Anyone who has watched the hit TV series M*A*S*H from the 1970s would never forget its witty protagonist Alan Alda. Alda won international fame for his portrayal of Hawkeye Pierce, the army doctor full of passion, depth and sincerity. The hit series was aired by CBS for 11 years and Alda won numerous awards.
Alda was born Alphonso D’Abruzzo on January 28, 1936, in New York. He is the son of the talented actor Robert Alda who won acclaim on Broadway. Alda developed a passion for acting while studying in Europe at Fordham University. He travelled with his father and performed in Rome and Amsterdam.
Alda too worked on Broadway when he played physicist Richard Feynman in QED, starred in the hit ART, the musical The Apple Tree, and Fair Game for Lovers. The latter earned him a Theatre World Award.
Alda’s collection of awards is vast. The TV Academy honoured Alda by inducting him in the TV Hall of Fame, for his acting, writing and directing skills – a rare feat in the industry. He has 32 Emmy nominations to his credit, including one for his special role in ER. He won his sixth Emmy Award in 2006 for his performance in The West Wing.
He has hosted and interviewed brilliant minds from the field of science in the award-winning series Scientific American Frontiers, which aired for 11 years on PBC. Alda has won seven People’s Choice Awards, six Golden Globes and three Director’s Guild Awards for his contribution to the TV industry.
Alan Alda has earned widespread acclaim for his work, not only as an actor, but as a writer and director too. His films include Martin Scorsese’s The Aviator, which won him his first Academy Award nomination; and Woody Allen’s Crimes and Misdemeanors, which won a D.W. Griffith Award, a NY Film Critics Award and also a nomination for a British Academy Award. He has written and directed the hit series The Four Seasons, Betsy’s Wedding and A New Life.
Besides excelling in TV and films, he has published his memoir Never Have Your Dog Stuffed, and Other Things I’ve Learned, which went on to become a New York Times’ bestseller. He has been a board member of the Museum of Television & Radio for 20 years and a Trustee of the Rockefeller Foundation for 10 years.
Arlene, his wife, is an award-winning professional photographer and author of 14 children’s books. Their family includes three daughters and seven grandchildren. Alda and Arlene are involved in a lot of charity work to raise funds for the hospital founded by Arlene’s father.
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