More Alan Arkin Bios & Profiles
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Biography #2
Alan Arkin was born in New York and launched his career with the original company of Chicago's improvisational revue, Second City. This led to his first part on Broadway, the lead in Carl Reiner's play Enter Laughing, for which Arkin won a Tony Award. The following year he starred again on Broadway in Murray Schisgal's hit, LUV.Arkin's first feature, The Russians are Coming, The Russians are Coming, earned him both a Golden Globe Award and an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. He received a second Oscar nomination for his performance in The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. His many film credits include Wait Until Dark, Popi, Catch-22, Little Murders, Freebie and Bean, The Seven Percent Solution, The In-laws, Simon and Chu Chu and the Philly Flash. These were followed by Improper Channels and Joshua Then and Now, each of which earned him a Canadian Academy Award. His more recent films include Edward Scissorhands, The Rocketeer, Glengarry Glen Ross, Steal Big Steal Little, Mother Night, Doomsday Gun on HBO, Grosse Pointe Blank, Four Days in September, Gattaca and Slums of Beverly Hills.
In addition to his acting career, Arkin has directed projects for all media. His many directorial credits for the theatre include several productions with Circle In The Square, including Jules Feiffer's The White House Murder Case, which earned him an Obie Award and on Broadway, The Sunshine Boys.
Arkin wrote and directed two short films, T.G.I.F. and People Soup. The former opened the 1967 New York Film Festival and the latter received an Oscar nomination for best short subject. He went on to direct the feature film version of Little Murders.
For television, Arkin directed the adaptation of the Broadway play Twigs with Carol Burnett, the pilot of Fay with Lee Grant and the multiple-award winning The Visit for PBS. In 1986, he directed the off-Broadway hit production of Room Service.
When not occupied as an actor or director, Arkin, a native New Yorker, is likely to devote his time to writing or music. He has had four books published by Harper & Row: Tony's Hard Work Day, The Lemming Connection, chosen by the booksellers of America to be placed in the White House Library, the autobiographical Halfway Through the Door and The Clearing. A children's book written for his granddaughter was published in 1994.
Arkin has appeared on over a dozen albums alone and with groups such as The Tarriers. His songs have been sung by Carly Simon, The Weavers and The Limelighters, and his recordings have been selling steadily for over 30 years.
Bio courtesy Columbia Pictures (01-Jan-2000)
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