Alan Arkin, the veteran US actor whose multi-decade career spanned the likes of Catch-22, Edward Scissorhands and Little Miss Sunshine (for which he won an Oscar), has died aged 89. His sons confirmed the news in a statement to People magazine, saying: “Our father was a uniquely talented force of nature, both as an artist and a man. A loving husband, father, grand and great grandfather, he was adored and will be deeply missed.”
Fellow actors paid tribute to Arkin on social media. Natasha Lyonne, who co-starred with him in the indie film Slums of Beverly Hills wrote: “The favorite of all my movie dads and so brilliant, inspiring and kind for so long.” Seinfeld star Jason Alexander said: “Such a wonderful, original voice for comedy… I learned so much from watching him. And the laughs I got from his glorious work seem endless. May he rest well.” Spinal Tap’s Michael McKean added: “Charming, hilarious, and armed with a flawless bullshit detector, he was pure pleasure to be with.”
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Born in 1934 in New York, Arkin was descended from Jewish immigrants to the US. After a spell with folk act the Tarriers (with whom he had a chart hit with The Banana Boat Song), Arkin made an impact as an actor on Broadway, winning a Tony for the lead role in Enter Laughing in 1963. He then secured his first major film role in war comedy The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming, for which he was nominated for a best actor Oscar. He followed that up with the villain role in the Audrey Hepburn thriller Wait Until Dark, and the lead in Carson McCullers adaptation The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, for which he received another best actor Oscar nomination.
Arguably the most high-profile role of Arkin’s early career came in 1970, when he was cast as Yossarian in the Mike Nichols-directed adaptation of Catch-22 – though that film was somewhat overshadowed by the similarly themed M*A*S*H*, released the same year. Arkin subsequently seemed to prosper with another actor to play off: highlights of the 70s included buddy cop thriller Freebie and the Bean (with James Caan) and action comedy The In-Laws (with Peter Falk).
He found more work in TV in the subsequent decade, earning an Emmy nomination for the 1987 TV movie Escape from Sobibor, and subsequently excelled in supporting or ensemble roles. In Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands he played Winona Ryder’s grumpy father, he was one of the office salesmen in Glengarry Glen Ross, and a therapist to John Cusack’s hitman in Grosse Pointe Blank. His ripest cameo, no doubt, was as the heroin-snorting grandad in Little Miss Sunshine, which finally bagged him an Oscar, for best supporting actor, in 2007. In the Netflix series The Kominsky Method, Arkin had another hit, as the agent to Michael Douglas’ Sandy Kominsky.
Arkin was married three times: to Jeremy Yaffe between 1955 and 1961, Barbara Dana between 1964 and 1994, and to Suzanne Newlander, who survives him.
