PITTSBURGH — Calling Jeff Goldblum a curious fellow doesn't do justice to how the 69-year-old West Homestead native operates.
He's the kind of guy who "will move into your house for a week to find out what your life is all about," says former Pittsburgh City Councilman Doug Shields. Goldblum proved that assessment correct during a recent Zoom chat by immediately expressing his delight at being interviewed by his hometown paper and peppering the interviewer with questions about Pittsburgh and the Steelers.
"When I was a kid, I was like, 'Maybe I'll get my name in the paper one of these days,'" Goldblum said less than three years after the last time he was interviewed by the Post-Gazette. "And here I am."
It's the kind of insatiable curiosity he also displays in "The World According to Jeff Goldblum," his National Geographic-developed television series that returned for its second season Friday on Disney+. Any subject that happens to interest him gets the full Goldblum treatment. His deep dives include why humans love dogs, monsters, dance and more.
His thirst for knowledge and general "gee whiz" demeanor come through on his Disney+ show and in an interview. Goldblum proved his Steel City bona fides by reminding me several times that he had recorded the introduction that played before the Seahawks-Steelers game on Oct. 17. He also just checked out "Andy Warhol: A Documentary Film," Ric Burns' 2006 portrait of the famed Pittsburgh-born pop artist.
"I still pinch myself," he said of his almost half-century in Hollywood. "I can't believe that I've had a miraculous life where I was obsessed with the idea of kind of being an actor one day when I went to Carnegie Mellon University and Chatham [University] day camps. I can't believe I've gotten the chance to do it continually over this period of time.
"My parents, who are no longer here, I imagine would get a big kick out of me introducing the Steelers game. So yeah, it's kind of thrilling for me!"
"The World According to Jeff Goldblum" premiered in November 2019 and featured an always spectacularly dressed Goldblum. The first season's third episode focuses entirely on tattoos and includes a segment shot at a Pittsburgh tattoo parlor on July 13 — Jeff Goldblum Day as proclaimed by Pittsburgh City Council in 2004.
Goldblum said he appreciates how National Geographic and Disney give him "a chance to be as free as a bird and have encounters with people that I take left turns with" in his pursuit of answers to (his) life's biggest mysteries. He also admires how "The World According to Jeff Goldblum" editing team intersperses photos and videos from his childhood throughout the show's sophomore season.
"These things show up in the cut and it just kind of takes my breath away, whether it's my parents dancing together or my brothers and I fooling around when I was a kid," he said. "I get a big kick out of that ... This is the best use of that kind of stuff. Families are endlessly interesting to me, my family and other people's families. It's pretty rich material, isn't it?"
Many of the themes in the first few new episodes of "The World According to Jeff Goldblum" come directly from things he grew to love during his formative years here. For example, the monsters episode can be traced back to Saturdays watching "Chiller Theatre" on WIIC-TV/WPXI-TV. The magic episode stems from vacations he took with his family to Atlantic City, New Jersey, and the dogs episode is inspired by his childhood poodle, Ginger.
And, in classic Goldblum fashion, the fireworks episode came from his longtime love of "gazing at the stars and thinking about the universe and the awe-inspiring things that can change our lives."
If "The World According to Jeff Goldblum" isn't enough, check out "Because He's Jeff Goldblum," Washington Post reporter Travis Andrews' unauthorized yet comprehensive biography of the actor's life and career. Goldblum hasn't gotten a chance to read it yet, but, as he put it, "I'm going to check myself out" eventually.
Next year will also mark the return of Goldblum's famous "Jurassic Park" character Ian Malcolm in the upcoming "Jurassic World: Dominion."
"I love playing that part," he said. "[Malcolm is] a smart and cool and funny guy with a larger perspective and usually something wise to contribute, and heroic in one way or another. I was excited about getting a chance to see him after 30 years and what he's been through. I'm excited about this movie."
You know what else gets Goldblum excited? Talking about Pittsburgh, including other famous yinzers like jazz legends Erroll Garner and Ahmad Jamal. To him, Pittsburgh is a "truly fertile, spectacular family of people" and he can't wait to be back home "for something, for anything."
"I love you Pittsburgh," he said. "I love every single one of you, and every single square inch, and every single leaf on every tree."
