Known For
Acting
Born
Apr 21, 1935
Died
May 18, 2021
Place of Birth
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Credits
86 titles
Charles Grodin
Biography
Charles Sidney Grodin (April 21, 1935 – May 18, 2021) was an American actor, comedian, author, and television talk show host. Grodin began his acting career in the 1960s appearing in TV serials including The Virginian. After a small part in Rosemary's Baby in 1968, he played the lead in Elaine May's The Heartbreak Kid (1972) and supporting roles in Mike Nichols's Catch-22 (1970), the 1976 remake of King Kong, and Warren Beatty's Heaven Can Wait (1978). Known for his deadpan delivery and often cast as a put-upon straight man, Grodin became familiar as a supporting actor in many Hollywood comedies of the era, including Real Life (1979), Seems Like Old Times (1980), The Great Muppet Caper (1981), Ishtar (1987), Dave (1993), and Clifford (1994). Grodin co-starred in the action comedy Midnight Run (1988) and in the family film Beethoven (1992). He made frequent appearances on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and Late Night with David Letterman. In the mid-1990s, Grodin retired from acting and wrote autobiographies; he became a talk show host on CNBC and in 2000 a political commentator for 60 Minutes II. He returned to acting with a handful of roles in the mid-2010s, including in Louis C.K.'s FX show Louie and Noah Baumbach's film While We're Young (2014). Grodin won several awards, including the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special in 1978 for the Paul Simon Special alongside Chevy Chase, Lorne Michaels, Paul Simon, and Lily Tomlin. He was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for The Heartbreak Kid in 1972. He won Best Actor at the 1988 Valladolid International Film Festival for Midnight Run, and the American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture for his performance in Dave in 1993.
Known For
Filmography
Marty, Life Is Short
Self (archive footage)
Charles Grodin: Rebel With a Cause
Waiting for Ishtar
Self
An Imperfect Murder
Arthur
The Comedian
Dick D'Angelo
Madoff
Carl Shapiro
While We're Young
Leslie Breitbart
The Humbling
Jerry
The Michael J. Fox Show
Steve Henry
Brazzaville Teen-Ager
Father
Char·ac·ter
Self
Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen
(archive footage)
The Harmony Game
Self
Paul Simon and Friends | The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song
Self
The Ex
Bob Kowalski
The Ultimate Collection starring Johnny Carson - The Best of the 70s and 80s
Self (archive footage)
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Brett Forrester
The Daily Show
Self
The World of Jim Henson
Nicky Holiday (archive footage)
It Runs in the Family
Mr. Parker (The Old Man)
Sesame Street | All-Star 25th Birthday: Stars and Street Forever!
Chaz
Clifford
Martin Daniels
Beethoven's 2nd
George Newton
Late Show with David Letterman
Self - Guest
Heart and Souls
Harrison Winslow
So I Married an Axe Murderer
Commandeered Car Driver
Dave
Murray Blum
Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories
Narrator (voice)
Beethoven
George Newton
Taking Care of Business
Spencer Barnes
The Muppets at Walt Disney World
Quentin Fitzwaller
Cranium Command
Left Brain (voice)
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
Midnight Run
Jonathan Mardukas aka “The Duke”
You Can't Hurry Love
Mr. Glerman
The Couch Trip
George Matlin
Ishtar
Jim Harrison
Fresno
Cane Kensington
King Kong! The Living Legend
Self
Last Resort
George Lollar
Movers & Shakers
Herb Derman
The Woman in Red
Buddy
The Lonely Guy
Warren
Charley's Aunt
Lord Fancourt Babberly
Night of 100 Stars
Self
Late Night with David Letterman
Self - Guest
American Playhouse
Lord Fancourt Babberly
The Great Muppet Caper
Nicky Holiday
The Incredible Shrinking Woman
Vance Kramer
Seems Like Old Times
Ira Parks