Walter Matthau
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Walter Matthau (born Walter John Matthow; October 1, 1920 – July 1, 2000) was an American actor, comedian and film director. He is best known for his film roles in A Face in the Crowd (1957), King Creole (1958) and as a coach of a hapless little league team in the baseball comedy The Bad News Bears (1976). He also starred in 10 films alongside Jack Lemmon, including The Odd Couple (1968), The Front Page (1974) and Grumpy Old Men (1993). Matthau won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the Billy Wilder film The Fortune Cookie (1966). Matthau is also known for his performances in Stanley Donen's romance Charade (1963), Gene Kelly's musical Hello, Dolly! (1969), Elaine May's screwball comedy A New Leaf (1971) and Herbert Ross' ensemble comedy California Suite (1978). He also starred in Plaza Suite, Kotch (both 1971), Charley Varrick (1973), The Sunshine Boys (1975), and Hopscotch (1980). On Broadway, Matthau originated the role of Oscar Madison in The Odd Couple by playwright Neil Simon, for which he received a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play in 1965, his second after A Shot in the Dark in 1962. Matthau also received two British Academy Film Awards and a Golden Globe Award. In 1963, he received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for his performance in The DuPont Show of the Week. In 1982, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Known for
Credits
Dennis the Menace (1993)
as Mr. Wilson
JFK (1991)
as Senator Long
Charade (1963)
as Hamilton Bartholemew
Hello, Dolly! (1969)
as Horace Vandergelder
Grumpy Old Men (1993)
as Max Goldman
Hanging Up (2000)
as Lou Mozell
Candy (1968)
as Gen. R.A. Smight
King Creole (1958)
as Maxie Fields
Grumpier Old Men (1995)
as Max Goldman
The Bad News Bears (1976)
as Morris Buttermaker
The Odd Couple (1968)
as Oscar Madison
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)
as Lieutenant Garber
The Odd Couple II (1998)
as Oscar Madison
A Face in the Crowd (1957)
as Mel Miller
The Front Page (1974)
as Walter Burns
California Suite (1978)
as Marvin Michaels
Earthquake (1974)
as Drunk
Lonely are the Brave (1962)
as Sheriff Morey Johnson
Cactus Flower (1969)
as Dr. Julian Winston
Pirates (1986)
as Captain Thomas Bartholomew Red
Charley Varrick (1973)
as Charley Varrick
Fail Safe (1964)
as Prof. Groeteschele
The Fortune Cookie (1966)
as Willie Gingrich
A Guide for the Married Man (1967)
as Paul Manning
Out to Sea (1997)
as Charlie
The Grass Harp (1996)
as Judge Charlie Cool
The Indian Fighter (1955)
as Wes Todd
The Sunshine Boys (1975)
as Willy Clark
A New Leaf (1971)
as Henry Graham
I.Q. (1994)
as Albert Einstein
Laurel and Hardy: A Tribute to the Boys (1992)
as Self
Buddy Buddy (1981)
as Trabucco
Strangers When We Meet (1960)
as Felix Anders
The Couch Trip (1988)
as Donald Becker
The Little Devil (1988)
as Padre Maurizio
Ride a Crooked Trail (1958)
as Judge Kyle
Hopscotch (1980)
as Miles Kendig
First Monday in October (1981)
as Dan Snow
I Ought to Be in Pictures (1982)
as Herbert Tucker
The Kentuckian (1955)
as Stan Bodine
The Laughing Policeman (1973)
as Sgt. Jake Martin SFPD
The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies (1995)
as Self
I'm Not Rappaport (1996)
as Nat Moyer
The Lion Roars Again (1975)
as Self
Broadway's Dreamers: The Legacy of the Group Theatre (1989)
as Self (voice)
Who's Got the Action? (1962)
as Tony Gagouts
Bigger Than Life (1956)
as Wally Gibbs
The Survivors (1983)
as Sonny Paluso
Little Miss Marker (1980)
as Sorrowful Jones
Funny Business (1978)
as Self - Host
I Love Liberty (1982)
as Self
Mirage (1965)
as Ted Caselle
The Stingiest Man in Town (1978)
as Ebenezer Scrooge (voice)
Beyond JFK: The Question of Conspiracy (1993)
as Self
Mrs. Lambert Remembers Love (1991)
as Clifford Pepperman
Slaughter on 10th Avenue (1957)
as Al Dahlke
James Stewart: A Wonderful Life (1987)
as Self
Movers & Shakers (1985)
as Joe Mulholland
Against Her Will: An Incident in Baltimore (1992)
as Harmon Cobb
House Calls (1978)
as Dr. Charley Nichols
Onionhead (1958)
as 'Red' Wildoe
Voice in the Mirror (1958)
as Dr. Karnes
Walter Matthau: Diamond in the Rough (1997)
as Self
Ensign Pulver (1964)
as Doc
Jack Lemmon: America's Everyman (1996)
as Self
Billy Wilder: The Human Comedy (1998)
as Narrator
Casey's Shadow (1978)
as Lloyd Bourdelle
Kraft Salutes the George Burns 90th Birthday Special (1986)
as Self
'Fail-Safe' and the Cold War (2020)
as Self (archive footage)
Goodbye Charlie (1964)
as Leo Sartori
Pete 'n' Tillie (1972)
as Pete Seltzer
Two by Saroyan: 'Once Around the Block' and 'My Heart's in the Highlands' (1960)
as Ben Alexander / Philip Judah
The Incident (1990)
as Harmon Cobb
Plaza Suite (1971)
as Sam Nash / Jesse Kiplinger / Roy Hubley
Incident in a Small Town (1994)
as Harmon Cobb
Portrait of a '60% Perfect Man': Billy Wilder (1982)
as Self
Hollywood: The Gift of Laughter (1982)
as Self
Carol Channing and 101 Men (1968)
as Self
Big Deal in Laredo (1962)
as Meredith
Jack Benny's Bag (1968)
as Self
The Stars Salute the U.S. Olympic Team (1984)
as Self - Performer
Island of Love (1963)
as Tony Dallas
Actor (1978)
as Boris Thomashevsky
The Marriage Fool (1998)
as Frank Walsh
The Secret Life of an American Wife (1968)
as The Movie Star
Kotch (1971)
as Joseph P. Kotcher
A Beverly Hills Christmas (1987)
as Self
Last of the Independents: Don Siegel and the Making of 'Charley Varrick' (2015)
as Self (archive footage)
Awake and Sing! (1972)
as Moe Axelrod
Gangster Story (1959)
as Jack Martin
The Gentleman Tramp (1976)
as Self / Narrator
The Making of Pelham One Two Three (—)
Actor
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1992)
as Narrator (voice)
Atomic Attack (1954)
as Dr. Spinelli