Early life

Segal was born in Great Neck, New York, the son of Fannie Blanche Segal (née Bodkin) and George Segal, Sr., a malt and hop agent. He is the youngest of three children; oldest brother, John, who worked in the hops brokerage business and was an innovator in the cultivation of new hop varieties, middle brother, Fred, a screenwriter, and a six-year-old sister, Greta, who died of pneumonia before Segal was born.

Segal's family was Jewish, but he was raised in a secular household. A paternal great-grandfather ran for governor of Massachusetts as a socialist. When asked if he had a bar mitzvah, Segal stated: "I'm afraid not. I went to a Passover Seder at Groucho Marx's once and he kept saying, 'When do we get to the wine?' So that's my Jewish experience. I went to a friend's bar mitzvah, and that was the only time I was in Temple Beth Shalom. Jewish life wasn't happening that much at the time. People's car tires were slashed in front of the temple. I was once kicked down a flight of stairs by some kids from the local parochial school".

All of Segal's grandparents were immigrants from Russia. His maternal grandparents changed their surname from Slobodkin to Bodkin. He first became interested in acting at the age of nine, when he saw Alan Ladd in This Gun for Hire. He states: "I started off with the ukulele when I was a kid in Great Neck. A friend had a red Harold Teen model; it won my heart. When I got to high school, I realized you couldn't play in a band with a ukulele, so I moved on to the four-string banjo."

When his father died in 1947, Segal moved to New York with his mother. He graduated from George School in 1951, and attended Haverford College. He graduated from Columbia College of Columbia University in 1955 with a Bachelor of Arts in performing arts and drama. He was drafted into the United States Army in 1956.

Career

Theater

After college, Segal got a job as an understudy in a Broadway production of The Iceman Cometh. After serving in the United States Army, he appeared in Antony and Cleopatra for Joseph Papp and joined an improvisational group called The Premise, which performed at a Bleecker Street coffeehouse. Over the course of his career, Segal performed in several other Broadway plays. In 2001, he performed in Yasmina Reza's Art in his West End debut.

Film

Segal has played both dramatic and comedic roles, although he is more often seen in the latter. Originally a stage actor and musician, he appeared in several minor films in the early 1960s in addition to the well-known World War II film The Longest Day (1962). He was signed to a Columbia Pictures contract in 1961, making his film debut in The Young Doctors and appearing in the television series Naked City.

Segal was one of the stars of Stanley Kramer's acclaimed 1965 drama Ship of Fools, playing an egocentric painter. He played the title role as a scheming P.O.W. in King Rat (1965), a role originally meant for Frank Sinatra. He went on to play an Algerian paratrooper captured at Dien Bien Phu, who leaves the French army to become a leader of the FLN, in Lost Command (1966). He was loaned to Warner Bros for Mike Nichols' classic adaptation of the Edward Albee play Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1967). He played the young faculty member, Nick, a role for which he was nominated for an Oscar.

For the next decade and onwards, Segal received many notable film roles and headlined several acclaimed films by notable filmmakers. He starred in Carl Reiner's celebrated dark comedy Where's Poppa? (1970), played the lead role in Sydney Lumet's Bye Bye Braverman (1968), starred in Peter Yates' heist comedy The Hot Rock (1972), played a comically unfaithful husband in Melvin Frank's A Touch of Class (1973), which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, starred as the titular midlife crisis victim in Paul Mazursky's acclaimed romantic comedy Blume in Love (1973), and starred as a gambling addict in Robert Altman's classic California Split (1974). For A Touch of Class, he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, which was the second Golden Globe of his career.

During this time, he received many other leading roles. He appeared as a British secret service agent in The Quiller Memorandum (1966), a Cagney-esque gangster in The St. Valentine's Day Massacre (1967), a perplexed police detective in No Way to Treat a Lady (1968), a war-weary platoon commander in The Bridge at Remagen (1969), a bookworm in The Owl and the Pussycat (1970), a man laying waste to his marriage in Loving (1970), a hairdresser-turned-junkie in Born to Win (1971), a dangerous computer scientist in The Terminal Man (1974), a card shark in The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox (1976), a suburbanite-turned-bank robber in Fun with Dick and Jane (1977), a heroic ride inspector in Rollercoaster (1977), and a faux gourmet in Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? (1978).

Segal famously pulled out of the lead role in Blake Edwards' hit comedy 10 (1979) and, with a few exceptions in films such as Carbon Copy (1981), subsequently received fewer prominent roles in the 1980s. Near the end of the decade, however, Segal began to reestablish himself as a successful character actor and has since performed in supporting roles in a number of prominent films, including Look Who's Talking (1989), For the Boys (1991), To Die For (1995), The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996), Flirting with Disaster (1996), The Cable Guy (1996), 2012 (2009), and Love and Other Drugs (2010).

Television

Segal starred as Biff Loman in a notable television adaptation of Death of a Salesman in 1966 and also starred as George in a 1968 adaptation of Of Mice and Men. Beginning in the 1980s, Segal began to appear in a number of television films and starred in a couple of short lived sitcoms.

From 1997 to 2003, however, Segal had his most prominent role in years when he starred in the NBC award-winning sitcom Just Shoot Me! as Jack Gallo, the owner and publisher of a New York City fashion magazine. He was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Television Series Musical or Comedy in 1999 and 2000 as well as a Satellite Award in 2002 for this part. The show lasted for seven seasons and 148 episodes.

More recently, Segal played Murray Berenson in three episodes of the popular television series Entourage (2009) and starred in the TV Land sitcom Retired at 35 (2011-2012).

Segal currently appears on the ABC sitcom The Goldbergs (2013-present), playing the eccentric but loveable grandfather of a semi-autobiographical family based on that of series creator Adam F. Goldberg. The series entered its second season in September 2014 and has since been renewed for a third season.

In the 1970s and 1980s, Segal appeared frequently on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, nine times as a guest and once as a guest host. His appearances were marked by eccentric banter with Johnny Carson and were usually punctuated by bursts of banjo playing.

In 1976, Segal co-hosted the Academy Awards.

Music

Segal is an accomplished banjo player. At Haverford College and Columbia University, he formed Bruno Lynch and his Imperial Jazz Band. Segal also played with a dixieland jazz band while in college at Columbia that had several different names. When he was the one who booked a gig, he would bill the group as Bruno Lynch and his Imperial Jazzband. The group, which later settled on the name Red Onion Jazz Band, later played at his first wedding. In the Army, his band was called Corporal Bruno's Sad Sack Six.

In 1967, Segal released his debut LP, The Yama Yama Man. The title track is a ragtime version of the 1908 tune "The Yama Yama Man" with horns and banjos. Segal released the album at a time when he appeared regularly playing banjo on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.

In 1974 he played in A Touch of Ragtime, an album with his band, the Imperial Jazzband (which, other than its name, may or may not have had any relation to his college band). During the 1970s and 1980s, Segal made frequent television appearances with the "Beverly Hills Unlisted Jazz Band", whose members included actor Conrad Janis on trombone. In 1981, they performed live at Carnegie Hall. Recent engagements in Los Angeles have included guest spots with the award-winning residency Guitarology.

In addition to playing banjo while appearing on The Tonight Show, Segal has played the instrument in several of his acting roles, including several episodes of The Goldbergs.

In 2005, Segal played Dr. Dreck, a Jewish rapper, in the short film Chutzpah, This Is, although he did not perform his own raps. The group Chutzpah has released 2 albums since.

Personal life

Segal has been married three times. He married film editor Marion Segal Freed in 1956, and they were together for 26 years until their divorce in 1983. They had two daughters, Polly and Elizabeth. From 1983 until her death in 1996, he was married to Linda Rogoff, a one-time manager of The Pointer Sisters, whom he met at Carnegie Hall when he played the banjo with his band, the Beverly Hills Unlisted Jazz Band. He married his former George School boarding school classmate Sonia Schultz Greenbaum in 1996.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1961	The Young Doctors	Dr. Howard
1962	The Longest Day	U.S. Army Ranger
1963	Act One	Lester Sweyd
1964	Invitation to a Gunfighter	Matt Weaver
1964	The New Interns	Dr. Tony "Shiv" Parelli
1965	King Rat	Corporal King
1965	Ship of Fools	David
1966	Lost Command	Lt. Mahidi
1966	Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?	Nick
1966	The Quiller Memorandum	Quiller
1967	The St. Valentine's Day Massacre	Peter Gusenberg
1968	Bye Bye Braverman	Morroe Rieff
1968	No Way to Treat a Lady	Morris Brummel
1968	The Girl Who Couldn't Say No	Franco
1969	The Bridge at Remagen	Lieutenant Phil Hartman
1969	The Southern Star	Dan Rockland
1970	Loving	Brooks Wilson
1970	Where's Poppa?	Gordon Hocheiser
1970	The Owl and the Pussycat	Felix
1971	Born to Win	J
1972	The Hot Rock	Kelp
1973	Blume in Love	Stephen Blume
1973	A Touch of Class	Steve Blackburn
1974	The Terminal Man	Harry Benson
1974	California Split	Bill Denny
1975	Russian Roulette	Shaver
1975	The Black Bird	Sam Spade Jr.
1976	The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox	Charlie "Dirtwater Fox" Malloy
1977	Fun with Dick and Jane	Dick Harper
1977	Rollercoaster	Harry Calder
1978	Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe?	Robby Ross
1979	Lost and Found	Adam
1980	The Last Married Couple in America	Jeff Thompson
1981	Carbon Copy	Walter Whitney
1982	Killing 'em Softly	Jimmy Skinner
1985	Stick	Barry
1988	Run for Your Life	Alan Morani
1989	Look Who's Talking	Albert
1989	All's Fair	Colonel
1991	For the Boys	Art Silver
1991	Time of Darkness	Grigory
1992	Me, Myself & I	Buddy Arnett
1992	Un Orso Chiamata Arturo	Billy
1993	Joshua Tree	Lt. Franklin L. Severence
1993	Look Who's Talking Now	Albert	Cameo
1994	Direct Hit	James Tronson	Video
1995	To Die For	Conference Speaker	Uncredited
1995	The Babysitter	Bill Holsten	Video
1995	The Feminine Touch	Senator "Beau" Ashton	Video
1995	Deep Down	Gil	Video
1996	It's My Party	Paul Stark
1996	Flirting with Disaster	Ed Coplin
1996	The Cable Guy	Steven's Father
1996	The Mirror Has Two Faces	Henry Fine
2005	Heights	Rabbi Mendel
2005	Chutzpuh, This Is?	Dr. Dreck	Short film
2005	Dinotopia: Quest for the Ruby Sunstone	Albagon	Video Voice
2007	Three Days to Vegas	Dominic Spinuzzi
2007	My Wife Is Retarded	Julie's father	Short film
2009	2012	Tony Delgatto
2009	Made for Each Other	Mr. Jacobs
2010	Love and Other Drugs	Dr. James Randall
2010	Ollie Klublershturf vs. the Nazis	Elliott Klublershturf	Short film
2014	The Tale of the Princess Kaguya	Inbe no Akita	English dub Voice
2014	Elsa & Fred	John

Stage

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1961-1962	Gideon	Purah	Broadway
1963	Rattle of a Simple Man	Ricard	Broadway
1985	Requiem for a Heavyweight	Maish Resnick	Broadway
1993	The Fourth Wall	Roger	Chicago
1998-1999	Art	Serge	Broadway
2001	Art	Serge	West End
2007	Heroes	Gustave	Los Angeles
2007	Prophesy and Honor	Col. Sherman Moreland	Honolulu
2008	Secret Order	Saul Roth	Los Angeles

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1963	Channing	Andre	1 episode
1963	Naked City	Jerry Costell	1 episode
1963	The Alfred Hitchcock Hour	Larry Duke	1 episode
1964	Arrest and Trial	Jack Wisner	1 episode
1966	Death of a Salesman	Biff Loman	Television film
1967	The Desperate Hours	Glenn Griffin	Television film
1968	Of Mice and Men	George	Television film
1980	Winnetou le mescalero	Gottlieb	Miniseries
1982	Deadly Game	Howard Trapp	Television film
1983	Trackdown: Finding the Goodbar Killer	John Grafton	Television film
1984	The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood	Robin Hood	Television film
1984	The Cold Room	Hugh Martin	Television film
1985	Not My Kid	Dr. Frank Bower	Television film
1986	Many Happy Returns	William "Bud" Robinson	Television film
1987	Take Five	Andy Kooper	Series regular 6 episodes
1988-1989	Murphy's Law	Daedalus Patrick Murphy	Series regular 12 episodes
1989	The Endless Game	Mr. Miller	Miniseries 2 episodes
1993	Murder, She Wrote	Dave Novaro	1 episode
1993	Taking the Heat	Kepler	Television film
1993-1995	The Larry Sanders Show	Himself	2 episodes
1994	Seasons of the Heart	Ezra Goldstein	Television film
1994	Following Her Heart	Harry	Television film
1994	High Tide	Gordon	6 episodes
1994	Picture Windows	Ted Varnas	Miniseries 1 episode
1994	Burke's Law	Ben Zima	1 episode
1994	Aaahh!!! Real Monsters	J.B.	Voice 1 episode
1995-1997	The Naked Truth	Fred Wilde	4 episodes
1996	The Making of a Hollywood Madam	Leo	Television film
1996-1997	The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest	Dr. Benton C. Quest	Voice 24 episodes
1997	Tracey Takes On...	Harry Rosenthal	5 episodes
1997	Caroline in the City	Bob Anderson	1 episode
1997-2003	Just Shoot Me!	Jack Gallo	Series regular 148 episodes
1998	Houdini	Martin Beck	Television film
2000	The Linda McCartney Story	Lee Eastman	Television film
2001	The Zeta Project	Dr. Eli Zelig	1 episode Voice
2003	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Dr. Roger Tate	1 episode
2003	The Electric Piper	Mayor Nick Dixon	Television film Voice
2005	Fielder's Choice	JD	Television film
2007	Private Practice	Wendell Parker	1 episode
2007	The War at Home	Sid	1 episode
2007	Billy & Mandy's Big Boogey Adventure	Horror	Voice Television film
2008	Boston Legal	Paul Cruickshank	1 episode
2009	Pushing Daisies	Roy "Buster" Bustamante	1 episode
2009	Entourage	Murray Berenson	3 episodes
2010	Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated	Peter Trickell	Voice 1 episode
2011-2012	Retired at 35	Alan Robbins	Series regular 20 episodes
2012	American Dad!	Bernie	Voice 1 episode
2013-present	The Goldbergs	Albert "Pops" Solomon	Series regular 68 episodes

Discography

Year	Title	Notes
1967	The Yama Yama Man	LP
1974	A Touch of Ragtime	LP As George Segal and the Imperial Jazzband
1987	Basin Street	LP Canadian Brass with George Segal

Awards and nominations

Film

• 1965: Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year, for The New Interns - Won (along with Chaim Topol and Harve Presnell)
• 1967: Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor, for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? - Nominated
• 1967: Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? - Nominated
• 1969: BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, for No Way to Treat a Lady - Nominated
• 1974: Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, for A Touch of Class - Won

Television

• 1983: CableAce Award for Best Actor in a Theatrical or Non-Musical Program, for Deadly Game - Nominated
• 1999: Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Television Series Musical or Comedy, for Just Shoot Me! - Nominated
• 2000: Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Television Series Musical or Comedy, for Just Shoot Me! - Nominated
• 2001: Satellite Award for Best Actor - Television Series Musical or Comedy, for Just Shoot Me! - Nominated

[ Source: Wikipedia ]