Charles Grodin

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 Rosemarys Baby in 1968 he played the lead in Elaine Mays The Heartbreak Kid 1972 and supporting roles in Mike Nicholss Catch22 1970 the 1976 remake of King Kong and Warren Beattys Heaven Can Wait 1978 Known for his deadpan delivery and often cast as a putupon 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 costarred 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 mid1990s 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 mid2010s including in Louis CKs FX show Louie and Noah Baumbachs film While Were 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 Description above from the Wikipedia article Charles Grodin licensed under CCBYSA full list of contributors on Wikipedia