Born in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, Alan Arkin began his career in the entertainment industry as a member of a folk-singing group called The Tarriers, where he made an uncredited appearance in the 1957 film Calypso Heat Wave. In the early 1960s he joined Chicago's Second City improv group, which led to his stage debut in Carl Reiner's Enter Laughing. In 1964 he made an appearance in an episode of East Side/West Side. His big screen debut was in the 1966 film The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming! which earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Actor and a Golden Globe Award. He remained active in film and television well into his 80s, his final role was providing the voice of Wild Knuckles in the 2022 animated filmMinions: The Rise of Gru.
Alan Arkin died of cardiac arrest at the age of 89.
