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Multi-talented Alan Arkin is a distinguished actor of stage and screen as well as a stage director, songwriter, photographer, singer, and the author of a few children's books. Though primarily known for his high-energy, broadly comic roles, Arkin is also a talented dramatic actor who brings a certain intelligence and believability to each performance. Although highly respected, he has never been considered a major star, partly due to his appearances in a number of films of widely varying quality that relegated him to the rank of supporting actor rather than bona fide star. Born in Brooklyn to Jewish immigrants from Russia and Germany, Arkin began his career as a folk singer while attending college. His group, the Tarriers, was modestly successful and Arkin dropped out of college to perform. He then helped form the famed Chicago improvisational comedy troupe Second City, performing and directing a few sketches. Arkin returned to New York around 1963 to work both on and off-Broadway, making his Broadway debut in Carl Reiner's Enter Laughing. In 1964, he gained widespread acclaim for his portrayal of Harry Berlin in a Broadway production of Luv, and this success led to his auspicious Hollywood debut in Norman Jewison's gentle but hilarious sleeper The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming! (1966). Arkin's portrayal of a Russian officer posing as a Norwegian sailor in a Nantucket town won him his first Oscar nomination. The following year, he demonstrated his versatility by offering a chilling portrayal of a villain in Terence Young's Wait Until Dark. Further acclaim greeted the actor in 1968 when received his second Oscar nomination for his portrayal of a deaf-mute in The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter. The role also won Arkin a New York Film Critics Circle award. He continued riding high in 1970, when he played Yossarian, the part for which he is still best remembered, in Mike Nichols' serio-comic adaptation of Joseph Heller's Catch-22. Five years later, he earned a second New York Film Critics Circle award for his work in Hearts of the West. Arkin made his directorial debut with 1971's Little Murders. This stint behind the camera followed his work directing several stage productions. He continued to carry out behind-the-scenes duties for other films that decade, notably the 1979 comedy The In-Laws, for which he both starred and acted as executive producer. In 1981, Arkin starred in Improper Channels, which featured a script co-written by his son Adam Arkin, who has since become a noted television actor. The following year, father and son appeared together in Larry Cohen's Full Moon High. Since then, Arkin has continued to play a wide variety of character and supporting roles. His career enjoyed a second wind in the 1990s, with the actor appearing in substantial roles in a number of films. Some of the highlights included Edward Scissorhands (1990) in which he played Winona Ryder's father; Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) which cast him as a real-estate salesman; Grosse Pointe Blank (1997) in which he played John Cusack's exasperated psychiatrist; and The Slums of Beverly Hills (1998) for which he won raves for his portrayal of a divorced father struggling to keep his kids enrolled in the Beverly Hills school system. In 1999, Arkin could be seen in Jakob the Liar, playing opposite Robin Williams in a film set during the Nazi occupation of Poland. |
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