Charles Grodin
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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.
Known for
Credits
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
as Dr. Hill
King Kong (1976)
as Fred S. Wilson
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)
as Drummer Boy (uncredited)
Beethoven (1992)
as George Newton
Midnight Run (1988)
as Jonathan Mardukas aka “The Duke”
Marty, Life Is Short (2026)
as Self (archive footage)
Dave (1993)
as Murray Blum
While We're Young (2015)
as Leslie Breitbart
Taking Care of Business (1990)
as Spencer Barnes
The Woman in Red (1984)
as Buddy
So I Married an Axe Murderer (1993)
as Commandeered Car Driver
Heart and Souls (1993)
as Harrison Winslow
Catch-22 (1970)
as Captain Aarfy Aardvark
The Great Muppet Caper (1981)
as Nicky Holiday
Beethoven's 2nd (1993)
as George Newton
Heaven Can Wait (1978)
as Tony Abbott
The Lonely Guy (1984)
as Warren
Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen (2012)
as (archive footage)
The Comedian (2016)
as Dick D'Angelo
The Ex (2006)
as Bob Kowalski
The Humbling (2014)
as Jerry
The Couch Trip (1988)
as George Matlin
Seems Like Old Times (1980)
as Ira Parks
The Meanest Men in the West (1978)
as Arnie Doud, Harge Gang
Ishtar (1987)
as Jim Harrison
The Incredible Shrinking Woman (1981)
as Vance Kramer
Cranium Command (1989)
as Left Brain (voice)
An Imperfect Murder (2017)
as Arthur
Clifford (1994)
as Martin Daniels
Real Life (1979)
as Warren Yeager
The World of Jim Henson (1994)
as Nicky Holiday (archive footage)
You Can't Hurry Love (1988)
as Mr. Glerman
Night of 100 Stars (1982)
as Self
Sunburn (1979)
as Jake
The Heartbreak Kid (1972)
as Lenny Cantrow
It Runs in the Family (1994)
as Mr. Parker (The Old Man)
Movers & Shakers (1985)
as Herb Derman
Sesame Street | All-Star 25th Birthday: Stars and Street Forever! (1994)
as Chaz
The Grass Is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank (1978)
as Jim Benson
Last Resort (1986)
as George Lollar
Thieves (1977)
as Martin Cramer
Brazzaville Teen-Ager (2013)
as Father
11 Harrowhouse (1974)
as Howard R. Chesser
It's My Turn (1980)
as Homer
The Muppets at Walt Disney World (1990)
as Quentin Fitzwaller
It Happened One Christmas (1977)
as Joseph
The Ultimate Collection starring Johnny Carson - The Best of the 70s and 80s (2002)
as Self (archive footage)
Simon and Garfunkel: Songs of America (1969)
as Self
Charley's Aunt (1983)
as Lord Fancourt Babberly
Char·ac·ter (2012)
as Self
The Paul Simon Special (1977)
as Self
Paul Simon and Friends | The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song (2007)
as Self
Just Me and You (1978)
as Michael Lindsay
Sex and the College Girl (1964)
as Bob
King Kong! The Living Legend (1986)
as Self
The Harmony Game (2011)
as Self
Charles Grodin: Rebel With a Cause (2025)
Actor
Waiting for Ishtar (2017)
as Self