Droll star of ‘Midnight Run’ and ‘Heartbreak Kid’ had attended UM
Charles Grodin, the humorous, offbeat actor and writer who scored as a caddish newlywed in “The Heartbreak Kid” and later had roles ranging from Robert De Niro’s counterpart in the comic thriller “Midnight Run” to the bedeviled father in the “Beethoven” comedies, has died. He was 86.
Grodin died Tuesday in Wilton, Connecticut, from bone marrow cancer, his son, Nicholas Grodin, said.
Known for his deadpan style and everyday looks, Grodin also appeared in “Dave,” “The Woman in Red,” “Rosemary’s Baby” and “Heaven Can Wait.” On Broadway, he starred with Ellen Burstyn in the long-running 1970s comedy “Same Time, Next Year,” and he found many other outlets for his talents.
With bone-dry understatement, Grodin could steal entire scenes with just a look. His commitment, whether acting across De Niro or Miss Piggy, was unsurpassed. Steve Martin, who co-starred with Grodin in 1984’s “The Lonely Guy,” remembered him as “one of the funniest people I ever met.”
In the 1990s, Grodin made his mark as a liberal commentator on radio and TV. He also wrote plays and TV scripts, winning an
Emmy for his work on a 1997 Paul Simon special, and wrote several books humorously ruminating on his ups and downs in show business. Actors, he wrote, should “think not so much about getting ahead as becoming as good as you can be, so you’re ready when you do get an opportunity. I did that, so I didn’t suffer from the frustration of all the rejections. They just gave me more time.” He spelled out that advice in his first book, “It Would Be So Nice If You Weren’t Here,” published in 1989.
In the 1972 Elaine May comedy “The Heartbreak Kid,” He starred as a Jewish newlywed who abandons his comically neurotic bride to pursue a beautiful, wealthy blonde played by Cybill Shepherd. The movie was a hit. “I thought the character in ‘The Heartbreak Kid’ was a despicable guy, but I play it with full sincerity,” Grodin told the A.V. Club in 2009. “My job isn’t to judge it. If it wasn’t for Elaine May, I probably would never have had that movie career.”
In 1988’s “Midnight Run,” Grodin was a bailjumping accountant who took millions from a mobster and De Niro was the bounty hunter trying to bring him cross-country to Los Angeles. They’re being chased by police, another bounty hunter and the Mob, and because Grodin is afraid of flying, they are
forced to go by car, bus, even boxcar. Grodin and De Niro improvised in many scenes in the film, revered as among the greatest buddy comedies. Often Grodin was genuinely trying to amuse his more intimidating co-star. One line he threw at De Niro: “You ever had sex with an animal, Jack?”
“I moved a little more toward drama and he moved a little toward comedy,” Grodin said. “And we met on a very good ground.”
“Beethoven” brought him success in the familyanimal comedy genre in 1992. Asked why he took up such a role, he said he was happy to get the work: “I’m not that much in demand. It’s not like I have this stack of wonderful offers. I’m just delighted they wanted me.”
Grodin was born Charles Grodinsky in Pittsburgh in 1935, son of a wholesale dry goods seller. He studied at the University of Miami and the Pittsburgh Playhouse, worked in summer theater and then studied acting in New York.
Grodin and his first wife, Julia Ferguson, had a daughter, comedian Marion Grodin. The marriage ended in divorce. He and his second wife, Elissa Durwood, had a son, Nicholas.