Jeff Bridges: The Dude On Singing, Style and Sweet Love

He is an amazing Dude.

Jeff Bridges says the older he gets, the more Zen he feels about life.

"Usually after every movie there is a period where I feel like I don't want to pretend anymore.  I just want to live my life," he says.

"Thank God, the acting bug starts to rear its head again and I'm revved up all over again," says the 61-year-old, who adds, "Age doesn't have to slow you down one bit."

A morning with Bridges at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills is a gift. You don't just get life wisdom, but also love advice and coolness lessons.

How does he choose what to do at this stage in life?

"I try to actually push things away. I try not to engage," he says. "I really drag my feet to the party. If something keeps irking me then I know I can't turn away forever."

What's irking him now is his new singing career. His CD, titled "Jeff Bridges" is just out and the Oscar winner shows he really can sing. Of course, he first proved that in the film "Crazy Heart," which left him with a great take home prize: a Best Actor Oscar.

Now, Bridges is crooning his own tunes including "Tumbling Vine" and "Falling Short," a song where he wonders if God put him here to "bush-whack a path."

JEFF BRIDGES' STYLE

His country songs fit into the life of one of the most laid back guys in Hollywood. Bridges wears jeans, a white shirt and cowboy boots to our interview. His voice is soft and his laughter is warm.

He says at home he's a jeans and a western shirt kind of guy. "I think my casual style came from being with my father Lloyd Bridges. I'm a second-generation actor. I saw my father go through all the fame.

"My Dad loved show biz and all the different aspects of it, but he wasn't a Hollywood type of guy dressing up and going to all the parties."

"I take my cue from him when it comes to running my life," he says. "I don't go around all dressed up with a bunch of bodyguards going, 'Look at me. I'm a movie star!'"

"I'm just Jeff," he says.

You can ask him anything including how he feels about his status at The Dude from the movie "The Big Lebowski," which ranks as a favorite movie of all time for many men out there.

"Hey, I never get tired of being called The Dude because it reminds me of one of my favorite films of all time and working with the great Coen brothers," he says. "They make it look so easy like you're just there and falling off a log. But it's really their mastery that's behind the art."

JEFF BRIDGES ON KEEPING FIT AND STRESS RELIEF

He keeps in shape by being active. Bridges loves to hit the waves.

"I'm really into surfing," he says. "I surfed all the time when I was young and then I went through 25 years where I didn't do it at all.

"It's never too late," he says. "You can start something again at any age. Five years ago, I picked up a board and headed for the ocean.

"It's just the greatest thing on earth," he says. "All I can say about surfing is you get out there in the ocean and it's the most relaxing moments. It doesn't even matter if you do it well. Just being out there makes the rest of the world just melt away."

He says you also have to make other forms of stress relief accessible.

"I did this animated movie called 'Surf's Up' and they gave me a stuffed penguin with a remote control. I push the buttons and the penguin farts," Bridges says. "That's in my office. A farting penguin! I also have the helmet from 'Tron' and all those clothes from 'The Big Lebowski.'"

OK, here's the big style reveal.

"They were mine in the first place," he says, laughing. "I think they're somewhere in the laundry hamper in my house right now." 

JEFF BRIDGES IN LOVE

Bridges is not a drifter like The Dude. He met his wife Susan over 30 years ago on the set of the 1975 movie "Rancho Deluxe" where she was working as a maid on a dude ranch.

Ask him: What's the secret of over three decades of wedded bliss?

"You just have to be in love. He's your guy. You're his girl. You need to be best friends and really think of each other as the other half and take advantage of that fact," he says. "You need to love each other and share your feelings."

"Give each other what you want to be given including space to be with your own person. Also, don't try to mold each other into someone else," he says. "That goes for the men, too. Don't try to change the ladies."

"Oh, I have one more bit of marital advice," he says, chuckling. "Lots and lots of good love making."