8 Lesser-Known Facts About Jack Nicholson

Few performers can match the illustrious career of Jack Nicholson. With unforgettable roles in films such as Chinatown, The Shining, A Few Good Men, Terms of Endearment, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Easy Rider, Batman, and even Mars Attacks!, the actor, who celebrated his 85th birthday this year, has attained a level of reverence and status unmatched in Hollywood. Dive deeper into the life of this retired legend, from his unconventional upbringing to his aversion to television.

1. Jack Nicholson’s Early Life Held a Shocking Secret.

Born on April 22, 1937, and raised in Manasquan, New Jersey, Jack Nicholson grew up in what seemed like a typical mid-20th-century middle-class household with his parents, John and Ethel May Nicholson, and two sisters, Lorraine and June. However, in 1974, a curious Time magazine journalist uncovered a startling truth: John and Ethel May were not his parents but his grandparents. June, whom he thought was his sister, was actually his mother.

Why was Nicholson kept in the dark? Due to the societal norms of the era, June, who was just 17 and unmarried when she gave birth to Jack, asked her parents to raise him as their own. By the time Nicholson discovered the truth, both June and Ethel May had already passed away. He later reflected that learning this as an adult lessened the psychological impact, compared to if he had found out during his younger years.

2. Nicholson’s first job in Hollywood was at a toy store.

During the 1950s, Nicholson moved to California with his sister (who was actually his mother) June, hoping, as he put it, to “catch a glimpse of movie stars.” He took on jobs at a toy store and in MGM’s animation department. There, producer Joe Pasternak noticed him and saw potential for a leading man career. (Bill Hanna and Joseph Barbera, famous for Hanna-Barbera cartoons, recommended Nicholson to an acting group.) This led to roles in low-budget films, including several for Roger Corman, the king of B-movies, who cast Nicholson as a masochistic dental patient in Little Shop of Horrors (1960). The film was shot in just a few days, and Nicholson even had to scale a studio fence to audition because Corman refused to pay for a gate guard.

3. Nicholson penned a screenplay for The Monkees.

Though not common, some actors delve into screenwriting, and Nicholson was no exception. Aspiring to be a filmmaker, he took on various roles behind the scenes. While acting in B movies, he also wrote scripts, most notably Head, a psychedelic 1968 film featuring The Monkees. (The film was panned by critics.)

The breakthrough success of 1969’s Easy Rider at the Cannes Film Festival marked a turning point for Nicholson, who shifted his focus entirely to acting, leaving writing and directing behind. “At Cannes, my perspective shifted,” he shared with Film Comment in 1985. “Having been there before, I grasped the audience’s reactions and their significance. I realized, ‘This is it. I’m returning to acting. I’m a movie star.’”

4. Nicholson declined a role in The Godfather.

While many in Hollywood are rumored to have turned down roles in the 1972 classic The Godfather, Nicholson confirmed that he was one of them. “I passed on the original Godfather because I believed the role should go to an Italian actor,” he stated. “I have mixed feelings about that choice, but I stand by it. Al Pacino was ideal for the part, and the film is better because of him.”

5. Nicholson once owned a commune that was invaded by bandits.

Nicholson, who was close to LSD advocate Gabe Katz and immersed in the 1960s hippie culture, purchased land in New Mexico for Katz and others to use as a commune. In a 1976 interview with Andy Warhol for Interview magazine, Nicholson revealed that the venture didn’t go as planned.

Initially, Nicholson recounted that Katz sent him a letter explaining that armed individuals had forced Katz and his peace-loving companions off the land. Shortly after, Nicholson received another letter, this time from a self-proclaimed clown seeking permission to remain on the property:

“Three days after reading the letter, a girl arrived at my Beverly Hills home on horseback, claiming she had ridden all the way from New Mexico because they hadn’t received a response. She asked if they could stay, and I agreed. I’ve still never visited the place. Later, I leased part of the land through my business manager, but they were eventually driven out by a group resembling Butch Cassidy’s gang. These bandits now occupy the land, which is situated on a high mountain, and no one dares to confront them. It’s become a haven for outlaws, and I’ve never laid eyes on it.”

6. Nicholson foresaw the success of Batman—and reaped the rewards.

Tim Burton's Batman (1989) became a massive success during an era when comic book movies were far from surefire hits, largely thanks to Nicholson's electrifying performance as the Joker. Nicholson negotiated a deal that included a share of the merchandising profits, a shrewd decision that netted him over $50 million. He later claimed that Warner Bros. had no clue about the licensing goldmine the film would turn into.

"They had no idea!" he told the Los Angeles Times in 1992. "They never would’ve offered me that deal. I was the one who predicted how much it would earn. They didn’t even approach me for Batman Returns. It never came up. Do you think they wanted to pay me that much? But to their credit, they honored the agreement. I had to do some checking now and then, but that’s to be expected."

7. Nicholson is unlikely to ever appear on a talk show.

Despite his decades of blockbuster films, Nicholson rarely makes talk show appearances. Although he was friends with Johnny Carson, he never appeared on Carson’s Tonight Show. Angelica Huston, his co-star and former partner, told Larry King in 2013 that Nicholson “avoids television. He’s never done it ... The only place you’ll see Jack on TV is at a Lakers game.”

Huston suggested that Nicholson’s reluctance might stem from a desire to preserve his mystique as a film actor. However, Nicholson seemed to harbor a broader disdain for television, telling Rolling Stone in 1986 that TV was consuming the film industry. “I hate what the light box has done to America at night—turning everyone into mindless moths drawn to a screen,” he said. “If they had just banned these light boxes, the world would feel larger. But we can’t even stop acid rain—how can we expect them to care about beauty? Because beauty is everything, my friend. That’s all that matters.”

8. In 2004, Nicholson made an appearance at his 50th high school reunion.

Fifty years after graduating from Manasquan High School, Nicholson attended his class’s 50th reunion in 2004. Attendees described it as a relaxed event where classmates reconnected with “Nick.” He was presented with a plaque honoring his acting career, and the school’s auditorium bears his name as the Jack Nicholson Theatre.