( CNN ) -- `` You are obviously , to me , always going to be The Dude , '' Piers Morgan said to Jeff Bridges , referring to the actor 's title role in the 1998 Coen brothers movie , `` The Big Lebowski . '' The Oscar-winning actor is a guest on Thursday 's `` Piers Morgan Tonight . '' Bridges , who took a year off from movies to focus on his music career , will release his self-titled album August 16 . `` You 're The Dude , '' continued Morgan . `` To millions of people around the world , Jeff Bridges , you will always be The Dude . I ca n't pretend anything else . '' The CNN host proudly stated that he `` ritually '' watches `` Lebowski '' annually . Bridges said from the moment he read the script , he knew the film was destined to be a classic . `` I read that thing and I , you know , it made me laugh -- all the way through it , '' said Bridges . `` John Goodman came out with a great quote about your performance , '' said Morgan . `` He said , 'It 's like watching a diamond cutter . When you look at the diamond , you do n't think of the work , you just notice there are no flaws . ' `` Bridges , whose Hollywood career has spanned some 40 years and 60 films , openly admitted that he owes his great success to his veteran actor dad , Lloyd Bridges . `` I 'm a product of nepotism , '' said Bridges . `` My dad , you know ... the hardest thing about acting as a profession is getting the break . '' When Morgan pointed out Bridges ' reputation as `` the nicest guy in show business , '' the younger Bridges again credited his father 's guidance . `` You know , I take my lead from my old man , '' said Bridges , `` Who loved showbiz so much and , yes , I got to work with him as a kid on 'Sea Hunt . ' You know , whenever there was a role for the little kid , he 'd say , 'Come on , get out of school and come and play with Dad . ' '' Bridges , who also worked alongside his father as an adult , told Morgan , `` I saw , when he came on the set , how much fun he was having and how that fun was kind of contagious . '' Bridges also admitted that when he won the best actor Oscar for `` Crazy Heart , '' all he could think about was his parents . `` I felt my folks , '' said Bridges . `` I feel like I 'm an extension of them , really . '' Bridges ' parents met in the UCLA drama department . Bridges also recalled working with his brother , Beau , on the 1989 film , `` The Fabulous Baker Boys . '' `` What a dream that was , '' said Bridges . `` Beau , music and Michelle ( Pfeiffer ) , my God -- a dream come true ! '' Bridges and his wife of 34 years , Susan , have three daughters and recently became grandparents for the first time . The couple originally met on a movie set in Montana . Morgan asked Bridges , who at one point had considered forgoing acting in favor of music , where his musical inspiration came from . `` Well , Beau , my big brother , you know , he 's eight years older than I am , '' said Bridges . `` So my early memories are Chuck Berry , Little Richard , Buddy Holly and those guys . I remember he had a white Danelectro guitar that I really coveted and finally stole from him . '' When Morgan asked Bridges about the struggle he underwent when deciding between film and music , Bridges said `` the movie thing took off , and it was like I , you know , a path of least resistance kind of thing . And I , like I said , I enjoyed it . '' During his Hollywood hiatus , aside from recording the album , Bridges also took the time to focus on his work as a spokesman for the No Kid Hungry Campaign . `` It 's about ending childhood hunger here in America , '' said Bridges . `` And we 're doing that by going state by state , working with governors and mayors and heads of food pantries and so forth , finding out what is the -- where 's the bottleneck ? `` Because here in America , we have enough food ; we have programs that we know can end hunger . But it 's the access to those programs that 's really a huge problem . '' Watch Piers Morgan Tonight weeknights 9 p.m . ET . For the latest from Piers Morgan click here .
Jeff Bridges ' acting career has spanned 40 years and 60 films . He took a year off from acting to concentrate on music , will release an album August 16 . Comment: