Dark, intense character actor who has provided a frequent presence in TV dramas and sitcoms since the mid-1970s. The eldest son of award-winning actor-director Alan Arkin, he began performing as a child after accompanying his father to movie sets around the world. Arkin began taking acting classes at age ten and made his feature debut as a co-screenwriter at age 15 on "Improper Channels" (1971). This Canadian comedy starred the elder Arkin as an eccentric architect who is mistakenly accused of child abuse. Several years later he had his own short-lived sitcom showcase, "Busting Loose" (CBS, 1977), in which he Arkin played a young New Yorker struggling to escape the influence of his domineering parents.Arkin made his feature acting debut in "Chu Chu and the Philly Flash" (1981), a film dominated by Arkin's parents: his father starred and his stepmother Barbara Dana wrote the screenplay. That same year, Arkin starred in "Full Moon High", a likably silly werewolf high school comedy from horror auteur Larry Cohen. His film career never really took off, consisting of "Under the Rainbow", (1981), "Personal Foul" (1987), "The Doctor" (1991) and Todd Haynes' avant-garde short "Dottie Gets Spanked" (1993) starring Julie Halston. Arkin has also worked in NY theater ("Guys and Dolls" on Broadway; "Sight Unseen" and "Four Dogs and a Bone" off-Broadway).
The 1980s and '90s provided many stints on TV for Arkin: the series "Teachers Only" (NBC, 1982); "Tough Cookies" (CBS, 1986); "A Year in the Life" (NBC, 1987-88); and "Big Wave Dave's" (CBS, 1993); and such TV-movies and miniseries as "Heat Wave" (TNT, 1990); "Babies" (NBC, 1990); and "In the Line of Duty: Hunt for Justice" (NBC, 1995).
Arkin received acclaim and exposure in the recurring role of Adam, the reputedly feral, reclusive, and antagonistic eccentric ex-gourmet chef on "Northern Exposure" (CBS, 1990-94). The character began as a local variation of Bigfoot and evolved into an (uneasily) integrated member of the community. Arkin joined the outstanding ensemble on the medical series "Chicago Hope" (CBS, 1994-2000) as Dr. Aaron Schutt, a neurosurgeon. Arkin successfully transitioned back and forth between the big and small screens, with seveval television movies to his credit, most notably as a detective opposite William H. Macy in "A Slight Case of Murder" (1999), and several supporting roles in features. He appeared in the horror thrillers "Halloween H20" (1998) and the David E. Kelley-penned "Lake Placid" (1999), and was cast as Meg Ryan's husband in the Nora Ephron comedy "Hanging Up" (2000). Further roles followed, and he was especially winning as Eva Mendes' tabloid editor in the romantic comedy "Hitch" (2005).
Continuing his presence on series television, Arkin made a rare misstep when he took on the role of the father in the universally panned, short-lived talking infant sit-com "Baby Bob" (CBS, 2002), and he enjoyed recurring roles as the president's physician-confidante Dr. Stanley Keyworth in "The West Wing" beginning in 2000, and as Principal Ed Gibbs on the hit ABC sitcom "8 Simple Rules... for Dating My Teenage Daughter" starting in 2004.
Profession(s):
Actor, director, screenwriter
Sometimes Credited As:
Theatre World Award "I Hate Hamlet" 1991
2004 Guest-starred on three episodes of the ABC comedy "8 Simple Rules," as school Principal Ed Gibb
2002 Had lead as the father of the titular talking infant "Baby Bob", a CBS sitcom
2001 Directed the made-for-cable Showtime movie "My Louisiana Sky", produced by Anthony Edwards
1998 Starred opposite Jamie Lee Curtis in "Halloween: H20"
1994 Provided a "voice" for Ken Burns's ambitious documentary, "Baseball"
1993 Starred as Marshall Fisher in "Big Wave Dave's", a very short-lived CBS sitcom about three yuppies who move to Hawaii and open a surf shop
1991 Played a recurring role on "China Beach"
1991 Made Broadway debut as Gary Peter Lefkowitz in "I Hate Hamlet"; received a Tony nomination
1989 Played a recurring role on "Knots Landing"
1987 - 1988 Co-starred in "A Year in the Life", a TV drama that continued the miniseries
1986 Appeared as Danny Polchek, a regular on "Tough Cookies", a short-lived CBS cop sitcom
1986 Co-starred as Jim Eisenberg on "A Year in the Life", the acclaimed NBC miniseries; first work for executive producing/writing team Joshua Brand and John Falsey
1982 Cast in the regular series role of Michael Dreyfuss in "Teachers Only", a short-lived NBC high school sitcom starring Lynn Redgrave; when series was revamped and briefly tried again the following seas
1981 Feature acting debut, supporting player in "Chu Chu and the Philly Flash", a comedy starring his father and Carol Burnett and written by his stepmother Barbara Dana
1981 First feature in a leading role, "Full Moon High", a teenage werewolf comedy from horror auteur Larry Cohen (Alan Arkin appears in a supporting role)
1978 TV miniseries debut, "Pearl"
1977 First starring role in a TV series, playing Lenny Markowitz on "Busting Loose", a short-lived CBS sitcom
1974 Early TV appearance, "Mo and Jo", an unsold CBS sitcom pilot
1974 TV-movie debut, "It Couldn't Happen to a Nicer Guy"