John Astin

John Allen Astin (born March 30, 1930) is an American actor who has appeared in numerous films and television series, as well as a television director and voice artist and is known for the role of Gomez Addams on The Addams Family, and having been married to actress Patty Duke. Astin was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film for his directorial debut, a comedic short film entitled Prelude (1968). 2Early years Astin was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to Margaret Linnie (née Mackenzie) and Dr. Allen Varley Astin, who was the director of the National Bureau of Standards (now the National Institute of Standards and Technology). At that time, Astin and his family resided on Battery Lane in Bethesda, Maryland. He graduated from Johns Hopkins University in 1952, after transferring from Washington & Jefferson College. He studied mathematics at Washington & Jefferson and then drama at Johns Hopkins; he was a member of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity at Johns Hopkins. 2Career Astin started in theater, making his first Broadway appearance as an understudy in Major Barbara, and also did voice-over work for commercials. His first big break in film came with a small role in West Side Story (1961). During this period, his talent for also playing comedy was spotted by actor Tony Randall, leading to guest starring roles on the sitcom Dennis the Menace, starring Jay North, The Donna Reed Show, and Harrigan and Son, starring Pat O'Brien, the first carried on CBS and the latter two carried on ABC. In 1961, he appeared in the final episode of the ABC police drama The Asphalt Jungl