Dark-haired, usually-mustachioed American actor with a cheeky grin, who
achieved pop culture status through his portrayal of the kooky
patriarch "Gomez Addams" in the hit TV series Die Addams Family (1964), John Astin was
born on March 30, 1930 in Baltimore, Maryland. He studied mathematics at
Johns Hopkins University, but he discovered a passion for the theater and
began to perform in minor plays and do voice-over work for commercials. He
first got noticed thanks to a small role in West Side Story (1961),
then appeared in several other films before being cast as "Gomez
Addams". While "The Addams Family" was initially a huge hit, its
popularity petered out after two years, and Astin moved on to other
work including the offbeat Bunny und Bill (1971), playing a grizzled but not-
particularly-bright gunfighter in the Western spoof Evil Roy Slade (1972), an
appearance in the Disney comedy Ein ganz verrückter Freitag (1976) and dual roles
in Hilfe, die Amis kommen! (1985).
He has since lent his comedic talents to numerous appearances as "Dr.
Gangreen" in several corny "Killer Tomato" movies, and has contributed
his voice to recreate "Gomez Addams" in the animated series Die Addams Family (1992),
then played "Grandpa Addams" in the successful TV series Die neue Addams Familie (1998).
In addition, Astin has contributed voices to several animated shows, and he
still appears in films regularly.
