Philip Seymour Hoffman was born in Fairport, New York in 1967. He is the son of Monroe County Family Court Judge Marilyn Hoffman O'Connor. Hoffman started pursuing the theatre after a wrestling accident at school and ultimately enrolled at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.

His older brother Gordy Hoffman wrote the script for the 2002 movie Love Liza. Hoffman currently lives on Manhattan. He still stars in theatre productions and occasionally works as a theatre director.

When I first saw Hoffman as the insufferable Freddie Miles in The Talented Mr. Ripley, I remember thinking that this guy couldn't possibly be able to do any other kind of role, he was so convincingly repulsive. Therefore, I was dumbstruck to see him do such a brilliant job playing the sympathetic Phil Parma in Magnolia, a movie I didn't otherwise care that much about. No matter what he does, he is totally convincing, to the extent that my friend, with whom I saw both of these films, at first refused - literally - to believe that it was the same actor.

Editor's note:: Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead in New York City on February 2, 2014.

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