Whoopi Goldberg Birthday & Age: Real Name, Husbands, Daughter & EGOT Wins

Whoopi Goldberg, one of the few entertainers to win an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony, celebrates her birthday on November 13. Born in Manhattan in 1955, the star of Ghost, Sister Act and The Color Purple is 70 years old and has been the moderator of ABC’s The View since 2007.

Whoopi Goldberg’s Real Name

Her real name is Caryn Elaine Johnson. The stage name has a funny backstory: Goldberg has explained that “Whoopi” came from the whoopee cushion, a nickname friends gave her during her early stage days. She later added “Goldberg” as her stage surname, and the combination became one of the most recognizable names in entertainment.

Childhood in New York

She was born in Manhattan to Emma Johnson, a nurse and teacher, and Robert James Johnson Jr., a Baptist clergyman. She grew up in the Chelsea-Elliot Houses, a public housing project in New York City, where her mother raised her and her older brother, Clyde, as a single parent. She attended St Columba’s parochial school and later left Washington Irving High School before finishing.

EGOT Winner: Her Biggest Awards

Award	Year / Work	Note
Grammy	Whoopi Goldberg comedy album (1985)	Best Comedy Album
Golden Globe	The Color Purple (1985)	Best Actress – Drama
Academy Award	Ghost (1990)	Best Supporting Actress
Daytime Emmy	The View	Outstanding Talk Show Host
Tony Award	Thoroughly Modern Millie (2002)	Best Musical, as a producer
Mark Twain Prize	2010	For American humor
Disney Legend	2017	Honored by Disney

With these wins she joined the small club of entertainers who hold an EGOT. She was also only the second African-American woman to win an acting Oscar, and she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2001.

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Career Timeline

• Early 1980s: Builds a following with one-woman stage shows.
• 1984–1985: Her Broadway show is recorded and wins a Grammy.
• 1985: Breakthrough film role in Steven Spielberg’s The Color Purple.
• 1988–1993: Plays Guinan on Star Trek: The Next Generation.
• 1990: Wins the Oscar for playing psychic Oda Mae Brown in Ghost.
• 1992–1993: Stars in Sister Act and its sequel, becoming the highest-paid actress of the time.
• 1994: Voices Shenzi the hyena in The Lion King.
• 2002: Wins a Tony as a producer of Thoroughly Modern Millie.
• 2007: Becomes moderator and co-host of The View.
• 2010s: Voices a character in Toy Story 3 and produces the stage version of Sister Act.
• 2022: Appears in Till and returns as Guinan in Star Trek: Picard.

Husbands, Daughter and Family

Goldberg has been married three times and has said she does not plan to marry again, explaining that some people are simply not meant to be married.

Spouse	Years	Note
Alvin Martin	1973–1979	Drug counselor
David Claessen	1986–1988	Cinematographer
Lyle Trachtenberg	1994–1995	Union organizer

Her only child, Alexandrea Martin, was born on May 9, 1974, from her first marriage. Alexandrea also works as an actress and producer. Through her, Goldberg has three grandchildren and a great-granddaughter. Her mother, Emma, died in 2010, and her brother Clyde died in 2015.

Controversy on The View

In early 2022, comments Goldberg made on The View about the Holocaust and race drew wide criticism. She apologized publicly, first on social media and again on air, and ABC suspended her from the show for two weeks. She returned to her moderator role afterward.

Upcoming Projects

A third Sister Act film has been announced, with Tyler Perry producing and Goldberg set to return as Deloris for Disney+. As with any film in development, release timing can change.

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