Born Caryn Johnson on Nov. 13, 1955, she grew up in New York City and first became involved in acting as a member of a children's theater company there. She became active in improvisational theater and took her stage name after moving to California in the mid-1970s. She soon gained a following as a stand-up comedienne and as a result was given the opportunity to produce her own show on Broadway in 1984–85. In 1985 she won a Grammy award for best comedy recording, and she made her film debut that same year in The Color Purple. Her subsequent films include Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986), The Long Walk Home (1990), Soapdish (1991), Sister Act (1992), Made in America (1993), Boys on the Side (1995), and The Deep End of the Ocean (1999). Goldberg became only the second black actress to win an acting Oscar when she received one for her supporting role in Ghost (1990). She appeared in the television series Baghdad Cafe and Star Trek: The Next Generation and acted as cohost of Comic Relief, an annual event to benefit the homeless, as well as occasional host of the Academy awards show.