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Charles Grodin
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
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…
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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.
Filmography
Movies and shows, newest first
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2026
Marty, Life Is Short
Movie Self (archive footage)
- 2025
-
2017
Waiting for Ishtar
Movie Self
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2017
An Imperfect Murder
Movie Arthur
-
2016
The Comedian
Movie Dick D'Angelo
-
2016
Madoff
TV show Carl Shapiro
-
2015
While We're Young
Movie Leslie Breitbart
-
2014
The Humbling
Movie Jerry
-
2013
The Michael J. Fox Show
TV show Steve Henry
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2013
Brazzaville Teen-Ager
Movie Father
-
2012
Char·ac·ter
Movie Self
-
2012
Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen
Movie (archive footage)
-
2011
The Harmony Game
Movie Self
- 2007
-
2006
The Ex
Movie Bob Kowalski
-
2002
The Ultimate Collection starring Johnny Carson - The Best of the 70s and 80s
Movie Self (archive footage)
More credits
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1999
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
TV show Brett Forrester
-
1996
The Daily Show
TV show Self
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1994
The World of Jim Henson
Movie Nicky Holiday (archive footage)
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1994
It Runs in the Family
Movie Mr. Parker (The Old Man)
- 1994
-
1994
Clifford
Movie Martin Daniels
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1993
Beethoven's 2nd
Movie George Newton
-
1993
Late Show with David Letterman
TV show Self - Guest
-
1993
Heart and Souls
Movie Harrison Winslow
-
1993
So I Married an Axe Murderer
Movie Commandeered Car Driver
-
1993
Dave
Movie Murray Blum
-
1992
Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories
TV show Narrator (voice)
-
1992
Beethoven
Movie George Newton
-
1990
Taking Care of Business
Movie Spencer Barnes
-
1990
The Muppets at Walt Disney World
Movie Quentin Fitzwaller
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1989
Cranium Command
Movie Left Brain (voice)
-
1988
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
TV show
-
1988
Midnight Run
Movie Jonathan Mardukas aka “The Duke”
-
1988
You Can't Hurry Love
Movie Mr. Glerman
-
1988
The Couch Trip
Movie George Matlin
-
1987
Ishtar
Movie Jim Harrison
-
1986
Fresno
TV show Cane Kensington
-
1986
King Kong! The Living Legend
Movie Self
-
1986
Last Resort
Movie George Lollar
