page_title: Philip Seymour Hoffman
section_title: Early life
hierarchical_section_title: Philip Seymour Hoffman / Early life
caption_attribution_description: English: Fairport, New York village hall
context_page_description: Philip Seymour Hoffman was an American actor, director, and producer. Known for playing distinctive supporting and character roles, Hoffman acted in many films from the early 1990s until his death in 2014. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest actors of his generation.
  Born and raised in Fairport, New York, Hoffman was drawn to theater in his youth after attending a stage production of Arthur Miller's All My Sons at age 12. Hoffman studied acting at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, and began his screen career in a 1991 episode of Law & Order and started to appear in films in 1992. He gained recognition for his supporting work, notably in Scent of a Woman, Twister, Boogie Nights, Happiness, Patch Adams, The Big Lebowski, Magnolia, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Almost Famous, Punch-Drunk Love and Along Came Polly. He began to occasionally play leading roles, and for his portrayal of the author Truman Capote in Capote, won multiple accolades, including the Academy Award for Best Actor.
context_section_description: Hoffman was born on July 23, 1967, in the Rochester suburb of Fairport, New York. His mother, Marilyn O'Connor (née Loucks), came from nearby Waterloo and worked as an elementary school teacher before becoming a lawyer and eventually a family court judge. His father, Gordon Stowell Hoffman, who was of German descent, was a native of Geneva, New York, and worked for the Xerox Corporation. Along with one brother, Gordy, Hoffman had two sisters, Jill and Emily.
  Hoffman was baptized a Roman Catholic and attended Mass as a child, but did not have a heavily religious upbringing. His parents divorced when he was nine, and the children were raised primarily by their mother. Hoffman's childhood passion was sports, particularly wrestling and baseball, but at age 12, he saw a stage production of Arthur Miller's All My Sons and was transfixed. He recalled in 2008, "I was changed – permanently changed – by that experience. It was like a miracle to me". Hoffman developed a love for the theater, and proceeded to attend regularly with his mother, who was a lifelong enthusiast. He remembered that productions of Quilters and Alms for the Middle Class, the latter starring a teenaged Robert Downey, Jr., were also particularly inspirational. At the age of 14, Hoffman suffered a neck injury that ended his sporting activity, and he began to consider acting. Encouraged by his mother, he joined a drama club, and initially committed to it because he was attracted to a female member.
  Acting gradually became a passion for Hoffman: "I loved the camaraderie of it, the people, and that's when I decided it was what I wanted to do." At the age of 17, he was selected to attend the 1984 New York State Summer School of the Arts in Saratoga Springs, where he met his future collaborators Bennett Miller and Dan Futterman. Miller later commented on Hoffman's popularity at the time: "We were attracted to the fact that he was genuinely serious about what he was doing. Even then, he was passionate." Hoffman applied for several drama degree programs and was accepted to New York University's (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. Between starting on the program and graduating from Fairport High School, he continued his training at the Circle in the Square Theatre's summer program. Hoffman had positive memories of his time at NYU, where he supported himself by working as an usher. With friends, he co-founded the Bullstoi Ensemble acting troupe. He received a drama degree in 1989.
caption: The village of Fairport, New York, Hoffman's hometown
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