Jeff Bridges credited his 'gorgeous wife' for his Oscar win

The 'Crazy Heart' star finally received recognition at the Academy Awards last night (07.03.10) when he was awarded the Best Actor gong – 29 years after his first nomination - and claimed he wouldn't be there without the love and support of his spouse Susan Geston.

He said: "I especially want to thank my gorgeous wife, Sue, we've been married 33 years. We have a beautiful family. Three girls, Isabelle, Jessie and Hayley. Thank you, guys. I wouldn't be up here without you. Thank you so much."

Jeff – whose wife accompanied him to the Governors Ball in the Hollywood Renaissance Hotel after the awards ceremony – has previously admitted that Susan turned him down when he first asked her out.

He recalled recently: "I finally worked up the courage to ask her out and she said, 'No. Maybe I'll see you around.' And as she predicted, we did bump into each other in a bar and fell madly in love."

The actor won the Oscar for his portrayal of drunk country singer Bad Blake in 'Crazy Heart', who is inspired to turn his life around by a young journalist, played by Maggie Gyllenhaal.