Alan Alda

Few actors are beloved as much — for as long — as Alan Alda. The son of Robert Alda, an old-time Hollywood star, Alda began acting as a teen and found work on the small and big screens in his twenties. But it wasn't until he signed on to seminal sitcom M*A*S*H that he became a household name, eventually winning Emmys for acting, writing and directing. In real life, Alda is a private family man who makes his home in New Jersey, far from Tinseltown. After two decades spent mainly acting in and occasionally directing films, Alda returned to series TV in 2004 as a Republican senator on The West Wing, a political in-joke, since in reality, he is a staunch liberal. The next year, at age 69, Alda scored an entertainment hat trick when he was nominated for an Oscar, an Emmy and a Tony. And in 2006, he scored his fifth career Emmy for his performance on the last season of The West Wing.