-white">© 1996 - 2018 American Academy of Achievement. All Rights Reserved.</div> <ul id="menu-bottom-footer" class="menu list-unstyled menu-bottom-footer m-b-0"><li class="menu-item menu-underwriter"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/underwriter/">Underwriter</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-contact-us"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/contact-us/">Contact Us</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-frequently-asked-questions"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/frequently-asked-questions/">Frequently Asked Questions</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-privacy-policy"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/privacy-policy/">Privacy Policy</a></li> <li class="menu-item menu-usage-policy"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/usage-policy/">Usage Policy</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="col-lg-10 col-lg-offset-2 col-xl-2 col-xl-offset-0"> <div class="site-by">Site designed by <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://nelsoncash.com/?utm_source=academyofachievement&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=aoafooter" target="_blank">Nelson Cash</a></div> </div> </div> </div> </footer> <script src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180628031752js_/https://code.jquery.com/jquery-1.12.4.min.js"></script> <script>window.jQuery || document.write('<script src="/wp-includes/js/jquery/jquery.js"><\/script>')</script> <script src="/web/20180628031752js_/http://www.achievement.org/wp-content/themes/aoa/dist/scripts/main-361efa0245.js"></script>  <div class="modal search-modal fade" id="searchModal" tabindex="-1" role="dialog" aria-labelledby="searchModal" aria-hidden="true"> <div class="close-container"> <div class="close icon-icon_x" data-dismiss="modal" aria-label="Close"></div> </div> <div class="display--table"> <div class="display--table-cell"> <div class="modal-dialog" role="document"> <div class="modal-content"> <div class="modal-body"> <form action="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/" method="get" class="search-form input-group"> <input autofocus type="search" name="s" id="search" class="form-control transparent-input serif-3 text-white" placeholder="Let us help you find something" autocomplete="off" value=""/> <button class="submit" type="submit"><i class="icon-icon_search"></i></button> </form> </div> <footer class="m-t-2"> <a class="sans-4" href="/web/20180628031752/http://www.achievement.org/achiever">View the full list of achievers</a> </footer> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div>  <script> (function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){i['GoogleAnalyticsObject']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){ (i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o), m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m) })(window,document,'script','//web.archive.org/web/20180628031752/http://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js','ga'); ga('create', 'UA-2384096-1', 'auto'); ga('send', 'pageview'); </script> </body> </html>

CINXE.COM

Whoopi Goldberg - Academy of Achievement