Charles Grodin (born April 21, 1935) is an American actor and former cable talk show host.
Grodin was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Orthodox Jewish American parents Theodore Grodin, who sold wholesale supplies, and Lena, who worked as an assistant in the family's store; his maternal grandfather was a Russian Jewish immigrant who came from a long line of Rabbis and moved to Pittsburgh at the turn of the 20th century. He has an older brother, Jack.
Grodin attended the University of Miami, but did not graduate. His first acting role was in a 1962 Broadway production of Tchin-Tchin. He made his film debut in the 1964 comedy, Sex and the College Girl, which was filmed in Puerto Rico and not released for several years. In 1965, he began working as an assistant to director Gene Saks.
Grodin, a student of Lee Strasberg and Uta Hagen, began appearing on several television series during the 1960s, and played an obstetrician in the 1968 horror film, Rosemary's Baby. During the late 1960s, he also co-wrote and directed Hooray! It's a Glorious Day...and All That, a Broadway play, and directed Lovers and Other Strangers and Thieves, also on Broadway.
After having a supporting role in 1970's comedy, Catch-22, Grodin was cast in the lead role of the film The Heartbreak Kid, which was released in 1972 and gained Grodin recognition as a comedy actor. He subsequently appeared in several notable 1970s films, including the 1976 version of King Kong and the hit 1978 comedy, Heaven Can Wait. During this period, he frequently appeared on Broadway, and was also involved in producing several plays, including Thieves, which he also directed.
In 1977, Grodin hosted an episode of the NBC sketch show, Saturday Night Live. He and the writers decided beforehand to play the show as if he had missed dress rehearsals and was clumsily ad-libbing his way through his sketches. Much like Andy Kaufman before him, his comic scenario was taken a bit too literally by the audience, and he was never asked to host again. His 1980s roles included Neil Simon's Seems Like Old Times, opposite Chevy Chase and Goldie Hawn, and 1988's well-reviewed comedy, Midnight Run, a buddy movie co-starring Robert De Niro.
Grodin's career took a turn in 1992, when he played the nervous family man in the kids' comedy Beethoven, opposite Bonnie Hunt. The film was a surprise box-office hit, and he reprised the role in the 1993 sequel. His last film role to date was in 1994's It Runs in the Family (a.k.a. My Summer Story), which received only a limited release and was a sequel to the film A Christmas Story. After a 12-year long hiatus from film, Grodin will return to acting in the Zach Braff comedy The Ex.
Grodin was a commentator for 60 Minutes II starting in 2000, and hosted his own issues-oriented talk show, The Charles Grodin Show, on CNBC from 1995 to 1998. In 2004, Grodin wrote The Right Kind of People, an off-Broadway play about Co-op boards in certain buildings in Manhattan. Grodin's commentaries continue to be heard on New York City radio station WCBS and other affiliates of the CBS Radio Network, as well as on the CBS Radio Network's Weekend Roundup He is also a best-selling author; his works include It Would Be So Nice If You Weren't Here, Spilled Milk and Other Clichés and How I Get Through Life.
Grodin has a daughter, Marion, from his first marriage. He is currently married and has a son from the marriage, Nicky (born 1988).
Grodin usually adopts a faux antagonistic attitude during his semi-regular appearances on The Late Show with David Letterman. Seemingly miffed or angry, his act is strictly tongue-in-cheek as he lobs verbal attacks at the host. Example clips from Late Show
In 2006, Grodin received the William Kunstler Award for Racial Justice.
