Tatum O'Neal facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tatum O'Neal
O'Neal in 2019
Born	Tatum Beatrice O'Neal (1963-11-05) November 5, 1963 (age 61) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1973–present
Spouse(s)	John McEnroe ​ ​ (m. 1986; div. 1994)​
Children	3
Parent(s)	Ryan O'Neal Joanna Moore
Relatives	Griffin O'Neal (brother) Patrick O'Neal (half-brother) Redmond O'Neal (Half-brother)
Awards	Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Paper Moon (1973)

Tatum Beatrice O'Neal (born November 5, 1963) is an American actress. When she was 10 years old, she made history by becoming the youngest person ever to win a competitive Academy Award. She won for her role as Addie Loggins in the movie Paper Moon, where she starred alongside her father, Ryan O'Neal. She also appeared in other popular films like The Bad News Bears, Nickelodeon, and Little Darlings. Later, she had guest roles in TV shows such as Sex and the City, 8 Simple Rules, and Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

Family Background

Tatum O'Neal was born in Westwood, a part of Los Angeles, California. Her parents were both actors, Ryan O'Neal and Joanna Moore. Her brother, Griffin, was born in 1964. In 1967, her parents divorced. Her father later married actress Leigh Taylor-Young, and they had Tatum's half-brother, Patrick. This marriage ended in 1973. Tatum has another half-brother, Redmond, from her father Ryan O'Neal's relationship with actress Farrah Fawcett. Tatum's mother, Joanna Moore, passed away at age 63. She had a career in movies like Walk on the Wild Side and Follow That Dream. Tatum's family background includes Irish, English, and Ashkenazi Jewish heritage.

Career

Early Career

O'Neal in 1974, winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for Paper Moon

On April 2, 1974, when she was ten years old, Tatum O'Neal won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She also won the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress for her role in Paper Moon, which came out in May 1973. She was the youngest person ever to win a competitive Academy Award. She turned nine years old while filming the movie in the fall of 1972. In Paper Moon, O'Neal played Addie Loggins, a young girl who learns to be a con artist from a trickster played by her father during the Great Depression.

O'Neal starred in several other films, including The Bad News Bears (1976) with Walter Matthau, International Velvet (1978) with Christopher Plummer and Anthony Hopkins, and Little Darlings (1980) with Kristy McNichol. She also co-starred with her father in Nickelodeon (1976) and with Richard Burton in Circle of Two (1980).

She was chosen for the movie Split Image but had to leave the project because she was too young (seventeen) for the night filming schedule. She was replaced by Karen Allen. She also appeared as Goldilocks in the Faerie Tale Theatre episode "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" (1984).

Later Career

Over the next 15 years, O'Neal appeared in a few films, including Basquiat (1996) where she played Cynthia Kruger.

In the early 2000s, O'Neal started acting more again. She had guest appearances in TV shows like Sex and the City, 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter, and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. In 2005, O'Neal began a regular role as Maggie Gavin in the firehouse drama series Rescue Me. She played the sister of Tommy Gavin, who was played by Denis Leary.

In January 2006, she took part in the second season of ABC's reality show Dancing with the Stars with professional dancer Nick Kosovich. They were eliminated in the second round. She then provided commentary for the show on Entertainment Tonight.

From 2006 to 2007, she played Blythe Hunter in the MyNetworkTV drama Wicked Wicked Games. She also appeared in the film My Brother (2007) alongside Nashawn Kearse and Vanessa Williams.

In 2008, she was in the Lifetime movie Fab Five: The Texas Cheerleader Scandal. This film was based on a real story that happened at McKinney North High School in Texas. She played Lorene Tippit, the mother of the main character, Brooke Tippit. She became good friends with the actress who played Brooke, Ashley Benson, and helped her with acting.

In 2021, O'Neal appeared in the film Not to Forget. This movie was made to help raise awareness and money for the fight against Alzheimer's disease. The film was directed by Valerio Zanoli and starred Karen Grassle and five Academy Award winners: O'Neal, Cloris Leachman, Louis Gossett Jr., George Chakiris, and Olympia Dukakis.

Personal Life

Family Relationships

Tatum O'Neal's relationship with tennis player John McEnroe started in 1984. They got married in 1986. They have three children: Kevin, Sean, and Emily. They separated in 1992 and divorced in 1994.

In 2011, Tatum and her father began to improve their relationship after 25 years. Their journey to reconnect was shown in the Oprah Winfrey Network series Ryan and Tatum: The O'Neals.

Health

In May 2020, O’Neal had a serious stroke. A friend found her unconscious, and the stroke caused her to be in a coma for a month and a half. When she woke up, she could not remember how to speak. She has been working hard to relearn everything since then.

Published Works

• A Paper Life. ISBN: 0-06-054097-4.
• Found: A Daughter's Journey Home. ISBN: 978-0062066565

Filmography

Film

Television

See Also

In Spanish: Tatum O'Neal para niños

• List of oldest and youngest Academy Award winners and nominees