Tatum O’Neal

Tatum Beatrice O'Neal is an American actress born on November 5, 1963. At ten years old, she became the youngest person to win a competitive Academy Award for her performance as Addie Loggins in the film Paper Moon, in which she co-starred alongside her father, Ryan O'Neal. Throughout her career, O'Neal appeared in several notable films and television series, establishing herself as a prominent child actor in the 1970s and continuing to work across screen projects in subsequent decades.

O'Neal was born in the Westwood area of Los Angeles, California, to actors Ryan O'Neal and Joanna Moore. She grew up alongside her brother Griffin and later gained two half-brothers, Patrick and Redmond. Her paternal ancestry includes Irish, English, and Ashkenazi Jewish heritage. Her mother, who appeared in films such as Walk on the Wild Side and Follow That Dream, passed away from lung cancer at the age of 63.

O'Neal's breakout role came in Paper Moon, which was filmed in late 1972 and released in May 1973. In April 1974, she received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress as well as the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress. Following this recognition, she starred in films such as The Bad News Bears in 1976, Nickelodeon in 1976 alongside her father, International Velvet in 1978, and Little Darlings in 1980. She also co-starred in Circle of Two in 1980 and portrayed Goldilocks in a 1984 episode of Faerie Tale Theatre.

During the 1990s and 2000s, O'Neal's film roles included playing Cynthia Kruger in Basquiat in 1993. She returned to television with guest roles on Sex and the City, 8 Simple Rules, and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. In 2005, she joined the drama series Rescue Me in the recurring role of Maggie Gavin. She participated as a contestant on the second season of Dancing with the Stars in 2006, later providing commentary for Entertainment Tonight. Her subsequent screen credits include Wicked Wicked Games, My Brother, Fab Five: The Texas Cheerleader Scandal, and the 2021 feature Not to Forget.

O'Neal began a relationship with tennis player John McEnroe in 1984, and they married in 1986. The couple had three children before separating in 1992 and divorcing in 1994. Following the divorce, McEnroe obtained custody of the children in 1998 due to O'Neal's drug addiction struggles. In 2011, O'Neal and her father began restoring their relationship after 25 years apart, a reconciliation process documented in the television series Ryan and Tatum: The O'Neals.

O'Neal has written two autobiographical memoirs detailing her life and career: A Paper Life in 2004 and Found: A Daughter's Journey Home in 2011. In June 2008, she was arrested in Manhattan for drug possession and subsequently completed a court-ordered drug treatment program. In May 2020, O'Neal suffered a severe stroke resulting from a prescription drug overdose, which left her in a coma for a month and a half and required ongoing recovery.