Rip Torn, best known for his Emmy Award winning role of producer Artie in The Larry Sanders Show and Zed in Men in Black and Men in Black II, has passed away.
Torn had an incredibly extensive career, including notable roles in 1959’s Pork Chop Hill with Gregory Peck, 1965’s The Cincinnati Kid with Steve McQueen, Albert Brooks’ 1991 comedy Defending Your Life, and the 2004 comedy Dodgeball. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his part as Marsh Turner in 1984’s Cross Creek opposite Mary Steenburgen. Torn also won an American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Male in a Series, and two CableACE Awards for his work on the show, and was nominated for a Satellite Award in 1997 as well. Torn was also nominated for a Tony Award in 1958 for his role in Tennessee Williams’ Sweet Bird of Youth.
Torn had been married three times and had six children. His first marriage to actress Ann Wedgeworth lasted from 1956 to 1961. They had a daughter, Danae Torn. In 1963, Torn married Geraldine Page, and they remained married until her death in 1987. They had a daughter, actress Angelica Page, and twin sons: actor Tony Torn, and Jon Torn (an assistant professor of Electronic Media and Film at Northern Arizona University. Torn married actress Amy Wright in 1989. They have two children, Katie and Claire Torn.
Rip Torn was 88 years old.