bansi4 Posted July 21, 2006 Share Posted July 21, 2006 'Heaven Can Wait' Star Jack Warden, 85, Dies Veteran Actor Won an Emmy Award for 'Brian's Song' Reuters LOS ANGELES (July 21) - Oscar-nominated character actor Jack Warden, best known for starring alongside Warren Beatty in "Shampoo" and "Heaven Can Wait," has died at 85, his longtime business manager said. Warden, who appeared in dozens of films and won an Emmy award as football coach George Halas in the 1971 TV movie "Brian's Song," died on Wednesday in New York, business manager Sidney Pazoff said. His characters were often tough and gruff but also had a soft heart. He won Oscar nominations for best supporting actor in the Beatty vehicles "Shampoo" in 1975, playing the businessman Lester, and "Heaven Can Wait" in 1978, as Beatty's trainer. Warden appeared again with Beatty in "Bulworth" in 1998. Among his other roles were playing the president of the United States opposite an idiot savant played by Peter Sellers in 1979's "Being There" and roles in the Woody Allen movies "Mighty Aphrodite" in 1995 and "Bullets Over Broadway" in 1994. Warden also played Paul Newman 's law partner in "The Verdict" in 1982, a Washington Post news editor in "All the President's Men" in 1976 and the barracks-mate of Montgomery Clift and Frank Sinatra in the Oscar-winning "From Here to Eternity" in 1953. A former professional boxer and U.S. Army paratrooper who missed the Normandy invasion due to a broken leg from a training exercise, Warden turned to acting after World War Two with the help of the G.I. Bill's education benefits. Born John Lebzelter in Newark, New Jersey, Warden boxed under the name Johnny Costello and took his father's middle name as his stage name, joining the Dallas Alley Theater in 1947. His breakthrough film role came in "Twelve Angry Men" in 1957, when he played a disinterested juror who wanted a quick conviction. That led to a prolific television career in the 1960s. Pazoff said the veteran character actor had retired in New York several years ago and had been suffering from medical problems in recent years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyDan Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 Sad news, Mongo. My favorite Warden movie is "The Verdict." I always recall his line describing the character played by James Mason. After Newman's character says of Mason's, "He's a good man," Warden replies, "Good man? (chuckles) He's the Prince of Freaking Darkness." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tejas55 Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 He was great in Crazy Like A Fox and was in one of my favorite Twilight Zone episodes where he's a convict serving his sentence all alone on an asteroid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken123 Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 I THINK the Jack Warden line from "The Verdict" is;" He's the F***ing Prince of Darkness"! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rickspade Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 > I THINK the Jack Warden line from "The Verdict" is;" > He's the F***ing Prince of Darkness"! Right you are, Ken123. This is a sad loss; Warden was a terrific character actor, capable of giving fine comedic and dramatic performances. In addition to his role in The Verdict, noted by others, my own two other personal favorites of his are, as the suicidal judge who tries to advise Al Pacino in the great black comedy, And Justice For All (1979), and as Warren Beatty's friend, and the Los Angeles football team's trainer, in Heaven Can Wait (1978). Another great character actor, James Gleason, played the latter role in the original film version, Here Comes Mr. Jordan, and Warden did the part great justice by his wonderful performance in the remake. Rest in peace, Mr. Warden. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cagney69 Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 I was just watching "Run Silent Run Deep" that stars Clark Gable and Burt Lancaster. Jack Warden had a small role in the movie. He is in my favorite movie "Twelve Angry Men". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lzcutter Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 Hopefully, Jack Warden will be met by Mr Jordan and not Buck Henry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken123 Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 One man's opinion:Jack Warden's two best performances were in "12 Angry Men",and "The Verdict",both directed by Sidney Lumet! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pandorainmay Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 He was one of the great character men. I don't think that I ever saw him give a poor performance, even when he was in a poorly conceived movie or tv show. I like many of the movies already cited by several posters, but when I heard of his death, I soon thought of the tv sitcom of The Bad News Bears in which he played the Morris Buttermaker part that Walter Matthau had in the movie. For me, Warden was better in the part--giving it a different spin than Matthau--especially during the periodic soliliquies he indulged in with his most talented co-star here, a dog. Thanks, Jack. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOOMANYNOTES Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 ' Message was edited by: TOOMANYNOTES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inglis Posted July 23, 2006 Share Posted July 23, 2006 Let's not forget And Justice For All with Al Pacino he was great in that one as well ..I really enjoyed his work in any movie or television production . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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