As Dustin Hoffman turns 89 the Hollywood legend still looks incredibly youthful

Born in Los Angeles on August 8, 1937, Dustin initially considered a career in medicine before discovering acting. After years spent honing his craft on stage and taking smaller television and film roles, his life changed in 1967 when director Mike Nichols cast him as awkward college graduate Benjamin Braddock in The Graduate. The film became a cultural phenomenon and earned Dustin his first Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. It was the beginning of one of the most acclaimed acting careers of his generation.

Rather than becoming a conventional Hollywood leading man, Dustin built his reputation by taking on complicated, often vulnerable characters – from Ratso Rizzo opposite Jon Voight in 1969’s Midnight Cowboy to comedian Lenny Bruce in Lenny and investigative journalist Carl Bernstein in All the President’s Men. His filmography also includes classics such as Papillon, Marathon Man, Little Big Man and Straw Dogs.

Dustin eventually took home his first Best Actor Oscar for Kramer vs. Kramer, playing a newly single father fighting for custody of his young son opposite Meryl Streep. Almost a decade later, he won again for his unforgettable performance as Raymond Babbitt opposite Tom Cruise in Rain Man. He has been nominated for seven Academy Awards in total, with additional nods for The Graduate, Midnight Cowboy, Lenny, Tootsie and Wag the Dog.

Later generations came to know him through films including Hook, Meet the Fockers and the Kung Fu Panda franchise, in which he voices Master Shifu. His contribution to cinema was recognised again when he received his Karlovy Vary honour and returned to the movie that started it all, presenting a special screening of The Graduate. During his emotional acceptance speech, Dustin reflected on a lifetime spent doing what he loves, saying that acting had always made him “feel alive”.

One of the great constants in Dustin’s life has been his marriage to Lisa. The couple tied the knot in October 1980 and share four children – Jake, Rebecca, Max and Ali. Dustin also has two daughters, Karina and Jenna, from his first marriage to Anne Byrne, making him a father of six. 

The couple remain affectionate more than four decades into their marriage. Tennis is clearly a shared passion, with the pair often spotted at matches, and appearing at Wimbledon together again this summer. In 2016, Lisa told The Daily Telegraph: “We’ve been married 36 years and together 40 years. I say in Hollywood it is like dog years so you have to multiply that by seven. Maybe we are more in love [than when we got married], it continues to grow.”