{{Infobox actor
| name = Alan Alda
| image = HawkeyeEpisode.jpg
| imagesize = 300px
| caption = Hawkeye on 'the thumb' in ''M*A*S*H'' episode, 1976
| birthname = {{nowrap|Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo}}
| birthdate = {{birth date and age|1936|1|28}}
| location = {{flagicon|New York}} {{flagicon|USA}} [[Bronx, New York]], [[United States|USA]]
| spouse = Arlene Alda (1957-present)
| religion = nonbeliever
| emmyawards = '''[[Primetime Emmy Award for Actor of the Year|Actor of the Year - Series]]'''<br>1974 ''M*A*S*H''<br>'''[[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor - Comedy Series|Outstanding Lead Actor - Comedy Series]]'''<br>1982 ''M*A*S*H''<br>'''[[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor - Drama Series|Outstanding Supporting Actor - Drama Series]]'''<br>2006 ''The West Wing''<br>'''[[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series|Outstanding Directing - Comedy Series]]'''<br>1977 ''M*A*S*H''<br>'''Outstanding Writing - Comedy Series'''<br>1979 ''M*A*S*H''
| goldenglobeawards='''[[List of Golden Globe Awards: Television, Best Actor, Comedy or Musical|Best Actor in a Television Comedy or Musical]]'''<br>1975 ''M*A*S*H''<br>1976 ''M*A*S*H''<br>1980 ''M*A*S*H''<br>1981 ''M*A*S*H''<br>1982 ''M*A*S*H''<br>1983 ''M*A*S*H''
}}
'''Alan Alda''' (born [[January 28]], [[1936]]) is a five-time [[Emmy Award]]-winning, six-time [[Golden Globe]]-winning, [[Academy Award]]-nominated [[United States|American]] [[actor]]. He is perhaps most famous for his role as [[Hawkeye Pierce]] in the [[television]] series ''[[M*A*S*H (TV series)|M*A*S*H]]''. During the 1970s and 1980s he was viewed as the [[archetype|archetypal]] sympathetic male, though in recent years he has appeared in roles which counter that image.
==Biography==
===Family and early life===
Alda was born '''Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo''' in the [[Bronx]]. His father, [[Robert Alda]] (1914-1986) aka Alphonso Giovanni Giuseppe Roberto D'Abruzzo, was an actor and singer, and his mother, [[Joan Brown (entertainer)|Joan Brown]], was crowned Miss New York in a [[beauty pageant]]. Alda is of Italian and Irish descent.<ref name="ref1">{{cite news|last=Berk|first=Philip|coauthors=|title=A question of roots|pages=|publisher=The Jerusalem Post|date=[[1998-12-11]]|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-19081701.html|accessdate=2007-12-10}}</ref> His adopted surname "Alda" is a combination of ''AL''fonso and ''D'A''bruzzo. Alda has a half-brother, actor '''Antony Alda'''.
Alda contracted [[polio]], aged 7, during an epidemic. His parents administered a painful treatment, developed by [[Elizabeth Kenny|Sister Elizabeth Kenny]], where hot woolen blankets were applied to the limbs and the muscles were stretched by massage.<ref>{{cite news | first=Tavis | last=Smiley | title=Alan Alda | url=http://www.pbs.org/kcet/tavissmiley/archive/200412/20041202_alda.html | publisher=PBS | date=2 December 2004 | accessdate=2007-05-02}}</ref> This treatment, though brutal, allowed Alda to recover much movement.
He attended [[Archbishop Stepinac High School]] in [[White Plains, New York]] and later received his [[bachelor's degree]] from Fordham College of [[Fordham University]] in the Bronx in 1956, where he was a student staff member of its FM radio station, WFUV. During his junior year, he studied in [[Europe]] where he acted in a play in [[Rome]] and performed with his father on television in [[Amsterdam]]. After graduation, he joined the [[United States Army|U.S. Army Reserve]] and served a six-month tour of duty as a gunnery officer in [[Korea]] following the [[Korean War]]. A year after graduation, he married [[Arlene Weiss]], with whom he has three daughters; Eve, Elizabeth, and Beatrice, and seven grandchildren. [[Arlene Alda]] is an accomplished photographer, author, and musician.
Alda was a member of the Compass Players in the late 1950s. He has also been an activist for [[feminism]] for many years.
Alda has been a longtime resident of [[Leonia, New Jersey]].<ref>Kolbert, Elizabeth. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B01E1D81438F93BA25756C0A962958260 "AT LUNCH WITH: Alan Alda; Hawkeye Turns Mean, Sensitively"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', [[May 18]], [[1994]]. Accessed [[November 24]], [[2007]]. "Ever since "M*A*S*H," Mr. Alda has split his time between the East Coast, where he has houses in the Hamptons and Leonia, N.J., and the West, where he owns a house in the Bel Air section of Los Angeles."</ref>
On the [[October 5]], [[2007]], episode of the [[United Kingdom|British]] [[talk show]] ''[[Loose Women]]'', Alan said he would still be working at a [[theatre]] in [[St. Louis, Missouri|St. Louis]] if he hadn't landed the role on ''[[M*A*S*H]]''.
== Early Acting Career ==
Alda began his career in the 1950s as a member of the [[Compass Players]] comedy revue. In [[1966]] he starred in the musical ''[[The Apple Tree]]'' on [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]], where he was nominated for the [[Tony award]] as Best Actor in a Musical.
Alda made his Hollywood acting debut as a supporting player
in ''Gone Are The Days'', a 1963 film version of the highly successflul Broadway play ''Purlie! Victorious'' which co-starred veteran black actors [[Ruby Dee]] and her husband, the late [[Ossie Davis]]. Other film roles would follow, such as his portrayal of the now late author, humorist and actor George Plimpton in film ''Paper Lion'' (1968), ''The Extraordinary Seaman'' (1969), and ''The Mephisto Waltz'' (1971).
== ''M*A*S*H*'' Series (1972-1983) ==
In early 1972 Alda auditioned for and was selected to play the role of "Hawkeye Pierce" in the TV adaptation of the 1970 film ''[[M*A*S*H]]'', for which would later be nominated for 21 [[Emmy Awards]], winning five. He took part in writing 20 episodes, and directed 30. When he won his first Emmy Award for writing, he was so happy that he performed a [[cartwheel (gymnastics)|cartwheel]] before running up to the stage to accept the award. He also was the first person to win Emmy Awards for acting, writing, and directing for the same series. [[H. Richard Hornberger|Richard Hooker]], who wrote the novel on which ''M*A*S*H'' was based, did not like Alan Alda's portrayal of Hawkeye Pierce (Hooker, a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]], had based Hawkeye on himself, whereas Alda took the character in a more left-wing direction). Alda also directed the show's 1983 2½ hour series finale "[[Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen]]" which remains [[list of most-watched television episodes|the single most watched episode]] of a TV series. Alda is in fact the only series regular to appear in each and every one of 251 episodes.
As more and more of the original series writers left the series, Alda gained more control and by the final seasons he had become project and creative consultant. Under his watch, ''M*A*S*H'' more openly addressed political issues. As a result, the 11 years of ''M*A*S*H'' are generally split into two eras: The [[Larry Gelbart]]/[[Gene Reynolds]] "comedy" years (1972-1977), and the Alan Alda "dramatic" years (1977-1983). During this time, Alda frequently appeared as a panelist on the 1968 revival of ''[[What's My Line?]]''. He also appeared as a panelist on ''[[I've Got a Secret]]'' during its 1972 syndication revival.
===After ''M*A*S*H''===
Alda's prominence in the enormously successful ''M*A*S*H'' gave him a platform to speak out on political topics, and he has been a strong and vocal supporter of [[women's rights]]. In 1976, the ''[[Boston Globe]]'' dubbed him "the quintessential Honorary Woman: a feminist icon" for his activism on behalf of the [[Equal Rights Amendment]]. As a [[liberalism|liberal]] activist, he was voted the "Most Annoying Man in Hollywood," and has been a target for some [[political conservative|political]] and [[social conservative]]s.
Alan Alda has also played [[Nobel Prize]]-winning physicist [[Richard Feynman]] in the play ''QED'', which has only one other character. Although [[Peter Parnell]] wrote the play, Alda both produced and inspired it. Alda has also appeared frequently in the films of [[Woody Allen]], and he has been a guest star five times on ''[[ER (TV series)|ER]]'', playing Dr. [[Kerry Weaver]]'s mentor, [[Gabriel Lawrence]]. During the later episodes, it was revealed that Dr. Lawrence was suffering from the early stages of [[Alzheimer's]]. Alda also had a co-starring role as [[Robert Gallo|Dr. Robert Gallo]] in the 1993 TV movie ''[[And the Band Played On (film)|And the Band Played On]]''.
[[Image:Alan Alda Emmys 1994.jpg|thumb|left|Alan Alda at the 1994 Emmy Awards: Photo by Alan Light]]
During ''M*A*S*H'''s run and continuing through the 1980s, Alda embarked on a successful career as a writer and director, with the ensemble [[dramedy]] ''The Four Seasons'' being perhaps his most notable hit. 1990s ''[[Betsy's Wedding (film)|Betsy's Wedding]]'' is his last directing credit to date. After ''M*A*S*H'' Alda took on a series of roles that either parodied or directly contradicted his "nice guy" image. His role as a pompous celebrity comedian in ''[[Crimes and Misdemeanors]]'' was widely seen as a self-parody, although Alda denied this.
== ''The West Wing'', ''The Aviator'', Later roles ==
Alda denies that in 1995 he briefly considered running for the [[United States Senate]] in [[New Jersey]]. About this time, he starred as the President in [[Michael Moore]]'s [[political satire]]/[[comedy]] film ''[[Canadian Bacon (movie)|Canadian Bacon]]''. In 1996, Alda played [[Henry Ford]] in ''Camping With Henry and Tom'', based on the book by Mark St. Germain. Beginning in 2004, Alda was a regular cast member on the [[National Broadcasting Company|NBC]] program ''[[The West Wing (TV series)|The West Wing]]'', portraying [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] [[United States Senate|U.S. Senator]] and presidential hopeful [[Arnold Vinick]], until the show's conclusion in [[May 2006]]. He made his premiere in the sixth season's eighth episode, "In The Room," and was added to the opening credits with the thirteenth episode, "King Corn." In [[August 2006]], Alda won an [[Emmy]] for his portrayal of Arnold Vinick in the final season of ''The West Wing''.
In 2004, Alda portrayed the late conservative Maine Senator
Owen Brewster in [[Martin Scorsese]]'s Academy-Award winning film ''[[The Aviator]]'' in which he co-starred with rising young actor [[Leonardo DiCaprio]].
Throughout his career, Alda has received 31 Emmy Award nominations and two [[Tony Award]] nominations, and has won seven [[People's Choice Award]]s, six [[Golden Globe]] awards, and three [[Directors Guild of America]] awards. However, it was not until 2004, after a long distinguished acting career, that Alda received his first Academy Award nomination for his role in ''[[The Aviator]]
Alda also wrote several of the stories and poems that appeared in [[Marlo Thomas]]'s ''[[Free to Be... You and Me]]'' television show.
In the spring of 2005, Alda starred as Shelly Levene in the [[Tony Award]]-winning [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] revival of [[David Mamet]]'s ''[[Glengarry Glen Ross]],'' for which he received a [[Tony Award]] nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play.
It has become quite common for Alda in his later roles to have some reference to his early work in ''M*A*S*H''. In a line on ''ER'', his character mentions that he uses a surgical technique that is "an old army trick." Alda's ''West Wing'' character has also made at least one reference to [[Korea]] when he said, "I could take these people to the [[Korean Demilitarized Zone|DMZ]] and it still wouldn't take their minds off [[ethanol]] and [[abortion]].
==Charitable Work, Other Interests==
Alda has done extensive charity work. He helped narrate a 2005
[[St. Jude's Children's Hospital]] produced one-hour special TV show ''Fighting for Life''.<ref>{{Citation | last=Saint Jude Children's Hospital | first=Web Editor | title=Saint Jude TV - Fighting For Life | publisher=Saint Jude Web Site | year=2005 | date=December 1, 2005 | url=http://www.stjude.tv/ | accessdate=April 11, 2007}}</ref> He and his wife, Arlene are also close friends of [[Marlo Thomas]], who is very active in fund raising for the hospital her father founded. The special featured [[Ben Bowen]] as one of six patients being treated for childhood [[cancer]] at Saint Jude.
In 2005, Alda published his first round of memoirs, ''Never Have Your Dog Stuffed: and Other Things I've Learned''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Alda |first=Alan |year=2006 |title=Never Have Your Dog Stuffed: and Other Things I've Learned |location=New York |publisher=Random House |isbn=1-4000-6409-0 }}</ref> Among other stories, he recalls his [[intestine]]s becoming strangulated while on location in [[Chile]] for his PBS show ''[[Scientific American Frontiers]]'', during which he mildly surprised a young doctor with his understanding of medical procedures, which he learned from ''M*A*S*H''. He also talks about his mother's battle with [[schizophrenia]]. The title comes from an incident in his childhood, when Alda was distraught about his dog dying and his well-meaning father had the animal stuffed. Alda was horrified by the results, and took from this that sometimes we have to accept things as they are, rather than desperately and fruitlessly trying to change them.
In 2006, Alda contributed his voice to a part in the audio book of [[Max Brooks]]' ''[[World War Z]]''. In this book, he voiced Arthur Sinclair Jr., the director of the United States Government's fictional "Department of Strategic Resources (DeStRes)".
His second memoir, ''Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself'', weaves together advice from public speeches he has given with personal recollections about his life and beliefs.
==Personal Beliefs==
In the above-mentioned memoir, ''Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself'', Alda candidly describes how briefly, at one time in his life he realized that he had practically began thinking like an [[agnostic]] or [[atheist]], although he had been raised as a [[Catholic]]:
{{blockquote|For a while in my teens, I was sure I had it. It was about getting to [[heaven]]. If heaven existed and lasted forever, then a mere lifetime spent scrupulously following orders was a small investment for an infinite payoff. One day, though, I realized I was no longer a believer, and realizing that, I couldn’t go back. Not that I lost the urge to pray. Occasionally, even after I stopped believing, I might send off a quick memo to the Master of the Universe, usually on a matter needing urgent attention, like Oh, God, don’t let us crash. These were automatic expulsions of words, brief SOS messages from the base of my brain. They were similar to the short prayers that were admired by the church in my Catholic boyhood, which they called “ejaculations.” I always liked the idea that you could shorten your time in purgatory with each ejaculation; what boy wouldn’t find that a comforting idea? But my effort to keep the plane in the air by talking to God didn’t mean I suddenly was overcome with belief, only that I was scared. Whether I’d wake up in heaven someday or not, whatever meaning I found would have to occur first on this end of eternity.}}
For the 2008 question of the [[Edge Foundation]], he clarified these remarks to make it clear he considers himself "simply not a believer."<ref>{{Citation | title=THE WORLD QUESTION CENTER 2008 - page 8 | publisher=Edge Foundation Web Site | year=2008 | url=http://www.edge.org/q2008/q08_8.html#alda | accessdate=January 02, 2008}}</ref>
== Acting Roles ==
{{col-begin}}
{{col-break}}
===Filmography===
*''Gone Are the Days!'' (1963)
*''[[Paper Lion]]'' (1968)
*''The Extraordinary Seaman'' (1969)
*''[[Jenny (film)|Jenny]]'' (1970)
*''[[The Moonshine War]]'' (1970)
*''[[The Mephisto Waltz]]'' (1971)
*''To Kill a Clown'' (1972)
*"[[Kill Me If You Can]]" (1977)
*''[[Same Time, Next Year]]'' (1978)
*''[[California Suite (film)|California Suite]]'' (1978)
*''[[The Seduction of Joe Tynan]]'' (1979)
*''[[The Four Seasons (film)|The Four Seasons]]'' (1981)
*''[[Sweet Liberty]]'' (1986)
*''[[A New Life (1988 film)|A New Life]]'' (1988)
*''[[Crimes and Misdemeanors]]'' (1989)
*''[[Betsy's Wedding (film)|Betsy's Wedding]]'' (1990)
*''Whispers in the Dark'' (1992)
*''[[Manhattan Murder Mystery]]'' (1993)
*''[[Canadian Bacon (film)|Canadian Bacon]]'' (1995)
*''[[Flirting with Disaster]]'' (1996)
*''[[Everyone Says I Love You]]'' (1996)
*''[[Murder at 1600]]'' (1997)
*''Mad City'' (1997)
*''[[The Object of My Affection]]'' (1998)
*''Keepers of the Frame'' (1999)
*''[[What Women Want]]'' (2000)
*''[[The Aviator]]'' (2004)
*''[[Resurrecting the Champ]]'' (2007)
*''[[Diminished Capacity]]'' (2008)
*''[[Nothing But the Truth (2008 film)|Nothing But the Truth]]'' (2008)
{{col-break}}
===Television ===
*''[[The Phil Silvers Show]]'' (1958)
*''[[That Was The Week That Was]]'' (1964-1965)
*''Where's Everett'' (1966) (pilot)
*''The Glass House'' (1972)
*''[[M*A*S*H (TV series)|M*A*S*H]]'' (1972-1983)
*''Playmates'' (1972)
*''Isn't It Shocking?'' (1973)
*''[[Free to Be… You and Me]]'' (1974)
*''[[6 Rms Riv Vu]]'' (1974)
*''Kill Me If You Can'' (1977)
*''[[And the Band Played On (film)|And the Band Played On]]'' (1993)
*''[[Scientific American Frontiers]]'' (1993-2005)
*''White Mile'' (1994)
*''[[Jake's Women]]'' (1996)
*''ER'' (1999)
*''Club Land'' (2001)
*''The Killing Yard'' (2001)
*''[[The West Wing (TV series)|The West Wing]]'' (2004-2006)
{{col-end}}
==Personal Memoirs==
*''Never Have Your Dog Stuffed'' (ISBN 0-0917-9652-0)
*''Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself'' (ISBN 1400066174)
===Audio books===
*''[[World War Z]]'' (2006) (Voice of "Department of Strategic Resources" Director Arthur Sinclair Jr.)
==Awards and Nominations==
[[Image:Alda.JPG|right|thumb|250px|The handprints of Alan Alda in front of [[The Great Movie Ride]] at [[Walt Disney World]]'s [[Disney's Hollywood Studios]] theme park.]]
===Awards===
* Won Emmy for ''Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series'' in 2006, for his portrayal of Senator & Presidential candidate Arnold Vinick in [[The West Wing (TV series)|The West Wing]]
===Nominations===
*The [[audiobook]] version of ''Things I Overheard While Talking To Myself'' was nominated for a 2008 [[Grammy Award]] in the category of [[50th Grammy Awards#Best Spoken Word Album|Best Spoken Word Album]].
*Alda received his first nomination for an Academy Award for his supporting role as Senator Ralph Owen Brewster in [[Martin Scorsese]]'s film [[The Aviator]].
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==Further reading==
*{{cite news| last =Freeman | first =J| coauthors =| title =Exclusive interview with M*A*S*H star and author Alan Alda| work =Books| pages =| language =| publisher =The Times| date =[[2007-09-29]]| url= http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article2549845.ece| accessdate =2007-10-03}}
==External links==
*{{imdb name|0000257}}
*{{tvtome person|6158}}
*[http://www.pbs.org/saf/alan_bio2.htm Bio on ''Scientific American Frontiers'']
*[http://helmi.home.pages.at/mash/english/actors/alda.html Comprehensive bio]
*[http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5465471857405064588 InnerVIEWS with Ernie Manouse: Alan Alda] (TV Interview)
*[http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=%22Archive+of+American+Television+Interview+with+Alan+Alda%22&page=1&lv=1 Archive of American Television interview]
*[http://www.military.com/Careers/Content1?file=trans_alan_alda.htm&area=Content Military Service]
*[http://www.geocities.com/TelevisionCity/5576/Alda.htm GeoCities fan site page]
*[http://www.npr.org/templates/rundowns/rundown.php?prgId=13&prgDate=21-Sep-05 Interview with Alda] on [[National Public Radio|NPR's]] ''[[Fresh Air]]'' ([[September 21]] [[2005]])
*[http://www.looktothestars.org/celebrity/5-alan-alda Alan Alda's Charity Work]
*[http://www.americantheatrewing.org/seminars/detail/performance_04_92 Performance] ''Working in the Theatre'' seminar video at [[American Theatre Wing|American Theatre Wing.org]], April 1992
*[http://www.enotalone.com/article2/19026.html Never Have Your Dog Stuffed: And Other Things I've Learned (Chapter 1)]
*[http://www.graduationwisdom.com/speeches/0020-alda1.htm Inspirational Quotes from Alan Alda's Commencement Speech at Connecticut College 1980]
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{{s-awards}}
|-
! colspan="3" style="background: #DAA520;" | [[Primetime Emmy Awards]]
|-
{{succession box | before=[[William Shatner]]<br />for ''[[Boston Legal]]''| title=[[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor - Drama Series|Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series]]<br />for ''[[The West Wing (TV series)|The West Wing]]'' | years=[[2006]]| after=[[Terry O'Quinn]]<br />for ''[[Lost (TV series)|Lost]]''}}
{{end box}}
{{start box}}
{{succession box|title=[[Oscars]] [[List of Academy Awards ceremonies|host]]|before=[[Jack Lemmon]]<br />[[57th Academy Awards]]|after=[[Chevy Chase]], [[Goldie Hawn]], [[Paul Hogan]]<br />[[59th Academy Awards]]|years=[[58th Academy Awards]]<br />with [[Jane Fonda]] and [[Robin Williams]]}}
{{end}}
{{Persondata
|NAME=Alda, Alan
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=D'Abruzzo, Alfonso Joseph
|SHORT DESCRIPTION=Actor
|DATE OF BIRTH={{Birth date and age|1936|1|28|mf=y}}
|PLACE OF BIRTH=[[New York City]], [[United States|U.S.]]
|DATE OF DEATH=
|PLACE OF DEATH=
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alda, Alan}}
[[Category:1936 births]]
[[Category:American feminists]]
[[Category:American film actors]]
[[Category:American memoirists]]
[[Category:American television actors]]
[[Category:Fordham University alumni]]
[[Category:Hollywood Walk of Fame]]
[[Category:Italian-American writers]]
[[Category:Italian-Americans]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:New York actors]]
[[Category:People from Bergen County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:People from the Bronx]]
[[Category:People from White Plains, New York]]
[[Category:United States Army officers]]
[[Category:Liberals]]
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