Howard Witt

{{more citations needed|date=March 2009}} {{Infobox person | name = Howard Witt | birth_date = {{birth date|1932|03|13}} | birth_place = Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|2017|06|21|1932|03|13}} | death_place = Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | occupation = Actor | years_active = 1965–2017 | education = Art Institute of Chicago | spouse = | children = Robin Witt }}

'''Howard Witt''' (March 13, 1932 – June 21, 2017) was an American character actor and Chicago native who began his acting career in the Goodman Theatre.

==Early years== Witt attended Von Steuben High School<ref name=ct/> and was a drama student at Goodman School of Drama at the Art Institute of Chicago (now at DePaul University).<ref name="ci">{{cite journal |title=Howard Witt, 85 |journal=Classic Images |date=February 2018 |issue=512 |page=55}}</ref>

== Career == After Witt's career began at the Goodman Theatre,<ref name=ci/> he gained additional acting experience at the Woodstock Playhouse in New York State and at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. His Broadway performances included ''Glengarry Glen Ross''.<ref name="ct" />

After divorcing his wife in the mid-1970s, Witt moved to Hollywood. He had appeared as a guest star in many television series including ''Kojak'', ''The Bob Newhart Show'', ''Rhoda'', ''The Rockford Files'', ''Eight Is Enough'', ''WKRP in Cincinnati'', ''Alice'', ''Archie Bunker's Place'', ''Hill Street Blues'', ''Taxi'', ''Remington Steele'', ''Murder, She Wrote'', ''St. Elsewhere'', ''Knots Landing'', ''The Golden Girls'', and ''Law & Order''.<ref name="Beloved"/>

He also appeared in a few made for telefilms including Disney's ''Mr. Boogedy'' (as William Hanover/title character) and its sequel ''Bride of Boogedy'' in the late 1980s.

He was nominated for a Tony Award in 1999 for his portrayal of Charley in the Broadway revival of Arthur Miller's ''Death of a Salesman''.<ref name="observer">{{cite web|url=http://www.charlotteobserver.com/entertainment/arts-culture/article36918822.html |title=UNCC theater instructor has made a name for herself in Chicago |work=Charlotte Observer |author=Page Leggett |date=29 September 2015 |accessdate=23 June 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2002/09/21/actor-witt-is-hospitalized/ |title=Actor Witt is hospitalized |work=Chicago Tribune |date=21 September 2002 |access-date=23 June 2017 |author=Michael Phillips}}</ref> Witt is an alumnus at DePaul University's Theatre School.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.goodmantheatre.org/goodman-blog/dates/2012/5/backstage-with-fish-mens-howard-witt/|title=Backstage with Fish Men's Howard Witt - Goodman Theatre|website=www.goodmantheatre.org}}</ref>

== Personal life == He was the father of Chicago director Robin Witt, who is an associate professor of directing at University of North Carolina at Charlotte.<ref name="observer" /> He also had another daughter, Deborah, and a son, Joshua.<ref name="ct">{{cite news |last1=Jones |first1=Chris |title=Longtime stage actor in Chicago, on Broadway |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/21432528/howard_witt/ |work=Chicago Tribune |date=June 24, 2017 |location=Illinois, Chicago |page=I-1|via = Newspapers.com|accessdate = June 30, 2018}} {{Open access}}</ref>

He divorced his wife in the mid-1970s.<ref name="Beloved"/>

== Health and death == Witt had a heart attack in 2002 while he was playing the part of Kit Carson in Steppenwolf Theatre Company's production of ''The Time of Your Life''. He died in Chicago on June 21, 2017, of natural causes at the age of 85.<ref name="Beloved">{{cite web|url=http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/beloved-chicago-actor-howard-witt-dies/ |title=Beloved Chicago actor and Tony nominee Howard Witt, has died |work=Chicago Sun-Times |date=22 June 2017 |accessdate=23 June 2017}}</ref>

==Filmography== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! Notes |- |1982|| ''Lookin' to Get Out'' || Sid Dorfman - Man Interrupted by Jerry While Talking to Patti || |- |1984|| ''Sam's Son'' || Cy Martin || |- |1987|| ''The Golden Girls''|| Hunter McCoy|| episode "Diamond in the rough" |- |1991|| ''Age Isn't Everything'' || || |- |1991|| ''Law & Order'' || Gruen || episode "The Wages of Love" |}

== References == {{reflist|30em}}

== External links == *{{IMDb name|id=0936870}} *{{IBDB name}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Witt, Howard}} Category:1932 births Category:2017 deaths Category:American male television actors Category:20th-century American male actors Category:DePaul University alumni Category:American male stage actors Category:Male actors from Chicago