Art Carney
Encyclopedia
Arthur William Matthew “Art” Carney (November 4, 1918 – November 9, 2003) was an American
actor
in film
, stage
, television
and radio
. He is best known for playing Ed Norton, opposite Jackie Gleason
's Ralph Kramden in the situation comedy The Honeymooners
.
, the son of Helen (née
Farrell) and Edward Michael Carney, who was a newspaper man and publicist. His family was Irish American
and Catholic
. He attended A B Davis High School. Carney was drafted as an infantryman during World War II
. During the Battle of Normandy, he was wounded in the leg by shrapnel
and walked with a limp for the rest of his life.
orchestra, which was heard often on radio during the 1930s, notably on the hugely successful Pot o' Gold, the first big-money giveaway show in 1939–41. Carney's film career began with an uncredited role in Pot o' Gold (1941), the radio program's spin-off feature film, playing a member of Heidt's band. Carney, a gifted mimic, worked steadily in radio during the 1940s, playing character roles and impersonating celebrities. In 1941 he was the house comic on the big band remote
series, Matinee at Meadowbrook.
One of his radio roles during the 1940s was the fish Red Lantern on Land of the Lost
. In 1943 he played Billy Oldham on Joe and Ethel Turp, based on Damon Runyon
stories. He appeared on The Henry Morgan Show
in 1946–47. He impersonated FDR
on The March of Time
and Dwight D. Eisenhower
on Living 1948. In 1950–51 he played Montague's father on The Magnificent Montague. He was a supporting player on Casey, Crime Photographer and Gang Busters
.
from 1948 to 1950, Carney's character Charlie the doorman became known for his catchphrase, "Ya know what I mean?".
In 1950, Jackie Gleason
was starring in a New York–based comedy-variety series, Cavalcade of Stars, and played many different characters. Gleason's regular characters included Charlie Bratten, a lunchroom loudmouth who insisted on spoiling a neighboring patron's meal. Carney, established in New York as a reliable actor, played Bratten's mild-mannered victim, Clem Finch. Gleason and Carney developed a good working chemistry, and Gleason recruited Carney to appear in other sketches, including the domestic-comedy skits featuring The Honeymooners
. Carney gained lifelong fame for his portrayal of sewer worker Ed Norton, opposite Jackie Gleason
's Ralph Kramden. The success of these skits resulted in the famous filmed situation comedy The Honeymooners
, and the Honeymooners revivals that followed. He was nominated for seven Emmy Award
s and won six.
Between his stints with Gleason, Carney worked steadily as a character actor. He guest starred on NBC
's The Martha Raye Show
, The Dinah Shore Chevy Show and many others, including as a mystery guest on What's My Line?
which he attended dressed as Ed Norton. In the season two opening episode of the Batman
television series, titled "Shoot a Crooked Arrow" (1966), Carney gave a memorable performance as the newly introduced villain "The Archer".
In 1958, he starred in an ABC children's television special Art Carney Meets Peter and the Wolf, which also featured the Bil Baird
Marionettes. It combined an original storyline with a marionette presentation of Serge Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf
. Some of Prokofiev's other music was given lyrics written by Ogden Nash
. The special was a success and was repeated twice.
Carney starred in a classic Christmas episode of The Twilight Zone
"Night of the Meek", playing a dramatic turn as an alcoholic department store Santa Claus. In 1964, he guest-starred in the episode "Smelling Like a Rose" along with Hal March
and Tina Louise
in the CBS drama Mr. Broadway
, starring Craig Stevens
. He also starred as Police Chief Paul Lanigan in the 1976 television movie, Lanigan's Rabbi
, and in the short-lived series of the same name that aired in 1977, as part of the NBC Sunday Mystery Movie lineup.
In 1978, Carney appeared in The Star Wars Holiday Special
, a made-for-tv movie that was linked to the Star Wars
film series. In it, he played Trader Saun Dann, a member of the Rebel Alliance
who helped Chewbacca
and his family evade an Imperial blockade.
In 1984, he portrayed Santa Claus
in the made-for-TV holiday film The Night They Saved Christmas
.
Among his final television roles were a series of commercials for Diet Coke in which he played a man enjoying a day out with his grandson.
. Two of his hits were "The Song of the Sewer", sung in character as Norton, and "'Twas the Night Before Christmas", a spoken-word record in which Carney, accompanied only by a jazz drummer, recited the famous Yuletide poem in syncopation. Some of Carney's recordings were comedy-novelty songs, but most were silly songs intended especially for children.
He also narrated a version of The Wizard of Oz
for Golden Records, with Mitch Miller
and his chorus performing four of the songs from the classic 1939 film version.
for his performance as Harry Coombes, an elderly man going on the road with his pet cat, in Harry and Tonto
. He also appeared in such films as W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings
, The Late Show
(as an aging detective), House Calls, Movie Movie and Going in Style
(as a bored senior citizen who joins in bank robberies). Later movies included The Muppets Take Manhattan
(1984) and the thriller Firestarter
.
In 1981, he portrayed Harry Truman, an 83-year-old lodge owner in the semi-fictional account of events leading to the eruption
of Mount St. Helens
, in the movie titled St. Helens.
Although he retired in the late 1980s, he returned in 1993 in a cameo in the Arnold Schwarzenegger
film, Last Action Hero
.
debut in 1957 as the lead in The Rope Dancers, a drama by Morton Wishengrad. His subsequent Broadway appearances included his portrayal in 1965–67 of Felix Unger in The Odd Couple
(opposite Walter Matthau
and then Jack Klugman
as Oscar). In 1969 he was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance in Brian Friel
's Lovers
.Art Carney was in a Broadway play which came from England entitled "Take Her, She's Mine" in New York.
commercials. His great-nephew is musician/actor Reeve Carney
.
. He is interred at Riverside Cemetery in Old Saybrook, Connecticut
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
in film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, stage
Stage (theatre)
In theatre or performance arts, the stage is a designated space for the performance productions. The stage serves as a space for actors or performers and a focal point for the members of the audience...
, television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and radio
Radio programming
Radio programming is the Broadcast programming of a Radio format or content that is organized for Commercial broadcasting and Public broadcasting radio stations....
. He is best known for playing Ed Norton, opposite Jackie Gleason
Jackie Gleason
Jackie Gleason was an American comedian, actor and musician. He was known for his brash visual and verbal comedy style, especially by his character Ralph Kramden on The Honeymooners, a situation-comedy television series. His most noted film roles were as Minnesota Fats in the drama film The...
's Ralph Kramden in the situation comedy The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners is an American situation comedy television show, based on a recurring 1951–'55 sketch of the same name. It originally aired on the DuMont network's Cavalcade of Stars and subsequently on the CBS network's The Jackie Gleason Show hosted by Jackie Gleason, and filmed before a live...
.
Early life
Carney, youngest of six sons (Fred, Jack, Ned, Phil, Robert), was born in Mount Vernon, New YorkMount Vernon, New York
Mount Vernon is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. It lies on the border of the New York City borough of The Bronx.-Overview:...
, the son of Helen (née
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Farrell) and Edward Michael Carney, who was a newspaper man and publicist. His family was Irish American
Irish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
and Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
. He attended A B Davis High School. Carney was drafted as an infantryman during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. During the Battle of Normandy, he was wounded in the leg by shrapnel
Fragmentation (weaponry)
Fragmentation is the process by which the casing of an artillery shell, bomb, grenade, etc. is shattered by the detonating high explosive filling. The correct technical terminology for these casing pieces is fragments , although shards or splinters can be used for non-preformed fragments...
and walked with a limp for the rest of his life.
Radio
Carney was a comic singer with the Horace HeidtHorace Heidt
Horace Heidt was an American pianist, big band leader, and radio and television personality. His band, Horace Heidt and His Musical Knights, toured vaudeville and performed on radio and television through the 1930s and 1940s.-Biography:Born in Alameda, California, Heidt attended Culver...
orchestra, which was heard often on radio during the 1930s, notably on the hugely successful Pot o' Gold, the first big-money giveaway show in 1939–41. Carney's film career began with an uncredited role in Pot o' Gold (1941), the radio program's spin-off feature film, playing a member of Heidt's band. Carney, a gifted mimic, worked steadily in radio during the 1940s, playing character roles and impersonating celebrities. In 1941 he was the house comic on the big band remote
Big band remote
A big band remote was a remote broadcast, popular on radio during the 1930s and 1940s, involving a coast-to-coast live transmission of a big band.As early as 1923, listeners could tune in The Waldorf-Astoria Orchestra...
series, Matinee at Meadowbrook.
One of his radio roles during the 1940s was the fish Red Lantern on Land of the Lost
Land of the Lost (radio)
Land of the Lost was a 1940s radio fantasy adventure, written and narrated by Isabel Manning Hewson, about the adventures of two children who traveled underwater with the fatherly fish Red Lantern...
. In 1943 he played Billy Oldham on Joe and Ethel Turp, based on Damon Runyon
Damon Runyon
Alfred Damon Runyon was an American newspaperman and writer.He was best known for his short stories celebrating the world of Broadway in New York City that grew out of the Prohibition era. To New Yorkers of his generation, a "Damon Runyon character" evoked a distinctive social type from the...
stories. He appeared on The Henry Morgan Show
Henry Morgan (comedian)
Henry Morgan was an American humorist. He is remembered best in two modern media: radio, on which he first became familiar as a barbed but often self-deprecating satirist, and on television, where he was a regular and cantankerous panelist for the game show I've Got a Secret...
in 1946–47. He impersonated FDR
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
on The March of Time
The March of Time
The March of Time is a radio series, and companion newsreel series, that was broadcast on CBS from 1931 to 1945 and shown in movie theaters from 1935 to 1951. It was created by Time, Inc. executive Roy Edward Larsen, and was produced and written by Louis de Rochemont and his brother Richard de...
and Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
on Living 1948. In 1950–51 he played Montague's father on The Magnificent Montague. He was a supporting player on Casey, Crime Photographer and Gang Busters
Gang Busters
Gang Busters was an American dramatic radio program heralded as "the only national program that brings you authentic police case histories." It premiered as G-Men, sponsored by Chevrolet, on July 20, 1935.-History:...
.
Television
On the radio and television shows of The Morey Amsterdam ShowMorey Amsterdam
Morey Amsterdam was an American television actor and comedian, best known for the role of Buddy Sorrell on The Dick Van Dyke Show in the early 1960s.-Early life:...
from 1948 to 1950, Carney's character Charlie the doorman became known for his catchphrase, "Ya know what I mean?".
In 1950, Jackie Gleason
Jackie Gleason
Jackie Gleason was an American comedian, actor and musician. He was known for his brash visual and verbal comedy style, especially by his character Ralph Kramden on The Honeymooners, a situation-comedy television series. His most noted film roles were as Minnesota Fats in the drama film The...
was starring in a New York–based comedy-variety series, Cavalcade of Stars, and played many different characters. Gleason's regular characters included Charlie Bratten, a lunchroom loudmouth who insisted on spoiling a neighboring patron's meal. Carney, established in New York as a reliable actor, played Bratten's mild-mannered victim, Clem Finch. Gleason and Carney developed a good working chemistry, and Gleason recruited Carney to appear in other sketches, including the domestic-comedy skits featuring The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners is an American situation comedy television show, based on a recurring 1951–'55 sketch of the same name. It originally aired on the DuMont network's Cavalcade of Stars and subsequently on the CBS network's The Jackie Gleason Show hosted by Jackie Gleason, and filmed before a live...
. Carney gained lifelong fame for his portrayal of sewer worker Ed Norton, opposite Jackie Gleason
Jackie Gleason
Jackie Gleason was an American comedian, actor and musician. He was known for his brash visual and verbal comedy style, especially by his character Ralph Kramden on The Honeymooners, a situation-comedy television series. His most noted film roles were as Minnesota Fats in the drama film The...
's Ralph Kramden. The success of these skits resulted in the famous filmed situation comedy The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners is an American situation comedy television show, based on a recurring 1951–'55 sketch of the same name. It originally aired on the DuMont network's Cavalcade of Stars and subsequently on the CBS network's The Jackie Gleason Show hosted by Jackie Gleason, and filmed before a live...
, and the Honeymooners revivals that followed. He was nominated for seven Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
s and won six.
Between his stints with Gleason, Carney worked steadily as a character actor. He guest starred on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's The Martha Raye Show
The Martha Raye Show
The Martha Raye Show is an hour-long comedy/variety show which aired live on NBC from January 23, 1954, to May 29, 1956. The series was hosted by the late Martha Raye, a Montana native, who often called herself "The Big Mouth." Her boyfriend on the program and a foil for her humor was portrayed by...
, The Dinah Shore Chevy Show and many others, including as a mystery guest on What's My Line?
What's My Line?
What's My Line? is a panel game show which originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, with several international versions and subsequent U.S. revivals. The game tasked celebrity panelists with questioning contestants in order to determine their occupations....
which he attended dressed as Ed Norton. In the season two opening episode of the Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
television series, titled "Shoot a Crooked Arrow" (1966), Carney gave a memorable performance as the newly introduced villain "The Archer".
In 1958, he starred in an ABC children's television special Art Carney Meets Peter and the Wolf, which also featured the Bil Baird
Bil Baird
William Britton Baird , professional name Bil Baird, but often referred to as Bill Baird, was an American puppeteer of the mid- and late 20th century.One of his better known creations was Charlemane the lion...
Marionettes. It combined an original storyline with a marionette presentation of Serge Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf
Peter and the Wolf
Peter and the Wolf , Op. 67, is a composition written by Sergei Prokofiev in 1936 in the USSR. It is a children's story , spoken by a narrator accompanied by the orchestra....
. Some of Prokofiev's other music was given lyrics written by Ogden Nash
Ogden Nash
Frederic Ogden Nash was an American poet well known for his light verse. At the time of his death in 1971, the New York Times said his "droll verse with its unconventional rhymes made him the country's best-known producer of humorous poetry".-Early life:Nash was born in Rye, New York...
. The special was a success and was repeated twice.
Carney starred in a classic Christmas episode of The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone is an American television anthology series created by Rod Serling. Each episode is a mixture of self-contained drama, psychological thriller, fantasy, science fiction, suspense, or horror, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist...
"Night of the Meek", playing a dramatic turn as an alcoholic department store Santa Claus. In 1964, he guest-starred in the episode "Smelling Like a Rose" along with Hal March
Hal March
Hal March was a Jewish-American comedian and actor.-Early career:March first came to note as part of a comedy team with Bob Sweeney. The duo had their own radio show for a time and performed, in the early 1950s, as "Sweeney & March." He also partnered with actor/comic Tom d'Andrea in the early...
and Tina Louise
Tina Louise
Tina Louise is an American actress, singer, and author. She is best known for her role as the "movie star" Ginger Grant on the television situation comedy Gilligan's Island .-Early life:...
in the CBS drama Mr. Broadway
Mr. Broadway
Mr. Broadway is a 13-episode CBS adventure and drama television series starring Craig Stevens , formerly of Peter Gunn, as New York City public relations specialist Mike Bell. The program aired at 9 p.m. Eastern time Saturdays from September 26 to December 26, 1964...
, starring Craig Stevens
Craig Stevens (actor)
Craig Stevens was an American motion picture and television actor.-Early and personal life:Born Gail Shikles, Jr., in Liberty, Missouri, his father was a high school teacher....
. He also starred as Police Chief Paul Lanigan in the 1976 television movie, Lanigan's Rabbi
Lanigan's Rabbi
Lanigan's Rabbi is a short-lived American crime drama series that aired on NBC during the first half of 1977.-Synopsis:Based upon a series of novels by Harry Kemelman, the series starred Art Carney as Police Chief Paul Lanigan, who fights crime in a small California town with the help of his best...
, and in the short-lived series of the same name that aired in 1977, as part of the NBC Sunday Mystery Movie lineup.
In 1978, Carney appeared in The Star Wars Holiday Special
The Star Wars Holiday Special
The Star Wars Holiday Special is a 1978 American television special set in the Star Wars galaxy. It was one of the first official Star Wars spin-offs, and was directed by Steve Binder. The show was broadcast in its entirety only once, in the United States and Canada, November 17, 1978, on the U.S...
, a made-for-tv movie that was linked to the Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
film series. In it, he played Trader Saun Dann, a member of the Rebel Alliance
Rebel Alliance
The Alliance to Restore the Republic is an interstellar faction of the fictional universe of Star Wars....
who helped Chewbacca
Chewbacca
Chewbacca, also known as Chewie, is a character in the Star Wars franchise, portrayed by Peter Mayhew. In the series' narrative chronology, he appears in Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Episode IV: A New Hope, Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and Episode VI: Return of the Jedi...
and his family evade an Imperial blockade.
In 1984, he portrayed Santa Claus
Santa Claus
Santa Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
in the made-for-TV holiday film The Night They Saved Christmas
The Night They Saved Christmas
The Night They Saved Christmas is a 1984 RHI Entertainment Christmas film, executive produced by Robert Halmi, Senior and Junior; and originally developed for ABC. The film is about an oil company dynamiting in the North Pole in search of an oil field, unaware that they are endangering Santa Claus...
.
Among his final television roles were a series of commercials for Diet Coke in which he played a man enjoying a day out with his grandson.
Recordings
Carney recorded prolifically in the 1950s for Columbia RecordsColumbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
. Two of his hits were "The Song of the Sewer", sung in character as Norton, and "'Twas the Night Before Christmas", a spoken-word record in which Carney, accompanied only by a jazz drummer, recited the famous Yuletide poem in syncopation. Some of Carney's recordings were comedy-novelty songs, but most were silly songs intended especially for children.
He also narrated a version of The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
for Golden Records, with Mitch Miller
Mitch Miller
Mitchell William "Mitch" Miller was an American musician, singer, conductor, record producer, A&R man and record company executive...
and his chorus performing four of the songs from the classic 1939 film version.
Films
In 1974, he won the Academy Award for Best ActorAcademy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
for his performance as Harry Coombes, an elderly man going on the road with his pet cat, in Harry and Tonto
Harry and Tonto
Harry and Tonto is a 1974 road movie written by Paul Mazursky and Josh Greenfeld and directed by Mazursky, starring Art Carney.-Synopsis:...
. He also appeared in such films as W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings
W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings
W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings is a 1975 film directed by John G. Avildsen and written by Thomas Rickman. The 20th Century Fox film took place in 1957 and featured the first acting appearances of Jerry Reed and Brad Dourif....
, The Late Show
The Late Show (film)
The Late Show is a 1977 comedy, neo-noir, romance, mystery film written and directed by Robert Benton and produced by Robert Altman. It stars Art Carney, Lily Tomlin, Bill Macy, Eugene Roche, and Joanna Cassidy...
(as an aging detective), House Calls, Movie Movie and Going in Style
Going in Style
Going in Style is a 1979 caper film written and directed by Martin Brest. It stars George Burns, Art Carney, Lee Strasberg and Charles Hallahan. The casino scenes were shot at the Aladdin Hotel & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip.- Plot synopsis :...
(as a bored senior citizen who joins in bank robberies). Later movies included The Muppets Take Manhattan
The Muppets Take Manhattan
The Muppets Take Manhattan is the third of a series of live-action musical feature films starring Jim Henson's Muppets, and also the final film before Henson's death. This film was produced by Henson Associates and TriStar Pictures, and was filmed on location in New York City during the summer of...
(1984) and the thriller Firestarter
Firestarter (film)
Firestarter is a 1984 science fiction thriller film based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King. The plot concerns a young girl who develops pyrokinesis and the secret government agency which seeks to control her. The film was directed by Mark L. Lester, and stars Drew Barrymore and David...
.
In 1981, he portrayed Harry Truman, an 83-year-old lodge owner in the semi-fictional account of events leading to the eruption
1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens
The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, a stratovolcano located in Washington state, in the United States, was a major volcanic eruption. The eruption was the only significant one to occur in the contiguous 48 U.S. states since the 1915 eruption of Lassen Peak in California...
of Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens is an active stratovolcano located in Skamania County, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is south of Seattle, Washington and northeast of Portland, Oregon. Mount St. Helens takes its English name from the British diplomat Lord St Helens, a...
, in the movie titled St. Helens.
Although he retired in the late 1980s, he returned in 1993 in a cameo in the Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
film, Last Action Hero
Last Action Hero
Last Action Hero is a 1993 American action-comedy-fantasy film directed and produced by John McTiernan. It is a satire of the action genre and its clichés, containing several parodies of action films in the form of films within the film....
.
Broadway
Carney made his BroadwayBroadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
debut in 1957 as the lead in The Rope Dancers, a drama by Morton Wishengrad. His subsequent Broadway appearances included his portrayal in 1965–67 of Felix Unger in The Odd Couple
The Odd Couple
The Odd Couple is a 1965 Broadway play by Neil Simon, followed by a successful film and television series, as well as other derivative works and spin offs, many featuring one or more of the same actors. The plot concerns two mismatched roommates, one neat and uptight, the other more easygoing and...
(opposite Walter Matthau
Walter Matthau
Walter Matthau was an American actor best known for his role as Oscar Madison in The Odd Couple and his frequent collaborations with Odd Couple star Jack Lemmon, as well as his role as Coach Buttermaker in the 1976 comedy The Bad News Bears...
and then Jack Klugman
Jack Klugman
Jacob Joachim "Jack" Klugman is an American stage, film and television actor known for his roles in sitcoms, movies, and television and on Broadway...
as Oscar). In 1969 he was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance in Brian Friel
Brian Friel
Brian Friel is an Irish dramatist, author and director of the Field Day Theatre Company. He is considered to be the greatest living English-language dramatist, hailed by the English-speaking world as an "Irish Chekhov" and "the universally accented voice of Ireland"...
's Lovers
Lovers (play)
Lovers is a 1967 play written by Northern Irish playwright Brian Friel.Lovers is a play broken in to two parts, Winners and Losers.-Winners:...
.Art Carney was in a Broadway play which came from England entitled "Take Her, She's Mine" in New York.
Personal life
Carney was married three times to two women: Jean Myers, from 1940 to 1965, and again from 1980 until his death in 2003, and to Barbara Isaac from December 21, 1966 until 1977. He had three children with his first wife, Brian (born 1946), Eileen (born 1946) and Paul (born 1952). Brian Carney appears alongside the animated gecko in GEICOGEICO
The Government Employees Insurance Company is an auto insurance company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway that as of 2007 provided coverage for more than 10 million motor vehicles owned by more than 9 million policy holders. GEICO writes private passenger automobile insurance...
commercials. His great-nephew is musician/actor Reeve Carney
Reeve Carney
Reeve Carney is an American singer-songwriter and actor. He appears in the Broadway musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark as the character of Peter Parker/Spider-Man.-Early life:...
.
Death
Art Carney died November 9, 2003, aged 85, from natural causes at a rest home near his home in Westbrook, ConnecticutWestbrook, Connecticut
Westbrook is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 6,292 at the 2000 census. The town center is also classified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place .-Geography:...
. He is interred at Riverside Cemetery in Old Saybrook, Connecticut
Old Saybrook, Connecticut
Old Saybrook is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 10,367 at the 2000 census. It contains the incorporated borough of Fenwick, as well as the census-designated places of Old Saybrook Center and Saybrook Manor.-History:...
.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Pot o’ Gold | Band member Radio announcer |
Uncredited |
| 1950 | PM Picnic | Narrator | |
| 1964 | The Yellow Rolls-Royce The Yellow Rolls-Royce -External links:, a promotional short subject for the film... |
Joey Friedlander | |
| 1967 | A Guide for the Married Man A Guide for the Married Man A Guide for the Married Man is a 1967 American bedroom farce comedy film starring Walter Matthau, Robert Morse, and Inger Stevens. It was directed by Gene Kelly. It features a large number of cameos, including Lucille Ball, Jack Benny, Terry-Thomas, Jayne Mansfield, Sid Caesar, Carl Reiner, Joey... |
Technical Adviser (Joe X) | |
| 1974 | Harry and Tonto Harry and Tonto Harry and Tonto is a 1974 road movie written by Paul Mazursky and Josh Greenfeld and directed by Mazursky, starring Art Carney.-Synopsis:... |
Harry Coombes | Academy Award for Best Actor Academy Award for Best Actor Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry... Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
| 1975 | W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings is a 1975 film directed by John G. Avildsen and written by Thomas Rickman. The 20th Century Fox film took place in 1957 and featured the first acting appearances of Jerry Reed and Brad Dourif.... |
Deacon John Wesley Gore | |
| 1976 | Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood | J.J. Fromberg | |
| 1977 | The Late Show The Late Show (film) The Late Show is a 1977 comedy, neo-noir, romance, mystery film written and directed by Robert Benton and produced by Robert Altman. It stars Art Carney, Lily Tomlin, Bill Macy, Eugene Roche, and Joanna Cassidy... |
Ira Wells | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor The National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor is an annual award given by the National Society of Film Critics to honor the best leading actor of the year.-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... |
| Scott Joplin | John Stark | ||
| 1978 | Movie Movie Movie Movie Movie Movie is a 1978 musical comedy film directed by Stanley Donen. Movie Movie consists of two short films, both starring the husband-and-wife team of George C. Scott and Trish Van Devere, with a fake movie trailer sandwiched in between them... |
Doctor Blaine/Doctor Bowers | |
| House Calls | Dr. Amos Willoughby | ||
| The Star Wars Holiday Special The Star Wars Holiday Special The Star Wars Holiday Special is a 1978 American television special set in the Star Wars galaxy. It was one of the first official Star Wars spin-offs, and was directed by Steve Binder. The show was broadcast in its entirety only once, in the United States and Canada, November 17, 1978, on the U.S... |
Trader Saun Dann | ||
| 1979 | Going in Style Going in Style Going in Style is a 1979 caper film written and directed by Martin Brest. It stars George Burns, Art Carney, Lee Strasberg and Charles Hallahan. The casino scenes were shot at the Aladdin Hotel & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip.- Plot synopsis :... |
Al | Pasinetti Award Venice Film Festival The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the... |
| Steel | Pignose Moran | ||
| Sunburn Sunburn (film) Sunburn is a 1979 British-American detective-comedy film directed by Richard C. Sarafian and starring Farrah Fawcett, Charles Grodin and Art Carney... |
Marcus | ||
| Ravagers Ravagers (1979 film) Ravagers is a 1979 film directed by Richard Compton and based on the novel by Robert Edmond Alter. In the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust survivors do what they can to protect themselves against ravagers, a mutated group of vicious marauders who terrorize the few remaining civilized... |
Sergeant | ||
| 1980 | Roadie Roadie (film) Roadie is a 1980 film directed by Alan Rudolph about a truck driver who becomes a roadie for a traveling rock and roll show. The film stars Meat Loaf and marks his first starring role in a film. There are also cameo appearances by musicians such as Roy Orbison, Hank Williams Jr., Blondie and Alice... |
Corpus C. Redfish | |
| Defiance Defiance (1980 film) Defiance is a 1980 American film starring Jan-Michael Vincent, Art Carney, and Theresa Saldana.Early Jerry Bruckheimer production. Jan-Michael Vincent portrays a suspended young seaman who takes up temporary housing in a neighborhood overrun by a gang, while waiting for his next orders to ship out.... |
Abe | ||
| Fighting Back: The Rocky Bleier Story Fighting Back: The Rocky Bleier Story Fighting Back: The Rocky Bleier Story was a 1980 made-for-television movie about the life of Pittsburgh Steelers running back Rocky Bleier, starring Robert Urich. It was released on 7 December 1980.... |
Art Rooney Art Rooney Arthur Joseph "Art" Rooney, Sr. , often referred to as "The Chief", was the founding owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers American football franchise in the National Football League.-Family history:... |
TV film | |
| 1981 | St. Helens | Harry Truman | |
| Take This Job and Shove It Take This Job and Shove It (film) Take This Job and Shove It is a 1981 film starring Robert Hays, Barbara Hershey, Art Carney, and David Keith, and directed by Gus Trikonis.... |
Charlie Pickett | ||
| 1982 | Better Late Than Never Better Late Than Never (film) Better Late Than Never is a 1982 film directed by Bryan Forbes. It stars David Niven, Art Carney and Maggie Smith. The soundtrack features songs by Henry Mancini and Noel Coward.-Plot:... |
Charley Dunbar | |
| 1983 | The Last Leaf | Mr. Behrman | |
| 1984 | Firestarter Firestarter (film) Firestarter is a 1984 science fiction thriller film based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King. The plot concerns a young girl who develops pyrokinesis and the secret government agency which seeks to control her. The film was directed by Mark L. Lester, and stars Drew Barrymore and David... |
Irv Manders | |
| The Muppets Take Manhattan The Muppets Take Manhattan The Muppets Take Manhattan is the third of a series of live-action musical feature films starring Jim Henson's Muppets, and also the final film before Henson's death. This film was produced by Henson Associates and TriStar Pictures, and was filmed on location in New York City during the summer of... |
Bernard Crawford | ||
| The Naked Face | Morgens | ||
| The Night They Saved Christmas The Night They Saved Christmas The Night They Saved Christmas is a 1984 RHI Entertainment Christmas film, executive produced by Robert Halmi, Senior and Junior; and originally developed for ABC. The film is about an oil company dynamiting in the North Pole in search of an oil field, unaware that they are endangering Santa Claus... |
Santa Claus | ||
| 1985 | Izzy and Moe Izzy and Moe Izzy & Moe is a 1985 made for TV crime/comedy film, starring Jackie Gleason and Art Carney. It is a fictional account of two Prohibition-era policemen, Izzy Einstein and Moe Smith, and their adventures in tracking down illegal bars and gangsters.... |
Moe Smith | |
| 1986 | Miracle of the Heart | Father O'Halleran | |
| 1987 | Night Friend | Monsignor O’Brien | |
| 1990 | Where Pigeons Go to Die Where Pigeons Go to Die Where Pigeons Go to Die is a 1990 made for television film written and directed by Michael Landon based on the novel by R. Wright Campbell. The film stars Art Carney and was nominated for two Emmy awards:... |
Da | |
| 1993 | Last Action Hero Last Action Hero Last Action Hero is a 1993 American action-comedy-fantasy film directed and produced by John McTiernan. It is a satire of the action genre and its clichés, containing several parodies of action films in the form of films within the film.... |
Frank |
Awards and tributes
- Carney has a star on the Hollywood Walk of FameHollywood Walk of FameThe Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
at 6627 Hollywood Blvd. - In 1954 the Board of Directors of the Florida Water and Sewage Works Operators Association (Now the Florida Water and Pollution Control Operators Association) unanimously passed a resolution that ART CARNEY of Jackie Gleason TV show and Honeymoner's fame be granted an Honorary Life Membership in the Association in recognition for his constant humorous reminders to the American public that sewage systems do exist. Mr. Carney gratefully accepted this honorarium, as reflected in his letter to the association.
- While starring in The Odd CoupleThe Odd CoupleThe Odd Couple is a 1965 Broadway play by Neil Simon, followed by a successful film and television series, as well as other derivative works and spin offs, many featuring one or more of the same actors. The plot concerns two mismatched roommates, one neat and uptight, the other more easygoing and...
on Broadway, Carney's caricature was drawn for walls of Sardi'sSardi'sSardi's is a restaurant in New York City's theater district at 234 West 44th Street in Manhattan. Known for the hundreds of caricatures of show-business celebrities that adorn its walls, Sardi's opened at its current location on March 5, 1927....
Restaurant. - In 1994, the music group The Swirling EddiesThe Swirling EddiesThe Swirling Eddies are a band that began as an anonymous spinoff from the band Daniel Amos, along with new drummer David Raven.-Career:For each Swirling Eddies release, band members adopted pseudonyms for the liner notes; "Camarillo Eddy" , "Berger Roy Al" , "Gene Pool" , "Arthur Fhardy" , "Spot"...
named a song after Carney on their album Zoom DaddyZoom DaddyZoom Daddy is the title of the third album by rock band The Swirling Eddies, released in 1994 on Alarma Records. It was released almost simultaneously with Terry Scott Taylor's other project the Daniel Amos album Bibleland....
entitled "Art Carney's Dream."