By Sarah Ellen Berman
Down to earth and movie star do not normally appear in the same sentence. In Jake Goldberg’s case, they do. This 14-yearold is the epitome of the nonchalant movie star. Although he has appeared with Adam Sandler in “Grown Ups,” he remains a typical low-key Chappaqua teenager.
Goldberg’s successful path to Hollywood has been untraditional. Although he does work with an acting coach before auditions, he has had no formal training. When he was in third grade, his mother sent a photo of him to the CESD Talent Agency in Manhattan and the rest is history.
He began with a commercial for Verizon followed by an ad for the season finale of “The Osbournes.” He played the voice of Pablo the Penguin on “The Backyardagins”on Nickelodeon for five seasons. After auditioning for the movie “Grown Ups,” he received a call back. The next step was a “table read” in LA where he read the script with the rest of the cast. The next day he received a call saying that the role was his.
In Chappaqua, Goldberg is Norberto Goldberg’s son. In the movie, “Grown Ups,” he is Adam Sandler’s son. The movie is centered around the adults, several of whom have families. The kids get together at a 4th of July party and Goldberg takes the lead. In the film (as opposed to real life) Goldberg said, “I have to act like I’m a brat.” His work on the film was very rewarding. “All the actors in the movie were an inspiration,” he said.
How does schoolwork fit into Goldberg’s busy life? Effortlessly. All his work for Nickelodeon was done after school in the city. In May 2009, when the movie was shot in Massachusetts, Goldberg worked with a tutor and remained in contact with all his teachers at Bell to insure that he completed his schoolwork. He is “very excited” about attending Greeley in the fall.
When contemplating the future, Goldberg said that he would, “like to pursue my acting.” In the meantime he enjoys playing lacrosse and occasionally frequents the skatepark in Chappaqua
