Overview (3)

Mini Bio (1)

Dark haired, usually mustachioed US actor with a cheeky grin who achieved pop culture status through his portrayal of the kooky patriarch "Gomez Addams" in the hit TV series The Addams Family (1964), John Astin was born March 30, 1930, in Baltimore, MD. He attended Johns Hopkins University and studied mathematics. However he discovered a passion for the theater and began performing in minor plays and doing voice-over work for commercials. He first got noticed in 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 O'Hare (1971), playing a grizzled but not particularly bright gunfighter in the western spoof Evil Roy Slade (1972), an appearance in the Disney comedy Freaky Friday (1976) and dual roles in National Lampoon's European Vacation (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 The Addams Family (1992), and then played "Grandpa Addams" in the short-lived TV series The New Addams Family (1998). In addition, Astin has contributed voices to several animated shows, and still regularly appears in films.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: firehouse44@hotmail.com

Spouse (3)

Trade Mark (3)

His role as Gomez Addams.



His mustache



Radio disc jockey voice



Trivia (27)

His father, Dr. Allen Varley Astin, was the fifth Director of the National Bureau of Standards.



He and his wife Valerie are leaders of a Buddhist group in Santa Monica, California.





Grandfather of actress Ali Astin , Elizabeth Louise Astin, Isabella Louise Astin, Sedona Astin and Jaya Astin.



Has appeared in three separate episodes of Night Gallery (1969). During each episode, his character was killed, and during two episodes, his character found himself in Hell. Also directed three episodes of the show.

Biography in: "Who's Who in Comedy" by Ronald L. Smith. pg. 31-32. New York: Facts on File (1992). ISBN 0816023387.





Is a visiting theater professor at Johns Hopkins University. His new facility is the "Old Barn", former home of Theater Hopkins, a top-scale community theater outfit. Astin won rave reviews for his portrayal of the Stage Manager in a performance of "Our Town" with Hopkins as well as for a recent portrayal of Edgar Allan Poe



Has twice played father to Jodie Foster . They appeared together as father and daughter in the Disney comedy Freaky Friday (1976). On the live-action sitcom The Addams Family (1964), John plays Gomez Addams. On an animated series in the early 1970s, Jodie voiced Pugsley Addams.



He and his son Sean have both appeared in films that won Best Picture, four decades apart. John had a small role in West Side Story (1961), while Sean had a lead role in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Attended Washington and Jefferson College, graduated from Johns Hopkins University and did graduate work at the University of Minnesota.



Brother of Alexander W. Astin, professor emeritus at UCLA who is considered one of the most influential scholars in the field of higher education research.





Best remembered by the public for his starring role as Gomez Addams on The Addams Family (1964).

During a speech given at Booker High School in Sarasota, Florida, he told the crowd of students that he never has, and never will watch any of the new Addams Family films. He did not give his reasons why.





Is a huge fan of the works of Edgar Allan Poe , and studies Poe's works extensively. He has regularly attended Baltimore's yearly celebration of Poe's birthday.



Son Sean Astin is not his biological child. He is ex-wife Patty Duke 's son with her ex-husband Michael Tell. Duke claimed Sean's biological father was John Astin until the two blood-tested in 1990 and this became clear that Tell was the father.

He and his wife Valerie have resided in the Tuscany-Canterbury area of Baltimore, Maryland for the past five years. [July 2007]



After working as a visiting professor at Johns Hopkins University, teaching acting and directing in the Department of Writing Seminars in the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, became a full-time professor. In 2005, he was made the head of the theater arts program at Johns Hopkins University and created the theater arts minor, teaching an average of eight classes a year and directing student productions. In 2011, Hopkins Merrick Red Barn theater was renovated and renamed in his honor. At the reopening ceremony, he was unaware that the theater had been renamed and surprised by his sons Sean and Mackenzie Astin and friend Ed Asner during the event.





Has played the Riddler, replacing Frank Gorshin , in a two-part episode of the Batman (1966) television series.

Following the passing of Eartha Kitt in 2008, he became the oldest surviving actor to play a main - i.e Catwoman, Joker, Penguin, Riddler - Batman villain.



Personal Quotes (24)



[on filming The Addams Family (1964)] Sometimes it was tough doing take after take upside down! I did a lot of that sort of thing.

I figure I basically am a ghost. I think we all are.



I get into certain yoga positions at times, when I'm working out and for exercises. I use a little of it in some of my meditation, but I chant now and that sort of replaced it.



Poe was a student of many things, and among those things he read and referred to in his work was the Bible.



People are transported to that space that Poe wanted to make available to us.



I think people really want to be happy.



I love to play for audiences that are simply made of people rather than so-called special people.



There are things so deep and complex that only intuition can reach it in our stage of development as human beings. And to Poe... well, a great logician could be an enemy to him, what he called conventional world reason.



One life is worth the universe. Poe was able to go right into the very depth of life and to demonstrate this.



I think Poe had a mission to tell us what it's all about. To answer some of the great questions of life.



We are running ourselves into a damaged earth. But I am optimistic. I believe that we can change; we must change. As a human race, we are very young and quite primitive. The sooner we learn the greatness of humanity the better off we will all be.



The feedback that I get from my association with Gomez is heartwarming. It is very difficult for me to take anything but a positive view of the Gomez phenomenon.



People are smarter than you might think.



I got things like the lotus position long before anybody else did, or at least in the mainstream. But I had fun. I guess my legs are pretty flexible, so I used to get a kick out of doing things like that. I would get into a full lotus with my legs and then roll around.



One of the great things about being recognized is that you receive this feedback from people. It is easy to see how sincere people are. It's nothing fake or jive. They're giving sincere appreciation. And it's not that easy to express.



At a certain point he was very popular, from "The Raven". He was never fully appreciated, never made the money, and you know he was looked upon with admiration by some people, but also as an oddball. But that was his point.



My work is to reach people with ideas, hopes, dreams, encouragement, insight, and revelation. That's what an actor wants to do.



There was one where Gomez was on a Trapeze hanging by the legs upside down. I remember how much the backs of my knees would hurt until I got used to it. It was hard.



United Artists wanted to do records with me. I had no idea, what a rare thing that was... to make an album. And they put a guy with me working on songs, and I got busy with films. I just kind of let it slide. Isn't that amazing?



I guess one of the reasons I'm doing the Poe piece is that I think Poe demonstrates that no matter how difficult things are, if you continue to move forward in life, you can eventually become victorious, even if it's later in life.



The themes Poe used were universal and timeless. As long as the English language exists at all, we will be able to appreciate what he did. It will not age! It will not become dated!



My background is basically scientific math. My dad was a physicist, so I have it in my blood somewhere. Scientific method is very important to me. I think anything that contradicts it is probably not true.



Sometimes when I see a performance that really takes me, I struggle. How can I express this to this person, I want this person to know how I felt. I want to get this across, and it's not very easy.



It is important to me that what Poe has to say gets across to people. I want to give people the feeling that I get from all this. I think that we are succeeding. The feedback is very warm.

