Actor Alan Arkin, who won an Oscar for his work in "Little Miss Sunshine," "Argo," and "The Kominsky Method," has passed away at the age of 89, his family has confirmed.
Adam, Matthew, and Anthony Arkin, the artist's children, said in a statement on Friday that their father "was a uniquely talented force of nature, both as an artist and a man." As a devoted husband, father, grandpa, and great-grandfather, he was adored and will be greatly missed.
Arkin was born on March 26, 1934, in Brooklyn, New York. He made his film debut in 1957's "Calypso Heat Wave" and joined The Second City improv company in Chicago in 1960 as a pioneering member. In a 1964 episode of "East Side/West Side," he made his television debut.
He earned the Tony Award for best featured actor in a play in 1963 for his work in "Enter Laughing." Later, in 1973, for "The Sunshine Boys," he was nominated for another Tony award, this time for best play direction.
Through the 1960s, Arkin's star grew steadily, leading to two best actor Academy Award nominations. The first came in 1967 for "The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming," which he co-starred in alongside Carl Reiner and Eva Marie Saint and was directed by Norman Jewison. He was given a Golden Globe for the part. The second, in 1969, was for "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter," which Robert Ellis Miller directed and in which he costarred with Sondra Locke.
The actor's first Emmy nomination came in 1967 for "ABC Stage 67." In the course of his career, he would go on to win five more awards, including one for a cameo appearance on "Chicago Hope" in 1997 and two for the Chuck Lorre-produced "The Kominsky Method," in which he co-starred with Michael Douglas and was released in 2019 and 2020.
Later in his career, Arkin also garnered two Academy Award nominations for best supporting actor. In the first, "Little Miss Sunshine," which was directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris and had a large ensemble cast, including Abigail Breslin as the title character, he received the Oscar. The second was in 2013 for the "Argo" film directed by Ben Affleck.
In the 1969 movie "Popi," Arkin played some of the most noteworthy roles. The films "Catch-22" from 1970, "The In-Laws" from 1979, "Escape from Sobibor" from 1987, "Edward Scissorhands" from 1990, "Glengarry Glen Ross" from 1992, and "Gattaca" from 1997 are some examples.
In the early 1970s, he made an appearance on "Sesame Street" with his second wife, Barbara Dana, and he also made an appearance on "The Muppet Show"; he later had a cameo appearance in the 2011 movie based on the puppets. Additionally, he made guest appearances on "Bojack Horseman," "100 Centre Street," and "Harry."
Arkin was married three times: from 1955 to 1961 to Jeremy Yaffe, from 1964 to 1994 to Dana, and from 1996 till his death to Suzanne Newlander. Along with Yaffe and Dana, he is also the father of three sons: Adam Arkin, Matthew Arkin, and Anthony Arkin.
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