David George Arkin (December 24, 1941 – January 14, 1991) was an American actor, known for his numerous supporting appearances in the films of

Robert Altman Robert Bernard Altman ( ; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He was a five-time nominee of the Academy Award for Best Director and is considered an enduring figure from the New ...

. These roles were part of Altman's frequent ensemble and included Staff Sergeant Vollmer in ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker. T ...

'' (where he also wrote and voiced the PA announcements), Harry in '' The Long Goodbye'' (1973), Norman in ''

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and th ...

'' (1975), and The Mailman/The Police Officer in ''

Popeye Popeye the Sailor Man is a fictional cartoon character created by Elzie Crisler Segar.Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. He graduated from University High School and later

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

with a major in Theater Arts.

Career

Arkin had an "introducing" credit in ''

I Love You, Alice B. Toklas ''I Love You, Alice B. Toklas'' is a 1968 American romantic comedy film directed by Hy Averback and starring Peter Sellers. The film is set in the counterculture of the 1960s. The cast includes Joyce Van Patten, David Arkin, Jo Van Fleet, Leig ...

'' (1968) and brief appearances in '' Valley of the Dolls'' (1967), ''

All the President's Men ''All the President's Men'' is a 1974 non-fiction book by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, two of the journalists who investigated the June 1972 break-in at the Watergate Office Building and the resultant political scandal for ''The Washingto ...

'' (1976), and ''

Cannonball A round shot (also called solid shot or simply ball) is a solid spherical projectile without explosive charge, launched from a gun. Its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the barrel from which it is shot. A round shot fired from a lar ...

'' (1976). His television credits include ''

Hawaii Five-O Hawaii Five-O or Hawaii Five-0 may refer to: * ''Hawaii Five-0'' (2010 TV series), an American action police procedural television series * ''Hawaii Five-O'' (1968 TV series), an American police procedural drama series produced by CBS Productio ...

'', ''Whitney and the Robot'', and a season-long appearance as the character Gabriel Kaye in the CBS television series ''

Storefront Lawyers ''Storefront Lawyers'' (also known as ''Men at Law'') is an American legal drama that ran from September 1970 to January 1971 and February 1971 to March 1971 on CBS. The series starred Robert Foxworth, Sheila Larken, David Arkin, and A Martinez. ...

'', co-starring

Robert Foxworth Robert Heath Foxworth (born November 1, 1941) is an American film, stage, and television actor. Early life Foxworth was born in Houston, Texas, the son of Erna Beth (née Seamman), a writer, and John Howard Foxworth, a roofing contractor. He at ...

and

Sheila Larken Sheila Larken (born February 24, 1944) is an American television actress, best known for playing the role of Margaret Scully, the mother of Dana Scully, on ''The X-Files''. Early life and career Larken was born in Brooklyn, New York City and ha ...

. He also appeared on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' was an American late-night talk show hosted by Johnny Carson on NBC, the third iteration of the ''Tonight Show'' franchise. The show debuted on October 1, 1962, and aired its final episode on May 22, ...

'' and on the ''

Joey Bishop Joseph Abraham Gottlieb (February 3, 1918 – October 17, 2007), known professionally as Joey Bishop, was an American entertainer who appeared on television as early as 1948 and eventually starred in his own weekly comedy series playing a talk ...

'' and the ''

Steve Allen Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen (December 26, 1921 – October 30, 2000) was an American television personality, radio personality, musician, composer, actor, comedian, and writer. In 1954, he achieved national fame as the co-cre ...

'' late night shows with the Hollywood Sunset Strip improvisational comedy troupe The Session (which included

Richard Dreyfuss Richard Stephen Dreyfuss (; born Dreyfus; October 29, 1947) is an American actor. He is known for starring in popular films during the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, including '' American Graffiti'' (1973), ''Jaws'' (1975), '' Close Encounters of the ...

Rob Reiner Robert Norman Reiner (born March 6, 1947) is an American actor and filmmaker. As an actor, Reiner first came to national prominence with the role of Michael "Meathead" Stivic on the CBS sitcom '' All in the Family'' (1971–1979), a performa ...

Larry Bishop Larry Bishop (born November 30, 1948) is an American actor, screenwriter and film director. He is the son of Sylvia Ruzga and comedian Joey Bishop. He has been featured in many Hollywood movies including '' Hell Ride''. Early life Bishop atte ...

, Bobbie Shaw-Chance,

Marj Dusay Marjorie Ellen Mahoney Dusay (; née Mahoney; February 20, 1936 – January 28, 2020) was an American actress known for her roles on American soap operas. She was especially known for her role as Alexandra Spaulding on ''Guiding Light'', a role ...

, and Phil Mishkin); he later performed with

The Second City The Second City is an improvisational comedy enterprise and is the oldest ongoing improvisational theater troupe to be continually based in Chicago, with training programs and live theatres in Toronto and Los Angeles. The Second City Theatre o ...

touring troupe. Arkin wrote '' Human Cargo: Great Escapes'', which his wife Anne E. Curry later produced with their company Old Dime Box Productions for the Showtime television network as '' Escape: Human Cargo''; it starred

Treat Williams Richard Treat Williams (born December 1, 1951) is an American actor, writer and aviator who has appeared on film, stage and television in over 120 credits. He first became well known for his starring role in the 1979 musical film '' Hair'', and la ...

and was filmed in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. She also produced and directed ''One Man's Opinion'', a politically incorrect take on newly released films; it starred Arkin and Professor Tyrone Shaw, now on the faculty of journalism at Johnson State College in

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provin ...

Personal life and death

Arkin was married three times, the last time to actress Anne E. Curry at the time of his death in 1991. David Arkin was not related either to the actor

Alan Arkin Alan Wolf Arkin (born March 26, 1934) is an American actor, director and screenwriter known for his performances on stage and screen. Throughout his career spanning over six decades, he has received various accolades, including an Academy Award ...

or Alan's son

Adam Arkin Adam Arkin (born August 19, 1956) is an American actor and director. He is known for playing the role of Aaron Shutt on ''Chicago Hope''. He has been nominated for numerous awards, including a Tony (Best Actor, 1991, '' I Hate Hamlet'') as well ...

(also an actor). Alan's father was David I. Arkin. Arkin was known among his friends and colleagues for having introduced his friend

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July 30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, film producer, businessman, retired professional bodybuilder and politician who served as the 38th governor of California between 2003 and 2011. ''Time'' ...

(then Arnold Strong) to Altman, at the time ''The Long Goodbye'' was being cast. This began Schwarzenegger's career in film. Zuckoff, Mitchell. ''Robert Altman: An Oral Biography'', Random House, 2009, p.254. On January 14, 1991, he died by suicide in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

at the age of 49.

Filmography

Notes

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Arkin, David 1941 births 20th-century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Los Angeles People from Silver Lake, Los Angeles Suicides in California 1991 suicides