If you grew up in the ’80s, you remember Chunk — the Hawaiian shirt, the Truffle Shuffle, and the lovable chaos he brought to The Goonies. But the real story of the actor behind him, Jeff Cohen, is even more surprising. Born Jeffrey Bertan McMahon in 1974, he adopted the last name “Cohen” from his mother’s maiden name after his parents separated. Before The Goonies, he appeared on TV shows like Child’s Play and Body Language. But it was 1985’s The Goonies that made him unforgettable, even though he secretly filmed parts of it while covered in chickenpox.
After the movie’s success, puberty suddenly ended his acting career. “I didn’t give up acting — acting gave me up,” he said. With roles disappearing, he focused on school, sports, and eventually college at UC Berkeley, where he briefly played football and became a campus personality.