Alan Arkin dead at age 89

Oscar-winning actor Alan Arkin has passed away at the age of 89.

His sons Adam, Matthew and Anthony confirmed their father’s death in a statement People.

“Our father was a uniquely talented force of nature, both as an artist and as a human being. A loving husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather, he was adored and will be sorely missed,” they said.

According to Varietyhe died at his home in Carlsbad, California.

During his prolific career, Arkin won an Oscar for his role in the 2006 dark comedy Little Miss Sunshine and a Tony in 1963 for Enter Laughing.

Arkin was born in Brooklyn in 1934, but moved to Los Angeles 11 years later when his father David, a painter, began working in Los Angeles as a set designer.

However, David Arkin’s Hollywood career was scuppered first by a months-long strike and then by the Red Scare, in which his left-wing politics accused him of communism and rendered him useless.

His father’s problems did not dampen little Alan’s enthusiasm for showbiz, which initially propelled him towards a music career.

Alan was part of a folk group called the Tarriers, who succeeded in producing a hit single in 1957 in the form of The Banana Boat Song.

He eventually decided to continue as an actor as a solo actor and in the early 1960s he got a job with the now legendary comedy group Second City.

Alan was initially apprehensive about joining Second City, thinking, “I’m going to bury myself in a hole in the wall in Chicago?” It would mean the end of my career.’

But when he joined Second City, he was “happier than I had ever been.” The moment I got there, I realized I had found a home,” he told NPR.

In 1963, he made his Broadway debut in Enter Laughing, a play based on a semi-autobiographical novel by Carl Reiner.

Alan’s first time on Broadway was a triumph, earning him both critical acclaim and a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play.

However, his early-career stage work was “torture,” he said, as actors “are not encouraged to experiment or play much.”

He reflected, “The play is being played when opening night gets there and … you should be doing just that for the next year.” And I’m just not able to find any kind of excitement or creativity in that kind of experience.’

Alan made it to Hollywood and in 1967 had scored his first Oscar nomination for the Cold War satire The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming.

A year later, he appeared in the film adaptation of Carson McCullers’ classic Great Depression novel The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter, garnering a second Oscar nomination.

He then directed a short film called People Soup in 1969 under the direction of his sons Adam and Matthew Arkin, which resulted in another nomination at the Academy Awards.