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Thomas Jack Black (b. August 28, 1969 in Hermosa Beach, California) is a Golden Globe-nominated American actor best known for his comedy work in such films as The School of Rock and Nacho Libre. Born to Thomas Jack Black Sr. and Judith Cohen, Black was raised Jewish. Following his parents divorce when Black was ten, he moved to Culver City with his father. His foray into entertainment began as a child when he appeared in an Atari Pitfall! commercial.
Black had some difficulty with high school and as a remedy he transferred to the Poseidon School and also studied drama at the Crossroads School. Following high school, he attended the University of California at Los Angeles. He left college in his sophomore year to pursue acting. He joined Tim Robbin's acting troupe which led to his film debut in Bob Roberts.
Black followed up his film debut with a variety of minor roles. He appeared in Demolition Man starring Sylvester Stalone and Wesley Snipes , The NeverEnding Story III,Biodome, Crossworlds, Waterworld, the Cable Guy, Mars Attacks!, The Jackal, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, Enemy of the State, and Heat Vision and Jack. His early television roles include guest appearances on The Golden Palace, Northern exposure, The X-Files, and Touched by an Angel.
In 1997, he starred in the HBO series Tenacious D documenting the drama behind a musical act led by two absurd characters. Black finally landed his breakthrough role in High Fidelity which starred John Cusack. This success led to roles in Saving Silverman, Shallow Hal, Orange County and voice roles in Ice Age and the comedy which earned him a Golden Globe nomination, The School of Rock. Black also continued to appear in television guest starring on Clone High and Computerman.
In 2005, Black took on the starring role in Peter Jackson's remake King Kong. The film was a success and he followed up with the comedy Nacho Libre which allowed him to live out a childhood fantasy of becoming a wrestler. He also starred in the film version of Tenacious D and The Holiday which costarred Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet.
Recent and upcoming roles include Be Kind Rewind, Kung Fu Panda, Tropic Thunder and Ye Olde Times.
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