Hal Linden

At 93 years old, Hal Linden has this physical status:

Hal Linden (born Harold Lipshitz, March 20, 1931) is an American stage and screen actor, television director and musician. Linden began his career as a big band musician and singer in the 1950s.

After a stint in the United States Army, he began an acting career where he first worked in summer stock and off-Broadway productions.

Linden found success on Broadway when he replaced Sydney Chaplin in the musical Bells Are Ringing.

In 1971, he won a Best Actor Tony Award for his portrayal of Mayer Rothschild in the musical The Rothschilds. In 1974, Linden landed his best-known role as the title character in the television comedy series Barney Miller.

The role earned him seven Primetime Emmy Award and three Golden Globe Award nominations.

During the series' run, Linden also hosted two educational series, Animals, Animals, Animals and FYI.

He won two special Daytime Emmy Awards for the latter series.

Linden won a third Daytime Emmy Award for a guest-starring role on CBS Schoolbreak Special in 1995.

Linden has since continued his career on the stage, in films and guest-starring roles on television.

He released his first album of pop and jazz standards, It's Never Too Late, in 2011.

Early life

Hal Linden was born on March 20, 1931, in The Bronx. He is the youngest son of Frances (née Rosen) and Charles Lipshitz, a Lithuanian Jew who immigrated to the United States in 1910 and later owned his own printing shop. His older brother, Bernard, became a professor of music at Bowling Green State University. Linden attended Herman Ridder Junior High School and the High School of Music and Art, going on to study music at Queens College, City University of New York. He later enrolled in Baruch College and then City College of New York where he received a Bachelor of Arts in business.

During his youth, Linden wanted to be a big band singer and bandleader. Before embarking on a career in music, he decided to change his name, stating, "'Swing and Sway with Harold Lipshitz' just didn't parse." While riding on a bus from Philadelphia to New York through the town of Linden, New Jersey, he saw the name Linden on the water tower and changed his name to Hal Linden. During the 1950s, he toured with Sammy Kaye, Bobby Sherwood, and other big bands of the era. Linden played the saxophone and clarinet and also sang.

He enlisted in the United States Army in 1952 and was sent to Fort Belvoir and played in the United States Army Band. While he was in Fort Belvoir, a friend recommended that he see the touring production of Guys and Dolls playing in Washington, D.C. After seeing the show, Linden decided to become an actor. He was discharged from the Army in 1954.

Personal life

Linden is the spokesman for the Jewish National Fund, a position he has held since 1997.

Linden met dancer Fran Martin while doing summer stock in 1955. They married in 1958 and had four children. Martin died in 2010.

In 1984, Linden narrated a short film on former President Harry S. Truman, which was shown during that year's Democratic National Convention.

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Career

In 1958, Linden replaced Sydney Chaplin in the Broadway production of Bells Are Ringing. In 1962, Billy Crocker appeared in Cole Porter's Anything Goes' revival, he made a further breakthrough.

Linden's career slowed in the 1960s. During this period, he dubbed English dialogue for many foreign films, did voiceover work for commercials, and sang jingles, and appeared in industrial musicals such as Diesel Dazzle (1966). In the 1970s, his career as Mayer Rothschild in the 1971 film The Rothschilds was revived. He was given the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his part. He co-starred opposite Tony Lo Bianco in the NBC television film Mr. Inside/Mr. Other people have left the country. The film was supposed to be the pilot for a new series but it was not picked up by the network.

Linden debuted in Barney Miller's ABC television sitcom Barney Miller in 1974. In Greenwich Village, New York City, he portrayed the eponymous captain of the 12th Precinct. He received seven Emmy Award nominations for his role on the show, one for each season. Linden is tied for the most Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Emmy Award nominations without ever winning. He has also received four Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy. The series ran from 1975 to 1982. Linden later said that leaving Broadway to work on Barney Miller was his most irrational move and also one of his best decisions.

Linden was both the narrator and host of the ABC children's show Animals, Animals, and FYI during Barney Miller's reign. For his host duties on FYI, he received two Daytime Emmys for Outstanding Individual Achievement. In 1984 and 1985, there was a gap between 1984 and 1985.

Linden appeared in many television shows, including "Doing It!" after Barney Miller's departure in 1982.

I Do!

(1982), the television adaptation of the musical of the same name, and Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983). He was also the first choice of the producers for the starring role of Dr. Donald Westphall in St. Petersburg in 1982. Elsewhere, when the role was immediately given to Ed Flanders because he wanted to get a break from television, Elsewhere. He appeared in the television film Second Edition in 1984. The film was supposed to be a series but CBS was not interested in it. In the television biopic My Wicked Ways: The Legend of Errol Flynn, Linden portrayed studio head Jack L. Warner the following year.

Linden returned to episodic television in the NBC series Blacke's Magic in 1986. Alexander Blacke, a magician who solves mysteries with the support of his father Leonard (Harry Morgan), a retired carnival magician and often confidence man, was the lead character. After 13 episodes, the show was cancelled. He appeared in the romantic comedy A New Life, directed by Alan Alda, in 1988. Linden tried his luck on television once more in 1992, with the leading role in the comedy-drama series Jack's Place. Linden portrayed Jack Evans, a former jazz musician who ran a restaurant that was frequented by patrons who learned lessons about love. Critics often compared the show to The Love Boat because it featured a different weekly guest star. The series premiered as a mid-season replacement, but ABC's ratings were strong enough to order additional episodes. Viewership soon decreased and ABC decided not to continue the program in 1993. Linden appeared in the CBS sitcom The Boys Are Back next year. After 18 episodes, the series was also low rated and cancelled. Linden received his third Daytime Emmy Award in 1995 for his 1994 guest-starring role as Rabbi Markovitz on CBS Schoolbreak Special.

Linden appeared in the television film The Colony in 1996, opposite John Ritter and June Lockhart. Linden played the villainous head of a home owner's association of a gated community in a twist. He appeared in the last The Rockford Files reunion TV film, The Rockford Files: If It Bleeds, 1999. It Leads. Touched by an Angel, The King of Queens, Gilmore Girls, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and Hot in Cleveland continued his work in the late 1990s and 2000s with guest appearances on Touched by an Angel, King of Queens, and Hot in Cleveland. He also narrated episodes of Biography and The American Experience, as well as appeared in "Dr. Selig" on the animated film "The Zeta Project. Linden was named a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs, California, Walk of Stars in 2002.

Linden's career progressed to a regular stage career. In 2009, he appeared in the Toronto production of Tuesdays with Morrie. He appeared in On Golden Pond, the Colony Theatre's production in July 2011. Linden appeared in a touring production of Shine in 2011 starring local professional talent. Linden appeared in Under My Skin, which premiered at the Pasadena Playhouse on September 19, 2012, and ran through October 2012. Linden appeared as a rabbi in a season eight episode of Supernatural in 2013. Linden appeared in an episode of the comedy series 2 Broke Girls in 2014. In 2015, he appeared in the West Coast premiere of The Twenty Seventh Man starring Yevgeny Zunser.

Linden revived his music career with a nightclub appearance after Barney Miller's success. Linden performed the clarinet, performed pop and Broadway standards backed by a big band, and talked about his life and career in his act.

In March 2011, he began touring with Hal Linden's show An Evening: I'm Old Fashioned. The program, which lasted from 2012 to 2012, was later released on DVD. Linden's debut, It's Never Too Late, was released in April 2011. Linden began recording a set of jazz, Broadway, and pop songs while touring in the early 1980s. He shelved the songs due to a lack of passion. Linden ended the album on Linden's tour guide's recommendation.

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