Jack Nicholson list of goals. In researching the role, Nicholson visited a Los Angeles hospital to see how cancer patients coped with their illnesses. Nicholson's next film role saw him reunite with James L. Brooks, director of "Terms of Endearment", "Broadcast News", and "As Good as It Gets", for a supporting role as Paul Rudd's character's father in the 2010 film "How Do You Know". It had been widely reported in subsequent years that Nicholson had retired from acting because of memory loss, but in a September 2013 "Vanity Fair" article, Nicholson clarified that he did not consider himself retired, merely that
Jack Nicholson MGM, and other issues. Nicholson starred in "Five Easy Pieces" alongside Karen Black in 1970 in what became his persona-defining role. Nicholson and Black were nominated for Academy Awards for their performances. Nicholson played Bobby Dupea, an oil rig worker, and Black was his waitress girlfriend. During an interview about the film, Black noted that Nicholson's character in the film was very subdued, and was very different than Nicholson's real-life personality. She says that the now-famous restaurant scene was partly improvised by Nicholson, and was out of character for Bobby, who wouldn't have cared enough to argue with a waitress.