Trivia

As of 2023, she is one of only six actresses who have won an Oscar, Tony, Emmy and Grammy, also known as the EGOT. The other five in order are: Helen Hayes, Rita Moreno, Audrey Hepburn, Whoopi, Jennifer Hudson and Viola Davis.

Michael J. Fox accompanied her to the 1986 Academy Awards when she was nominated for The Color Purple (1985).

Was the second African-American woman to receive an Academy Award. The first was Hattie McDaniel.

Dropped out of high school and became addicted to heroin. She ended up marrying her drug counselor. She cleaned up and later divorced him. In 1974, she moved to California and helped found the San Diego Repertory Company, where she used the name, Whoopi Cushion. Before making it as an actress, she worked as a bank teller, a bricklayer and in a mortuary.

Has performed all her own singing in the Sister Act movies. Her co-stars have claimed that they were surprised at her vocal ability.

Travels to locations by bus since she hates flying.

While working as a waitress at San Diego's "Big Kitchen" café in 1978, she witnessed PSA flight #182 falling from the sky in flames following a mid-air collision. The sight was so traumatic, that to this day she will not fly on an airplane.

She was inspired to become an actress by watching Nichelle Nichols' portrayal of Nyota Uhura on the original Star Trek (1966) series.

1994: Became the very first woman to host the Academy Awards solo.

Once worked in a mortuary where her job was applying makeup to corpses.

The tenth person, fourth woman, second person of color and first black recipient of the EGOT. The other recipients (chronologically) are Richard Rodgers, Helen Hayes, Rita Moreno, John Gielgud, Audrey Hepburn, Marvin Hamlisch, Jonathan Tunick, Mel Brooks, Mike Nichols, Scott Rudin, Robert Lopez, Andrew Lloyd Webber,Tim Rice, John Legend, Alan Menken, Jennifer Hudson, Viola Davis and Elton John.

Was one of the eulogists at Gene Roddenberry's funeral in 1991, along with other Star Trek stars Nichelle Nichols and Patrick Stewart.

Asked Gene Roddenberry for a role on Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) because she was a huge fan. She was given the role of Guinan, the head of the Ten-Forward lounge. Her character was named for legendary entertainer/nightclub owner Texas Guinan.

Has a tattoo of Woodstock (the bird from Charles M. Schulz's "Peanuts" cartoon strip) on her shoulder.

As of 2023, she is one of 8 black actresses to have won an Academy Award. The others, in chronological order, are Hattie McDaniel for Gone with the Wind (1939), Halle Berry for Monster's Ball (2001), Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls (2006), Mo'Nique for Precious (2009), Octavia Spencer for The Help (2011), Viola Davis for Fences (2016), and Regina King for If Beale Street Could Talk (2018).

Was the first woman to host the Academy Awards on her own. She hosted them in 1994, 1996, 1999, and 2002.

Has done a private stand-up comedy routine entitled "If E.T. landed in Oakland" in front of, among others, Steven Spielberg and Michael Jackson, which eventually won her the lead in The Color Purple (1985), which Spielberg directed.

Is one of two African-American actresses (the other being Viola Davis) to have been nominated for an Academy Award in both the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress categories.

Is part-owner of Mary's Kitchen, a country store/kitchen in Malibu, California. It is staffed by "New Yorkers" and certain furnishings were imported from New York because Whoopi wanted a touch of home in Malibu.

Suffers from dyslexia, a condition that affected her studies and ultimately prompted her to drop out of high school at the age of 17.

Good friends with Patrick Stewart and Marlon Brando.

When signing autographs, she only signs her first name Whoopi.

She and fellow The Lion King (1994) cast member Jeremy Irons were both nominees for the first ever Emmy Award for Outstanding Narrator (2014); Irons won.

Smoked cigarettes for over forty years but reportedly quit completely in 2015.

Her performance as Oda Mae Brown in Ghost (1990) is ranked #95 on Premiere magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.

She was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6841 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on July 20, 2001.

More than four different action figures have been modeled after her character, Guinan from Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) and the Star Trek films.

2002: Won a Tony Award as a producer for Best Musical, "Thoroughly Modern Millie".

Counts Robert De Niro as a longtime close friend and confidant ('big brother').

One of her favorite movies is the classic Valley of the Dolls (1967).

Is an avid Fiesta Ware (china) collector.

Mother of actress and producer Alex Martin. Grandmother of Amarah Skye (born 1989), Jerzey (born 1995) and Mason (born 1998), via daughter Alex Martin. Great-granddaughter Charlie Rose was born March 15, 2014. Sister of the late Clyde Johnson (died May 11, 2015).

In February 2019, she suffered near-fatal double pneumonia and sepsis, and spent three weeks in the hospital.

In a 2017 interview on the British television chat show Loose Women (1999), she revealed that she is a huge fan of the long-running BBC series EastEnders (1985) and Doctor Who (1963)/Doctor Who (2005), and as a child she had wanted to reside in England because it was where The Beatles came from.

Her nickname "Whoopi" evolved during a time when she used to do stand-up comedy in small clubs that didn't have much room backstage for changing, so she would fart a lot during her routines and people would quip that she was like a "Whoopee Cushion." She actually wanted to use "Whoopee Cushion" as her stage name, but was talked out of the surname by her mother. They then went through their family history and found an ancestor with the surname "Goldberg.".

2000: Broke up with boyfriend of five years Frank Langella.

Is an active pro-choice campaigner, reportedly having had an abortion at 14.

Became a great-grandmother at age 58 when daughter Alex Martin's granddaughter Amarah Dean gave birth to Charlie Rose (b. March 15, 2014).

Is one of 12 black actresses to receive a Best Actress Oscar nomination. The others in chronological order are: Dorothy Dandridge, Diana Ross, Cicely Tyson, Diahann Carroll, Angela Bassett, Halle Berry, Gabourey Sidibe, Viola Davis, Quvenzhané Wallis, Ruth Negga and Andra Day.

Longtime friends with her late mentor Joan Rivers; she attended Rivers' funeral on September 7, 2014.

When she was only 8, she performed with the Children's Program, the Hudson Guild and the Rubenstein Children's Theatre.

She won a Grammy Award for "Whoopi Goldberg: Direct From Broadway" in 1985.

Has her own production company, One Ho Productions, which backs most of her movies and television projects.

She worked as a dishwasher at a restaurant called "Big Kitchen" at 3003 Grape Street in San Diego, California. The location was showcased in San Diego, CA (2002).

She has appeared in three films that have been nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: The Color Purple (1985), Ghost (1990) and Toy Story 3 (2010).

Owns a cat named Oliver.

Credits friend Joy Behar with vouching for her team position on the popular talk show The View (1997), a post she commenced on 4 September 2007 replacing Rosie O'Donnell.

She has appeared in one film that has been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: The Lion King (1994).

A DNA test performed on the show African American Lives (2006) stated her genetic ancestry to be 92% Sub-Saharan African and 8% European.

Received an honorary degree from Wilson College in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.