50 facts about Jack Black: Kung Fu Panda is his favorite role

Learn 50 facts about Jack Black, actor, comedian, singer and producer.

1. He was born Thomas Jack Black, Jr.

2. Black's acting career began with primetime TV roles, and then with small roles in 1990s films such as Dead Man Walking and Enemy of the State.

3. By the 2000s, he was cast in lead roles in comedy films such as Shallow Hal and School of Rock and in dramas such as King Kong and The Holiday.

4. He is a member of the so-called Frat Pack, a media term for a group of comedians active in Hollywood films.

5. He has been nominated for a Golden Globe award.

6. Black and Kyle Gass make up the comedy and rock music duo Tenacious D.

7. The duo has released two albums, Tenacious D, and its follow up, The Pick of Destiny.

8. His acting career has been extensive, starring primarily in comedy films.

9. He is known for his roles in High Fidelity, Shallow Hal, School of Rock, King Kong, Nacho Libre, Tropic Thunder, The Holiday, Bernie and the Kung Fu Panda films.

10. He the son of two satellite engineers, Judith Love, who worked on the Hubble Space Telescope and is also a writer.

11. His mother was born Jewish.

12. His father converted to Judaism.

13. Black was raised in the Jewish faith, attending Hebrew school and celebrating a Bar Mitzvah.

14. On a guest appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, he said his surname may have come from the occupational name of blacksmith.

15. Black's parents divorced when he was 10.

16. After the divorce Black moved to Culver City with his father and frequently visited his mother's home.

17. As a child, Black appeared in a commercial for the Activision game Pitfall! in 1982.

18. For high school, Black's parents enrolled him at the Poseidon School, a private secondary school designed specifically for students struggling in the traditional school system.

19. Black also attended the Crossroads School, where he excelled in drama.

20. He later attended UCLA but dropped out during his sophomore year to pursue a career in entertainment.

21. Fellow UCLA student Tim Robbins later cast Black in Bob Roberts.

22. Black gained recurring roles on the HBO sketch comedy series, Mr. Show.

23. Black's adult career began with acting on prime time television. He played roles on shows including Life Goes On, Northern Exposure, Mr. Show, Picket Fences, The Golden Palace and The X-Files.

24. He had a small role in True Romance as a security guard, but the scene was deleted.

25. In 2000, Black appeared in High Fidelity as a wild employee in John Cusack's record store, a role he considers his breakout.

26. He soon gained leading roles in films such as Shallow Hal, Nacho Libre, Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny, Year One, and Gulliver's Travels.

27. He received particular praise for his starring role in the well-received School of Rock, earning critical acclaim and a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor - Musical or Comedy.

28. He starred in one of his few dramatic roles as the obsessed filmmaker Carl Denham in Peter Jackson's 2005 remake of King Kong, a performance he based on Orson Welles.

29. He voiced the title role in Kung Fu Panda, which grossed $20.3 million on its opening day, June 6, 2008, and Kung Fu Panda 2.

30. Kung Fu Panda is his favorite role and he praises the tutoring of co-star and two-time Academy Award winner Dustin Hoffman.

31. The media classifies Black as one of the Frat Pack, a group of comedy actors who frequently work together. It includes Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson, Ben Stiller, Will Ferrell, Vince Vaughn, and Steve Carell.

32. Jack garnered a second Golden Globe Award nomination, this time in the category Best Actor in a Comedy, for his 2011 starring role in Richard Linklater's black comedy Bernie, as real-life murderer Bernie Tiede, a funeral director in a small East Texas town, who befriends and eventually murders a rich widow, played by Shirley MacLaine.

33. Black's subdued portrayal, authentic East Texas accent and musical talent - he sings several gospel hymns as well as "Seventy-six Trombones" - had Roger Ebert describing Black's work as "one of the performances of the year."

34. In January 2006, Black became engaged to Tanya Haden.

35. Haden is one of the triplet daughters of jazz double bassist Charlie Haden, with her sisters being violinist and singer Petra Haden and bass player Rachel Haden. Haden herself is an accomplished cellist. Both attended Crossroads School and met again 15 years after graduating, at a friend's birthday party.

36. Black proposed marriage around Christmas 2005.

37. They married on March 14, 2006, in Big Sur, California.

38. Black's first son, Samuel Jason "Sammy" Black, was born on June 10, 2006, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

39. On May 23, 2008, Black and his wife had their second son, Thomas David Black.

40. Black described himself as an atheist; but now that he is a father, he has decided to raise his children in the Jewish faith and has also started going to a synagogue with them.

41. In 2015, Black visited Kampala in Uganda, Africa as part of Comic Relief USA's Red Nose Day.

42. Black, also known as JB or Jables.

43. One of the songs from Tenacious D's album The Pick of Destiny, titled "The Metal", was used in the music video games Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock and Brütal Legend.

44. "Rock Your Socks" from the album Tenacious D was played in the music videogame Rock Band Unplugged as well, and "Master Exploder" from The Pick Of Destiny went on to be used in music video games Guitar Hero Van Halen, Rock Band 2, and Brütal Legend along with their song "Tribute" from Tenacious D.

45. Tenacious D helped the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation to raise awareness and funds for the affliction in Los Angeles on December 20, 2001 and in San Diego, California on June 16, 2007.

46. Tenacious D can be seen performing in the 90s-era Pauly Shore film Bio-Dome where the duo is performing its song "The Five Needs" at a "Save the Environment" party.

47. Black was also a guest star on an episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show entitled "Ellen the Musical", alongside Broadway star Kristin Chenoweth and teenage singer-actress Olivia Olson.

48. In 2000 Jack Black along with Kyle Gass provided backing vocals to punk rockers The Vandals' song "Fourteen", which appears on their album Look What I Almost Stepped In....

49. Black has also appeared on Dave Grohl's Probot album, providing vocals for the hidden song "I Am The Warlock", and Lynch's Fake Songs album, providing vocals for the song "Rock and Roll Whore".

50. Black performed a cover of Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" in the last sequence of High Fidelity.

Source: Facebook.com/JackBlack, Wikipedia.org