Born Leonard Rosenberg, Randall moved to New York at age 19 and studied theater with Sanford Meisner and at the Neighborhood Playhouse. His stage debut was in The Circle of Chalk (1941). From 1942-46 he served with the U.S. Army, following which he acted on radio and TV. He began appearing onscreen in 1957 and was a fairly busy film actor through the mid '60s. He is best known for his work on TV, particularly for his portrayal of fastidious Felix Unger on the sitcom "The Odd Couple." He also starred or costarred in the series "One Man's Family," "Mr. Peepers," "The Tony Randall Show," and "Love, Sidney." He frequently appears on TV talk shows, where he is witty, erudite, and urbane. In 1991 he created the National Actors Theater, a repertory company; its purpose is to bring star-filled classic plays to broad-based audiences at low prices.
Tony Randall
Active - 1955 - 2018 |
Born - Feb 26, 1920 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States |
Died - May 17, 2004 |
Genres - Comedy, Children's/Family, Romance
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- Started his career on radio and was a regular on I Love a Mystery in the early 1940s.
- Made his Broadway debut (as Anthony Randall) in a 1947 production of Antony and Cleopatra, starring Katharine Cornell and featuring newcomers Maureen Stapleton, Eli Wallach and Charlton Heston.
- Was an Emmy nominee (along with costar Jack Klugman) for each of the five years of The Odd Couple; he won once, Klugman twice.
- Was a guest on The Tonight Show more than 100 times with Johnny Carson.
- Worked for years to establish a repertory theater on Broadway and in 1991 founded the National Actors Theatre.
- Was a guest on the debut episode of Late Night with Conan O'Brien, which aired Sept. 13, 1993.
- Received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from Pace University in 2003.