Acting · Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA · Born April 21, 1935
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.
MovieCharles Grodin: Rebel With a Cause
2025
MovieWaiting for Ishtar
2017
as Self
MovieAn Imperfect Murder
2017
as Arthur
MovieThe Comedian
2016
as Dick D'Angelo
TVMadoff
2016
as Carl Shapiro
MovieWhile We're Young
2015
as Leslie Breitbart
MovieThe Humbling
2014
as Jerry
TVThe Michael J. Fox Show
2013
as Steve Henry
MovieBrazzaville Teen-Ager
2013
as Father
MovieChar·ac·ter
2012
as Self
MovieFinal Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen
2012
as (archive footage)
MovieThe Harmony Game
2011
as Self
MoviePaul Simon and Friends | The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song
2007
as Self
MovieThe Ex
2006
as Bob Kowalski
MovieThe Ultimate Collection starring Johnny Carson - The Best of the 70s and 80s
2002
as Self (archive footage)
TVLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit
1999
as Brett Forrester
TVThe Daily Show
1996
as Self
MovieThe World of Jim Henson
1994
as Nicky Holiday (archive footage)
MovieIt Runs in the Family
1994
as Mr. Parker (The Old Man)
MovieSesame Street | All-Star 25th Birthday: Stars and Street Forever!
1994
as Chaz
MovieClifford
1994
as Martin Daniels
MovieBeethoven's 2nd
1993
as George Newton
TVLate Show with David Letterman
1993
as Self - Guest
MovieHeart and Souls
1993
as Harrison Winslow
MovieSo I Married an Axe Murderer
1993
as Commandeered Car Driver
MovieDave
1993
as Murray Blum
TVShelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories
1992
as Narrator (voice)
MovieBeethoven
1992
as George Newton
MovieTaking Care of Business
1990
as Spencer Barnes
MovieThe Muppets at Walt Disney World
1990
as Quentin Fitzwaller
MovieCranium Command
1989
as Left Brain (voice)
TVLIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988
MovieMidnight Run
1988
as Jonathan Mardukas aka “The Duke”
MovieYou Can't Hurry Love
1988
as Mr. Glerman
MovieThe Couch Trip
1988
as George Matlin
MovieIshtar
1987
as Jim Harrison
TVFresno
1986
as Cane Kensington
King Kong! The Living Legend
1986
as Self
MovieLast Resort
1986
as George Lollar
MovieMovers & Shakers
1985
as Herb Derman
MovieThe Woman in Red
1984
as Buddy
MovieThe Lonely Guy
1984
as Warren
MovieCharley's Aunt
1983
as Lord Fancourt Babberly
MovieNight of 100 Stars
1982
as Self
TVLate Night with David Letterman
1982
as Self - Guest
TVAmerican Playhouse
1982
as Lord Fancourt Babberly
MovieThe Great Muppet Caper
1981
as Nicky Holiday
MovieThe Incredible Shrinking Woman
1981
as Vance Kramer
MovieSeems Like Old Times
1980
as Ira Parks
MovieIt's My Turn
1980
as Homer
MovieSunburn
1979
as Jake
MovieReal Life
1979
as Warren Yeager
MovieThe Grass Is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank
1978
as Jim Benson
MovieHeaven Can Wait
1978
as Tony Abbott
MovieJust Me and You
1978
as Michael Lindsay
MovieThe Meanest Men in the West
1978
as Arnie Doud, Harge Gang
MovieIt Happened One Christmas
1977
as Joseph
MovieThe Paul Simon Special
1977
as Self
MovieThieves
1977
as Martin Cramer
MovieKing Kong
1976
as Fred S. Wilson
TVLaverne & Shirley
1976
TVSaturday Night Live
1975
as Self - Host
Movie11 Harrowhouse
1974
as Howard R. Chesser
MovieThe Heartbreak Kid
1972
as Lenny Cantrow
TVGreat Performances
1971
as Jake
TVThe Great American Dream Machine
1971
as Himself
MovieCatch-22
1970
as Captain Aarfy Aardvark
MovieSimon and Garfunkel: Songs of America
1969
as Self
MovieRosemary's Baby
1968
as Dr. Hill
TVJudd, for the Defense
1967
TVThe Guns of Will Sonnett
1967
as Bells Pickering
TVCaptain Nice
1967
as News Vendor
TVFelony Squad
1966
TVShane
1966
as Jed
TVThe F.B.I.
1965
as Carl Platt
TVThe Big Valley
1965
as Mark Dunigan
TVMy Mother the Car
1965
TVThe Young Marrieds
1964
as Matt Crane Stevens
MovieSex and the College Girl
1964
as Bob
TVThe Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
1962
as Self
TVThe Virginian
1962
as Arnie Doud
TVThe Defenders
1961
as Thomas Martin
Movie20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
1954
as Drummer Boy (uncredited)
