Lorraine Nicholson delighted fans by offering a rare peek into the life of her father, the legendary Jack Nicholson, as he turned 89. The occasion was marked with a special Instagram post on Thursday, courtesy of Lorraine, who celebrated her father’s milestone with an intimate family gathering.
The 36-year-old shared a heartwarming snapshot featuring Jack Nicholson, capturing the iconic actor’s renowned smile as he joined in on the festivities. The celebration, which took place on Wednesday, April 22, also included the presence of his longtime friend, the acclaimed musician Joni Mitchell, 82.
In the image, Nicholson appeared to be in high spirits, applauding alongside Mitchell and other guests. Lorraine also indulged nostalgia by posting a memorable throwback of her father from the 1970s. In the vintage photograph, Nicholson is seen sporting a red Coca-Cola T-shirt, puffing on a cigar, a quintessential image from his storied past.
Lorraine captioned the heartfelt snap, ’89!!’
Jack Nicholson, known for his extensive and varied film career, shares his daughter Lorraine and son Ray, 34, with his former wife, model Rebecca Broussard, who is now 63. The actor’s family tree is further enriched by his daughter Jennifer, 62, with ex-wife Sandra Knight; son Caleb James Goddard, 55, with the late actress Susan Anspach; and daughter Honey Hollman with Danish model Winnie Hollman.
Nicholson shares Lorraine, who is also an actor, as well as son Ray, 34, with model ex-wife Rebecca Broussard, 63.
Jack Nicholson’s daughter Lorraine posted a rare photo of the reclusive Hollywood legend celebrating his 89th birthday on Thursday with musician Joni Mitchell
He also has daughter Jennifer, 62, with ex-wife Sandra Knight, son Caleb James Goddard, 55, with his late Five Easy Pieces co-star Susan Anspach and daughter Honey Hollman with Danish model Winnie Hollman.
Nicholson is estranged from his alleged youngest child, 32-year-old daughter Tessa Gourin, whose mom is actress Jennine Gourin.
Lorraine is the only one of Nicholson’s children who has given fans a look at the actor’s private life on social media since he left the Hollywood spotlight over a decade ago.
He has seemingly retired from acting, with his last film role being the 2010 rom-com How Do You Know.
Lorraine posted the first photo of her father in nearly a year back in December 2025, which showed him posing with her and son Ray inside what appeared to be a restaurant.
A source told the Daily Mail at the time that Nicholson ‘is doing well, he is happy to be out of the Hollywood spotlight and just enjoys time with his family.’
The insider added, ‘He loves being around his children and is very close to them.’
Before Lorraine’s post, Nicholson was last seen at the SNL 50 party in February last year, where he made a rare appearance in the audience.
Before that, Nicholson was spied in 2024 using a cane on an outing in Beverly Hills, three years after he was last seen at an LA Lakers game in October 2021.
Nicholson’s close pal Danny DeVito, 81, provided a rare update on the star last July, reassuring fans that he is doing ‘great’ despite his reclusive lifestyle.
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Nicholson and daughter Lorraine, 36, seen together in 2007
Lorraine is the only one of Nicholson’s children who has given fans a look at the actor’s private life on social media since he left the Hollywood spotlight over a decade ago; Lorraine seen in 2024
DeVito gave the update while speaking to PEOPLE in honor of the 50th anniversary of the iconic movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, which famously starred both DeVito and Nicholson.
‘I just saw Jack a couple of weeks ago – it was his birthday a month ago, and he’s great,’ he told the outlet at the time.
DeVito maintained a close bond with Nicholson after One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest as they appeared in a number of movies together and recalled how he was impressed with the star’s grounded attitude when they first met even though his star in Hollywood was rising at the time.
‘There was no need for an icebreaker. He was immediately just so embracing… He started out exactly the way everybody else did, where he couldn’t get a job. It was like he came to Hollywood and he was just going to write and direct, and then Easy Rider comes along after the (Roger) Corman stuff… So he was in our milieu, and he was always just as open and genuine, and we all felt it immediately,’ DeVito said of Nicholson.
The It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia star added: ‘Of course, he was doing it because he’s that way, and he was also doing it because that had to be, because we had to be all joined at the hip in that movie, and we had such great performances.’
Four years ago, former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly said during an episode of his No Spin News broadcast that reports that Nicholson’s mental health had diminished were ‘bull.’
Lorraine posted the first photo of her father in nearly a year back in December 2025, which showed him posing with her and son Ray inside what appeared to be a restaurant
Nicolson has only made a handful of public appearances since leaving the Hollywood spotlight over a decade ago; seen in 2023 with son Ray
Many of his outings have been to LA Lakers game with his son Ray; seen in 2021
‘I visited Jack Nicholson a few months ago. I had a long conversation with him and he follows the No Spin News very closely and had all kinds of intelligent questions for me,’ O’Reilly said.
‘I have been friends with him for decades. He is 85, okay? But he is more intellectually nimble than the president of the United States,’ he continued.
Nicholson has been criticized for never acknowledging his paternity of his alleged daughter Tessa, who was born out of his brief affair with waitress Jeanine Gourin.
In February 2025, Tessa, an aspiring actress, published an essay in Newsweek titled ‘I’m Jack Nicholson’s Daughter – I Wish People Could Call Me a Nepo Baby.’
‘Having grown up without my father, I’ve sat on the sidelines and watched in frustration as other celebrity children have seamlessly secured roles or been signed to huge agencies,’ she wrote.
‘More recently, I have grown even more frustrated at what I think is a missed opportunity for these so-called ‘nepo babies’ to own their position and embrace it instead of complaining about it,’ Tessa continued.
While in a separate interview with the Daily Beast, Tessa said that she was told from a young age not to tell people who her father was. She said that the actor is ‘a complicated person’ and that her birth was ‘collateral damage.’
Nicholson had a somewhat controversial upbringing from the start – after his mother, an unmarried showgirl named June Frances Nicholson, gave birth to the actor at age 18, her parents decided to raise him as their own child, pretending that June was his sister.
For nearly four decades, Jack believed that his mom was his sibling, until 1974, when Time magazine uncovered the truth and told him about its findings.
While speaking to Patrick McGilligan for his biography, entitled Jack’s Life, the Shining star called it ‘the most f***ed thing he had ever heard.’
He also said the discovery was ‘dramatic’, but added that it ‘wasn’t’ something he’d ‘call traumatizing.’
The actor later told Rolling Stone, when asked about the shock revelation: ‘I was very impressed by their ability to keep the secret, if nothing else. It’s done great things for me.’
Nicolson is a three-time Oscar winner and is considered one of the greatest actors in Hollywood; seen in 1998
Nicholson is best known for his 1980 thriller The Shining
He landed more than 70 roles in a slew of big movies and TV shows, including as Joker in Tim Burton’s Batman (1989)
He’s pictured collecting his first best actor Oscar for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest in 1976
June moved away from Jack – who grew up in Neptune City, New Jersey – when he was four to pursue her career as a showgirl.
But when he was 17, he decided to move out to California to be with her, where he landed a secretary job for animation directors William Hanna and Joseph Barbera at the MGM cartoon studio.
At the same time, he was also studying to be an actor, and he eventually landed his debut role in the 1958 teen drama The Cry Baby Killer.
After that, his career soon took off and Nicholson went on become one of the most well-known actors of all time, landing more than 70 roles in a slew of big movies and TV shows over his 50-year career.
Some of his best-known acting credits include As Good as It Gets, Terms of Endearment, Five Easy Pieces, A Few Good Men, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and The Shining.
