Men's Journal

The newly-minted Oscar winner — for his role in the pitch-perfect Crazy Heart — on his art, his game, and his dad.

By Dacus Thompson

Story about my dad

My father had a successful TV show in the ’60s, Sea Hunt, and he went all over the world and people would want to show off their favorite diving spots. I constantly run into oceanographers who say, “Your dad is the reason I got into this kind of thing.”

Drawing board

I use a Wacom tablet for my drawings on my website (jeffbridges.com). It’s got a stylus that the tablet is sensitive to. You can just go to town.

Plant

I’m really into succulents, though I’m not an expert. I grow these large ones that put out big, beautiful flowers. I like their architectural shapes.

Game

Pass the Pigs. It’s like a dice game, first one to 100, that’s great to play with a bunch of people. On the set of Iron Man, some guys put up some pretty high stakes. It got wild.

Guitar

It’s a Gibson J-45. Buddy Miller played it in a lot of recordings for Crazy Heart, so the guitar’s got sentimental value. But it also just sounds beautiful.

Memento

From Lebowski I got the jellies — the shoes. And I scored the sweater, too. But I also have the suit from the movie Tron. My wife dressed up in it for Halloween once.

Gift

I call this the Green Monster. It’s a John Deere that was the last thing my dad gave me. It’s just a little thing to haul stuff in.

Book

I tend to read Pema Chödrön’s books over and over again. I’m reading When Things Fall Apart now for the second time. It’s about Buddhism and getting closer to being alive.

Camera

The Widelux is a panning still camera. It’s almost like a 70mm movie-frame format, and since I take a lot of photographs about making movies, it kind of lends itself to that.

Musician

Bob Dylan. I love his old stuff and his new stuff.

Artist

We’ve got some of Russell Chatham’s work of Montana that we really like. His paintings really grab the country there. Kind of plein air–ish, I guess you could say.

Place to think

I have a swing near my house where I just kind of hang out. I usually bring a book, but I never read it. I just sit out there and look at the light changing.

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For more of Jeff Bridges, check out our interview with the Dude from June 2008.