George Cooper Grizzard Jr. (April 1, 1928 – October 2, 2007) was an American stage, television, and film actor. He was the recipient of a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

, a

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

and a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

, among other accolades.

Life and career

Jane Fonda George Grizzard A String of Beads 1961

Grizzard was born in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, the son of Mary Winifred (née Albritton) and George Cooper Grizzard, an accountant. Grizzard was raised in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morg ...

, and attended the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United State ...

, returning to Washington after graduation to work in advertising. He began his acting career at Washington's Arena Stage. Grizzard memorably appeared as an unscrupulous United States Senator in the film '' Advise and Consent'' in 1962. His other theatrical films included the drama '' From the Terrace'' with

Paul Newman Paul Leonard Newman (January 26, 1925 – September 26, 2008) was an American actor, film director, race car driver, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. He was the recipient of numerous awards, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, three ...

(1960), the Western story '' Comes a Horseman'' with

Jane Fonda Jane Seymour Fonda (born December 21, 1937) is an American actress, activist, and former fashion model. Recognized as a film icon, Fonda is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Jane Fonda, various accolades including two ...

(1978), and a Neil Simon comedy, '' Seems Like Old Times'' (1980). Grizzard made his Broadway debut in '' The Desperate Hours'' in 1955. He was a frequent interpreter of the plays of

Edward Albee Edward Franklin Albee III ( ; March 12, 1928 – September 16, 2016) was an American playwright known for works such as '' The Zoo Story'' (1958), '' The Sandbox'' (1959), '' Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' (1962), '' A Delicate Balance'' (196 ...

, having appeared in the original 1962 production of '' Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' as Nick, which won him a

Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album The Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album has been awarded since 1959. The award has had several minor name changes: * In 1959 the award was known as Best Performance, Documentary or Spoken Word * From 1960 to 1961 it was awarded as Best Perform ...

along with his castmates. He also appeared in the 1996 revival of '' A Delicate Balance'' and the 2005 revival of '' Seascape''. He also starred in '' You Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running''. He won the 1996 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for '' A Delicate Balance''. Additional Broadway credits include '' The Creation of the World and Other Business'', '' The Glass Menagerie'', '' The Country Girl'', ''

The Royal Family A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term papa ...

'', and '' California Suite''. Grizzard guest-starred several times during the 1990s on the NBC television drama ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering ...

'' as defense attorney Arthur Gold. He also portrayed President

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...

in the Emmy Award-winning WNET-produced PBS

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format ...

'' The Adams Chronicles''. In 1980, he won an Emmy for his work in ''

The Oldest Living Graduate ''The Oldest Living Graduate'' is the third and final play in the series ''A Texas Trilogy'' by Preston Jones. History The original name of ''A Texas Trilogy'' was ''The Bradleyville Trilogy''. The trilogy was first performed in its entirety at ...

''. He starred as reporter Richard Larsen in '' The Deliberate Stranger'', a television movie about serial killer Ted Bundy. He was inducted into the

American Theater Hall of Fame The American Theater Hall of Fame in New York City was founded in 1972. Earl Blackwell was the first head of the organization's Executive Committee. In an announcement in 1972, he said that the new ''Theater Hall of Fame'' would be located in the ...

in 2002.Ridge, Richard
''The Theatre Hall of Fame Awards''
''Broadway Beat''.

Death

Grizzard died in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

of complications from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, mali ...

. According to his ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' obituary, his only survivor was his long-time companion William Tynan. Grizzard had kept his

homosexuality Homosexuality is Romance (love), romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romant ...

private during his life.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * * *
George Grizzard papers, circa 1900-2007
held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts {{DEFAULTSORT:Grizzard, George 1928 births 2007 deaths Male actors from North Carolina American male film actors American male stage actors American male television actors Audiobook narrators Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie Primetime Emmy Award winners American gay actors Grammy Award winners LGBT people from North Carolina Tony Award winners Deaths from lung cancer in New York (state) 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors People from Manhattan People from Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina 20th-century LGBT people