Alan Mandell

Alan Mandell
Born
Albert Mandell

(1927-12-27)December 27, 1927
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
DiedOctober 13, 2026(2026-10-13) (aged 98)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationActor

Alan Mandell (December 27, 1927 – October 13, 2026) was a Canadian-American actor best known for playing Rabbi Marshak in the Coen brothers' 2009 film A Serious Man. With several decades of experience as a stage actor, he was especially acclaimed as an interpreter of the works of Samuel Beckett.

Life and career

Albert Mandell was born into a Jewish family in Toronto, Ontario, in 1927. He acted on stage in both Canada and the United States, building a reputation in San Francisco's theater scene in the 1950s. In 1968 he legally changed his given name to Alan to avoid being confused with noted mobster Albert Anastasia.[citation needed]

Mandell's association with Beckett began in 1957, with a production of Waiting for Godot at the San Francisco Actor's Workshop. He subsequently played Lucky in a production of Godot directed by Beckett himself.

Outside of Beckett, Mandell acted in productions of Harold Pinter's No Man's Land and Arthur Miller's The Price. In 2007 he appeared as Juror #9 in a Los Angeles production of Twelve Angry Men, directed by Scott Ellis and co-starring Richard Thomas and George Wendt.

Mandell died at his home in Westwood, Los Angeles, on October 13, 2026, at the age of 98.

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1988 Illegally Yours Juror #8
1991 The Marrying Man Murch
1993 Midnight Witness Shaw
2001 Hedwig and the Angry Inch Patron at Bar Uncredited role[citation needed]
2006 Shortbus Tobias, the Mayor
2009 A Serious Man Rabbi Marshak
2013 Herblock: The Black & the White Herbert Block Documentary
2015 Addicted to Fresno Arthur Lupka
2019 Velvet Buzzsaw Ventril Dease

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1974 Great Performances District Police Inspector Episode: "Enemies"
1975 The Invisible Man Senator Baldwyn Episode: "Man of Influence"
1975 Cannon Billings Episode: "Fall Guy"
1976 The Six Million Dollar Man Technician Episode: "The Secret of Bigfoot: Part 2 "
1976 Baretta Assistant DA Merriman Episode: "The Left Hand of the Devil"
1976 Baretta Richmond Episode: "Runway Cowboy"
1977 Man from Atlantis Grant Stockwood Episode: "The Death Scouts"
1978 79 Park Avenue Dr. George Waldheim TV miniseries
1978 Eight is Enough unknown Episode: "Cinderella's Understudy"
1980 Breaking Away Pinball player Episode: "Grand Illusion"
1991 Sisters Owen Glendower Episode: "One to Grow On"
2010 Grey's Anatomy Henry Stamm Episode: "Shiny Happy People"

References

  1. ↑ Byrd, Craig (20 April 2016). "Alan Mandell Will Finish His Stage Career the Way He Started It: with a Performance of Endgame". Los Angeles. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Alan Mandell papers, 1950-2012". Online Archive of California. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  3. 1 2 McNulty, Charles (13 February 2015). "Theater pulses in Alan Mandell's veins". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  4. ↑ Rampell, Ed (11 April 2012). "Q&A: Actor Alan Mandell on Samuel Beckett". The Forward. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  5. ↑ Verini, Bob (30 March 2007). "Twelve Angry Men". Variety. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  6. ↑ Barnes, Mike (14 October 2026). "Alan Mandell, Esteemed Actor and Interpreter of Samuel Beckett Plays, Dies at 98". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 14 October 2026.