Hal Holbrook was an Emmy and Tony Award-winning actor, renowned for his mastery of stage and screen. He is most recognized for his iconic portrayal of Mark Twain, earning a Tony Award and his first of ten Emmy Award nominations.
Aside from his stage work, Holbrook made a lasting impact on television, with memorable performances as Abraham Lincoln, Senator Hays Stowe on The Bold Ones: The Senator, and Capt. Lloyd Bucher on Pueblo. These roles garnered him multiple Emmy Awards, including Best Lead Actor in a Drama and Actor of the Year - Special for Pueblo.
Holbrook's remarkable career continued with his supporting turn in Into the Wild, earning him the distinction of being the oldest male performer ever nominated for an Academy Award, at the age of 83.
Born Harold Rowe Holbrook, Jr. on February 17, 1925, in Cleveland, Ohio, to Eileen (Davenport),a vaudeville dancer, and Harold Rowe Holbrook, Sr., Hal was raised primarily in South Weymouth, Massachusetts, by his paternal grandparents. He attended the Culver Academies and later Denison University, graduating in 1948.
During World War II, Holbrook served in the Army in Newfoundland, before pursuing his passion for acting. He honed his craft by appearing in the TV soap opera The Brighter Day and developed his iconic one-man show, "Mark Twain Tonight!", which premiered in 1954.
Holbrook's portrayal of Mark Twain as a solo act sparked international acclaim, leading to an international tour sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and appearances in Iron Curtain countries. He brought the show to Off-Broadway in 1959 and later reprised it on Broadway in 1966, earning a Tony Award, and again in 1977 and 2005.
Throughout his illustrious career, Holbrook took on a wide range of roles, including "The Major" in the original Broadway production of Arthur Miller's "Incident at Vichy", Martin Sheen's significant other in the TV movie That Certain Summer, and Abraham Lincoln in Carl Sandburg's acclaimed TV biography. He also portrayed the enigmatic "Deep Throat" in All the President's Men and had a regular supporting role in the TV series Evening Shade.
Hal Holbrook passed away on January 23, 2021, at the age of 95, in Beverly Hills, California. He was buried in McLemoresville Cemetery in Tennessee alongside his wife, Dixie Carter.
