George Grizzard(1928-2007)
- Actor
In retrospect, he was considered an actor's actor to be sure. Renowned
theater performer George Grizzard would make his biggest impact under
the Tony-winning Broadway lights in a career spanning over five
decades. Born an only child on April 1, 1928, in Roanoke Rapids, North
Carolina, George Cooper Grizzard, Jr. was raised (from age 7) in
Washington D.C., and graduated from the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill in 1949. Precoccupied for a time in the advertising field,
he then seemed bent on a radio broadcasting career when the "acting
bug" suddenly bit.
Grizzard studied with respected acting coach Sanford Meisner in New
York and went on to apprentice in stock plays. He eventually took on
Broadway where he earned major kudos right off the bat for his debut
role as Paul Newman's younger
brother in "The Desperate Hours" (1955). More New York acclaim came in
the form of "The Happiest Millionaire" (1956), for which he won the
"most promising" Theatre World Award; "The Disenchanted" (1958), which
earned him a Tony nomination; "Big Fish, Little Fish" (1961), for which
he won the Outer Critic's Circle award; the
Edward Albee's emotional roller-coaster
ride "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1962), wherein he originated
the rakish, fair-haired role of Nick; and, more recently, in a revival
of "A Delicate Balance" (1996), wherein he finally won the coveted
Tony. Never far away from Broadway, he returned again and again over
the years in both comedies and dramas: "Mary, Mary", "The Glass
Menagerie", "You Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running", "The
Country Girl", "The Royal Family", "California Suite", "Man and
Superman", "Judgment at Nuremberg" and "The Creation of the World and
Other Business" in which he played Lucifer himself. Other noteworthy
theatrical events away from Broadway ranged from his title role in
"Hamlet" at the Tyrone Guthrie Theater, to his mental patient who
thinks he's Einstein in "The Physicists", to his Big Daddy in "Cat on a
Hot Tin Roof" at the Kennedy Center.
Films beckoned in the 60s with a sampling of handsome, intellectual,
white-collared roles. Making his Broadway debut with
Paul Newman in 1955, he made his
film debut with Newman as well, in the role of a ruthless young tycoon
in From the Terrace (1960). He
also earned excellent notices as a crafty senator in the well-mounted
political drama
Advise & Consent (1962). He
found, however, more durable, frequent work on the smaller screen
playing various politicians (presidents, governors, mayors, etc.),
notably his Emmy-nominated portrayal as John Adams in
The Adams Chronicles (1976).
He won the Emmy for his portrayal of
Henry Fonda's opportunistic son in the TV
special
The Oldest Living Graduate (1980).
Often seen in a calculating, unsympathetic light, he continued to mix
stage and on-camera work for the remainder of his career.
A co-founder of the APA Repertory Company in New York, Grizzard took
his final Broadway bow bantering with life-sized lizards in the surreal
Edward Albee drama "Seascape" in 2005. His
last movie role was a part in
Clint Eastwood's memorable
Flags of Our Fathers (2006).
He died the following year, on October 2, 2007, of complications from
lung cancer at a New York City hospital. His sole survivor is long-time
partner William Tynan.
theater performer George Grizzard would make his biggest impact under
the Tony-winning Broadway lights in a career spanning over five
decades. Born an only child on April 1, 1928, in Roanoke Rapids, North
Carolina, George Cooper Grizzard, Jr. was raised (from age 7) in
Washington D.C., and graduated from the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill in 1949. Precoccupied for a time in the advertising field,
he then seemed bent on a radio broadcasting career when the "acting
bug" suddenly bit.
Grizzard studied with respected acting coach Sanford Meisner in New
York and went on to apprentice in stock plays. He eventually took on
Broadway where he earned major kudos right off the bat for his debut
role as Paul Newman's younger
brother in "The Desperate Hours" (1955). More New York acclaim came in
the form of "The Happiest Millionaire" (1956), for which he won the
"most promising" Theatre World Award; "The Disenchanted" (1958), which
earned him a Tony nomination; "Big Fish, Little Fish" (1961), for which
he won the Outer Critic's Circle award; the
Edward Albee's emotional roller-coaster
ride "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1962), wherein he originated
the rakish, fair-haired role of Nick; and, more recently, in a revival
of "A Delicate Balance" (1996), wherein he finally won the coveted
Tony. Never far away from Broadway, he returned again and again over
the years in both comedies and dramas: "Mary, Mary", "The Glass
Menagerie", "You Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running", "The
Country Girl", "The Royal Family", "California Suite", "Man and
Superman", "Judgment at Nuremberg" and "The Creation of the World and
Other Business" in which he played Lucifer himself. Other noteworthy
theatrical events away from Broadway ranged from his title role in
"Hamlet" at the Tyrone Guthrie Theater, to his mental patient who
thinks he's Einstein in "The Physicists", to his Big Daddy in "Cat on a
Hot Tin Roof" at the Kennedy Center.
Films beckoned in the 60s with a sampling of handsome, intellectual,
white-collared roles. Making his Broadway debut with
Paul Newman in 1955, he made his
film debut with Newman as well, in the role of a ruthless young tycoon
in From the Terrace (1960). He
also earned excellent notices as a crafty senator in the well-mounted
political drama
Advise & Consent (1962). He
found, however, more durable, frequent work on the smaller screen
playing various politicians (presidents, governors, mayors, etc.),
notably his Emmy-nominated portrayal as John Adams in
The Adams Chronicles (1976).
He won the Emmy for his portrayal of
Henry Fonda's opportunistic son in the TV
special
The Oldest Living Graduate (1980).
Often seen in a calculating, unsympathetic light, he continued to mix
stage and on-camera work for the remainder of his career.
A co-founder of the APA Repertory Company in New York, Grizzard took
his final Broadway bow bantering with life-sized lizards in the surreal
Edward Albee drama "Seascape" in 2005. His
last movie role was a part in
Clint Eastwood's memorable
Flags of Our Fathers (2006).
He died the following year, on October 2, 2007, of complications from
lung cancer at a New York City hospital. His sole survivor is long-time
partner William Tynan.