Oscar nominee Segal held notable roles
George Segal, an Oscar nominee for “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” and an actor who brought a touch of class to a slew of movie and TV comedies in a career that spanned more than 60 years, died Tuesday. He was 87.
Segal died from complications from bypass surgery, his wife, Sonia, told The Hollywood Reporter.
Thrust into the spotlight in “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” Segal worked so well opposite Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Sandy Dennis that he earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
Segal starred in several other big screen comedies, including “The Hot Rock,” “A Touch of Class” and “Fun With Dick and Jane.”
He then moved to television and the hit comedies “Just Shoot Me!” from 1997-2003 and “The Goldbergs” from 2013 to the present.
“George Segal has gone now,” actor Michael McKean tweeted. “A career that kept going for 50+ [years] because he loved it and he was great at it.”
While denied the Academy Award, Segal won two Golden Globes, including best actor for “A Touch of Class.” He was also an accomplished banjo player, something he picked up at a young age and enjoyed throughout his life.
He frequently brought the banjo with him to “The Tonight Show,” where he was a favorite of Johnny Carson, making 47 appearances from 1965-1991.
Segal at times downplayed his own ability.
“I have a dread of being considered bland, but I’ve had to reconcile myself to the fact that that’s what I am,” he once said, according to his IMDB page.
But the Great Neck, L.I., native was not bland. Instead he was extremely amiable, which led to him usually being cast in light fare.
In a positive review of 1973’s “A Touch of Class,” in which Segal starred with Glenda Jackson, Roger Ebert wrote, “The man is played by George Segal, who is so innately likable that he has never, ever been cast as a heavy.”
He and his mother moved to New York City after Segal’s father died in 1947. He graduated from Columbia in 1955 with a B.A. in performing and drama.
Segal studied at the Actors Studio and moved on to Broadway, first as an understudy, and then as a cast member in shows such as 1961’s “Gideon.” He went on to TV and then to films, where he had breakthrough roles in “Ship of Fools” and “King Rat,” both in 1965.
“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” brought Segal “once more into the limelight as one of the screen’s great hopes in the field of acting,” the Daily News wrote at the time. And sure enough, he went on to star in a string of 1970s comedy hits.
His film career slowed in the 1980s, but he was a frequent presence on TV and enjoyed an impressive second act there, beginning with “Just Shoot Me!” He continued strong until his death with his role on “The Goldbergs.”
“Today we lost a legend,” tweeted the show’s creator, Adam Goldberg. “It was a true honor being a small part of George Segal’s amazing legacy. By pure fate, I ended up casting the perfect person to play Pops. Just like my grandfather, George was a kid at heart with a magical spark.”