Alan Arkin - ©Theda Bara

The actor I highlight in this post is Alan Wolf Arkin, who was also a musician. Alan Arkin died on Thursday, the 29th, at his home in Carlsbad, California, as a result of cardiac arrest.

On Broadway, the actor made his debut in the musical: “From the Second City”. He then starred in the comedy: “Enter Laughing”, for which he won a Tony Award. His first film appearance was in 1957, in the musical: “Calypso Heat Wave”, where he gave life to the character: “Tarriers Lead Sing”.

Alan Arkin was a member of the American comedy group Second City, where he was successful in cinema with the Cold War parody: “The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming!”, from 1966. The role was responsible for his first Oscar nomination, at Best Actor category, which it did not win.

The actor would compete again for the Oscar for Best Actor in 1969, for: “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter” (1968), in the role of a very friendly deaf-mute, not winning again.

The peak of Arkin's career came in 2007, with the victory as Best Supporting Actor, for the surprising success of: “Little Miss Sunshine” (2006), when he played: “Edwin Hoover”, the grandfather of the girl “Olive Hoover”, played by American actress and singer: Abigail Breslin (1996-), ten years old at the time.

In 2013, the actor received another Oscar nomination for: “Argo” (2012). In the film directed by and starring Ben Affleck (1972-), when Arkin played “Lester Siegel”, a Hollywood producer.

In the 1990s, he acted in: “Glengarry Glen Ross”, from 1992. The film's cast also included: Al Pacino (1940-), Jack Lemmon (1925-2001), Alec Baldwin (1958-), Ed Harris (1950-) and Kevin Spacey (1959-). As of 2018, the actor starred for three seasons, opposite Michael Douglas (1944-), in the Netflix comedy series: “The Kominsky Method”. The role earned him two Emmy nominations.

Arkin's filmography also includes supporting roles in such films as: “Edward Scissorhands” (1990), character: “Bill”; “Four Days in September” (1997), character: “Charles Burke Elbric”; “Get Smart” (2008), Character: “Head of the US Spy Agency”, “Marley and Me” (2008), Character: “Arnie Klein” and “Dumbo” (2019), Character: “J. Griffin Remington”.

Alan Arkin has a star on the Los Angeles Walk of Fame, on the corner of Hollywood Boulevard (no number), in the Cinema category.

Alan Wolf Arkin was born in Brooklyn, New York, United States, to a Jewish family from Russia and Germany, on March 26, 1934 and died in Carlsbad, California, United States, on June 29, 2023, United States, aged 89 years. 

Alan Arkin has been married three times to three American actresses and has been divorced twice. Her first marriage was to Jeremy Yaffe (1937-), from 1955 to 1961, with whom she had two children, actors Adam Arkin (1956-) and Matthew Arkin (1960-); his second marriage was to Barbara Dana (1940-), from 1964 to 1994, with whom he had a son, actor and filmmaker Anthony Arkin (1967-) and the wife who accompanied him until the day of his death, was Suzanne Newlander Arkin (1934-), since 1996, with whom he was married for 27 years.