Most people think that they have a basic understanding of the lives and activities of actors. They can learn a great deal through interviews and tabloids. Most people know where actors in Hollywood work, play, and spend their time. But many individuals do not know the considerable number of Hollywood actors who have advanced degrees. Some individuals even have Ph.Ds from prestigious universities all across the country.
James Franco
James Franco is one of the most well-accomplished and talented actors in Hollywood. He has appeared in numerous comedic and dramatic roles over the past twenty years. Some of his greatest roles have occurred alongside comedic heavyweights like Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen. But in addition to roles in films like Pineapple Express and The Interview, Franco is also an accomplished academic. Franco worked as a Ph.D. student in English at Yale University a few years ago. He has used his degree and interest to teach classes in literature and acting across the country. Franco has also let his academic interests show in several of his choices for movies to adopt. Franco’s adaptations of works by William Faulkner shows his interest in modernist literature cultivated by his graduate school studies.
Mayim Bialik
Mayim Bialik is well-known for several of her television roles. She was the star of the famed show Blossom and helped redefine the American teenager in the 1990s. Later in her career, she became a famed member of the ensemble behind The Big Bang Theory. Bialik’s character on that show is an introverted neuroscientist. In real life, Wood Harris notes that the parallels are clear. Bialik earned a Ph.D. in neuroscience from UCLA in 2007. She greatly enjoyed the process and has used information from her studies in her television roles.
Ken Jeong
Ken Jeong is best known to most people as one of the breakout stars of the Hangover movies. He has used this position to branch out to his own television show and several different movie roles. Jeong has worked with everything from gross-out to joke-based comedy. But before he became an actor, Jeong was actually a medical doctor.
Jeong earned his M.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2005. He worked as a medical doctor for several years in North Carolina and California while performing at comedy clubs on the side. Eventually, he decided to explore his passion to become an actor and comedian. He moved to Los Angeles and later struck up a friendship with Judd Apatow which has fueled his success to this day. Jeong’s years as a doctor helped influence several of his comedic performances.
Franco, Bialik, and Jeong are all mostly comedic actors. They have amused millions of people all around the world with their well-crafted jokes and hilarious antics. But these three individuals are not goofy because they are not smart. Instead, their comedic talents are separate from the mastery of knowledge and information required to earn a Ph.D. In many ways, this mastery makes them some of Hollywood’s most intriguing people.
