Charles Grodin, a versatile TV and movie actor with a talent for wry humor and deadpan comedy who appeared on Broadway, starred in such films as “The Heartbreak Kid,” “Midnight Run” and the “Beethoven” comedies and was known for his cheeky appearances on TV talk shows, including his own, died May 18 at his home in Wilton, Conn. He was 86.
The cause was bone marrow cancer, confirmed his son, Nicholas Grodin.
Grodin grew up in Pittsburgh and later attended the University of Miami, but ended up leaving before he graduated to pursue a career in acting and went on to study at HB Studio in New York City.
His film debut came in Disney’s 1954 movie 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea and went on to star in a Broadway production of Tchin-Tchin with Anthony Quinn.
One of his most recognisable roles came in 1968 playing an obstetrician in horror film Rosemary’s Baby.
But during the 60s, he turned down the iconic role of Benjamin Braddock in The Graduate due to the low salary he was offered by Lawrence Turman, who insisted that it would have made him a big star.
Instead, the role went to Dustin Hoffman who became the huge A-Lister he is today.
During that time, he starred in The Heartbreak Kid, King Kong, Heaven Can Wait, The great Muppet Caper and Midnight Run.
However, his acting career changed in the 90s as he appeared in a number of family films, including Beethoven and Hearts and Soles.
As well as his acting, Grodin was praised for his writing and won an Emmy for his 1977 Paul Simon TV special.
He also hosted his own chat show from 1995 to 1998 called The Charles Grodin Show on CNBC.
Grodin leaves behind two children – his daughter Marion to ex-wife Julie Ferguson and son Nicholas to Elissa Durwood.
