Trivia
He did not sign on to play Hawkeye Pierce on "M*A*S*H" (1972) until 6 hours before filming began on the pilot episode.
He commuted from LA to his home in New Jersey every weekend for 11 years while starring in "M*A*S*H" (1972). His wife and daughters lived in NJ, and he did not want to uproot the family to LA, especially because he did not know how long the show would last.
Alan, Robert and Antony appeared together in an episode of "M*A*S*H" (1972), "Lend a Hand" during season 8. Robert had previously appeared in "The Consultant" in season 3.
Alda almost turned down the role of Hawkeye Pierce on "M*A*S*H" (1972) because he did not want war to be a "backdrop for lighthearted high jinks... I wanted to show that the war was a bad place to be."
Suffered from bad case of Polio as a young child. At its worst point he was only able to move his left arm.
1975 People's Choice Award: Favourite Male TV-Performer
Studied at Fordham University in New York
Earned a reported $200,000 a week for "M*A*S*H" (1972) in 1980.
"If you work very, very hard, this is the kind of actor, writer, and director you may turn out to be. And if you work extra hard, this is the kind of person you may turn out to be." - James Lipton, to students at New School University, where Alda gave an interview.
To show the horrors of war in a television sit-com, Alda had it written into his contract that one scene of every episode must take place in the operating room while surgery occured.
Is the only person ever to win an Emmy for acting, writing, and directing.
Studied at the Sorbonne during his junior year of college.
Served in the U. S. Army, and he went AWOL every weekend because he was dating the woman that he ultimately married, Arlene.
He was once selected as the most believable actor in the U. S.
Once did a cartwheel down the aisle while on his way to accept an award that he had just won.
Earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Fordham University (New York City, USA) in 1956.
Attended Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, NY.
Was one of the actors considered to play President Bartlett on "The West Wing" (1999). Alda later landed the role of Sen. Arnold Vinick in 2004 on that series.
19 October 2003 - Underwent emergency surgery in La Serena, Chile to clear an intestinal obstruction.
Has succeeded Donald Sutherland in two roles: Hawkeye Pierce in "M*A*S*H" (1972), and Flan in Six Degrees of Separation. He played the latter part in an Audio Books recording.
Was the only actor to appear in every episode of "M*A*S*H" (1972).
Biography in: "Who's Who in Comedy" by Ronald L. Smith; pg. 7-8. New York: Facts on File, 1992. ISBN 0816023387
With the exception of taking a course in "Theater Games", he's never studied acting. His degree from Fordham University is in English. He felt that he was a natural performer and that studying would ruin his gift for being natural.
His favorite curseword is "horse". It stems from an outburst he once had on a set, where he went through every obscenity he could think of, then unable to come up with anymore, he loudly stated "Horse!". According to Alda, it has since become his favorite curse.
He is an Italian-American.
Has been nominated three times for Broadway's Tony Award: in 1967, as Best Actor (Musical) for "The Apple Tree," in 1992, as Best Actor (Play) for "Jake's Women." and in 2005 as Best Performance by a featured actor (Play) for "Glengarry Glen Ross"
He has twice played characters from Maine, from opposite ends of the ethical spectrum. In "M*A*S*H" he was noble surgeon Hawkeye Pierce, whose hometown was Crabapple Cove, Maine. In "The Aviator" he played corrupt U.S. Sen. Ralph Owen Brewster, nemesis of Howard Hughes. The author of the original "M*A*S*H" books, Maine doctor Richard Hornberger (writing as Richard Hooker) based the Pierce character on himself but was said to dislike the TV version of his story as overly moralistic. As for Sen. Brewster, whose smarmy hypocrisy was well-depicted by Alda, he was booted out of the Senate by Maine voters in the next Republican primary.
Briefly considered a run for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in New Jersey after Bill Bradley announced his retirement in 1995.
Has the distinction of playing three U.S. Senators; Senator Joe Tynan in "The Seduction of Joe Tynan"(1979), (real life) Senator Ralph Owen Brewster in "The Aviator" (2004) and Senator Arnold Vinick in "The West Wing"(2004-present). Furthermore, he received an Oscar nomination for his performance in "The Aviator."
He and Loretta Swit were the only two to appear in both the pilot episode of M*A*S*H and in the final show.
Was the commencement speaker at Caltech's 108th commencement in June 2002.
Born 5:07 AM.
Richard Hooker, who wrote the novel on which the film and TV versions of M*A*S*H were based, did not like the TV series and in particular, he did not like Alda's portrayal of Hawkeye Pierce.
Quotes
"Il n'est pas nécessaire d'être riche et célèbre pour être heureux. Il suffit d'être riche."
"Je n'ai jamais voulu être célèbre, déclare-t-il. Je voulais seulement être très très bon dans mon travail. Bien que je réalisais que si je l'étais, alors je deviendrais célèbre, ce qui m'a toujours semblé un peu absurde"
> Your personnal space
