Jack Nicholson sports beard and wild hair in last public photograph as actor turns 87

Jack Nicholson celebrates his 87th birthday today, April 22, but fans shouldn't expect a public celebration.

The As Good as It Gets actor was once a red carpet regular but in recent years he's shied away from the limelight, so much so that he has not been photographed in almost a year. 

May 20 2023 marks the last time Jack was snapped out in public as he watched his beloved Los Angeles Lakers play at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

At the time, he appeared courtside sporting a messy beard and wild hair with his son, Ray, sitting next to him. 

It was the third time in a month that he had been spotted at an NBA game and his attendance was warmly welcomed as before that he'd not been present since the Lakers' season opener in October 2021.

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In fact, Jack stepped away from the public eye almost altogether and had not been seen for 18 months before last year. 

This is in part due to the fact that he retired from the movie industry, albeit not officially. 

His last on-screen role was in the romantic comedy, How Do You Know in 2010.

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He later told The Sun in 2013: "I'm not going to work until the day I die, that's not why I started this. I mean, I'm not driven. I was driven, but I'm not, I don't have to be out there anymore."

Jack added: "In fact, there's part of me that never really liked being out there. You get older, you change."

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As for what Jack is up to during his latest lengthy absence from the world, he's likely holed up at his Beverly Hills compound.

The multi-million dollar estate features numerous properties and spans across three acres and Jack sees it as a retreat. 

Record producer, Lou Adler, shed light on Jack's current focus during an episode of the WTF with Marc Mason podcast when he said the legendary star was seeking out "quiet".

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He revealed that his existence is a far cry from his former party days and now Jack prefers to "lay under a tree" and "read a book". 

Lou added: "Jack is doing whatever he really wants to do. He wants to be quiet. He wants to eat what he wants. He wants to live the life he wants."

Jack isn't married, but he is a family man, likely getting plenty of visits from some of his children. He is a father of six, and his oldest, Jennifer Nicholson is now 60. 

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He's particularly close with Ray and Lorraine from his relationship with actress Rebecca Broussard.

Navigating the aging process hasn't been easy for Jack who spoke to the Daily Mail about the hardest part of getting older. 

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In a candid conversation, he confessed: "One of the toughest parts of aging is losing your friends. At first it starts quietly, then pretty soon it's every month, and you can't help but think, 'When is that bell going to go off for me?' And on top of that you feel this constant loss."

He's also had to accept the physical changes that come with aging. 

"Now I don't have any hair below my sock line," he told The Sun. "And that means you're getting old, Jackie boy. It comes out of my ears instead. I mean, how many times have I slashed my earlobes?" 

As for finding love, Jack said: "I would love that one last romance, a real romance, but I'm not very realistic about it happening. What I can't deny is my yearning."

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