Walter Matthau

• Born: October 1, 1920
• Birthplace: New York, New York
• Died: July 1, 2000
• Place of death: Santa Monica, California

Actor and entertainer

A clever actor with a rubbery face, Matthau had roles that ranged from dramatic to comic.

Early Life

Walter Matthau (MA-thow) was born October 1, 1920, to Melas Matthow from Kiev, Ukraine, and Rose Berolsky from Lithuania. Matthau’s parents had settled in the lower East Side of New York after immigrating in the early 1900’s. They had one older son, Henry, born in 1918. Melas left his family in 1923. Overbearing, stern, and mentally unstable, Rose worked in sweatshops but struggled financially; as a result, both boys lacked security and self-confidence. Matthau did odd jobs to help, and he began gambling, setting up games in which he could increase his small earnings. The gambling would become a lifelong addiction.

Matthau’s schooling was comparatively stable. He attended Public School 25, Junior High 64, and Seward Park High School. Bright and inquisitive, he began reading, memorizing, and quoting the works of William Shakespeare by age seven. He also had an enduring love for classical music, especially that of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Matthau’s activities in high school included running track, speaking at student assemblies, performing for other students, reciting literature, and writing poetry.

Matthau’s theater involvement began early. He appeared in various local productions, starting at age four. He was especially involved in the Yiddish theater, at which time he taught himself Yiddish, sold refreshments, and learned through observation. His first important role was in The Dishwasher, which opened on December 1, 1931, at the Second Avenue Theater. While working in small parts, Matthau had the chance to study with Michael Rosenberg, whom Matthau credited with developing his comic timing. To make a living, Matthau also worked for the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Works Project Administration.

In April, 1942, Matthau joined the United States Army Air Corps to save his brother from the draft. During Matthau’s time in France and England, where he worked as a gunner and a radio operator, Matthau gained the rank of sergeant, but he lacked leadership abilities. He was discharged on October 15, 1945.

There were three romantic involvements in the early part of Matthau’s life. Anna Berger, a platonic girlfriend from the neighborhood, was influential in encouraging his acting. His first major love affair was with Charlotte Haverly, whom he met while in the military. They dated on and off for several years. His first marriage was to Geraldine (Geri) Grace Johnson. He met Geri at the Dramatic Workshop (where he changed the spelling of his last name), and they married in 1948. They had two children, David on November 2, 1953, and Jenny on August 2, 1956.

Life’s Work

Matthau’s first professional acting jobs were at summer playhouses, from 1946 to 1949. This work led to twelve Broadway shows in four years. He won a Drama Critics’ Circle Award in 1951 and received positive reviews. His first significant role was in Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?, which ran for more than four hundred performances, beginning on October 13, 1955.

While he was working on Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?, Matthau met Carol Marcus Saroyan. She played a small part in the play and was the understudy for Jayne Mansfield. Though he was still married to Geri, Matthau and Saroyan began attending social events together. He divorced his wife in 1959, and later that year, on August 21, 1959, Matthau married Saroyan.

Matthau played many supporting roles on stage, in television, and in film after Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? His early film roles included Bigger than Life (1956), A Face in the Crowd (1957), and Voice in the Mirror (1958). He also continued in smaller film roles, including Slaughter on Tenth Avenue (1957), Onionhead (1958), and King Creole (1958). In 1959, Matthau tried directing, with the film Gangster Story. Matthau won a Film Daily Award for a role he claimed as one of his favorites, a sheriff in Lonely Are the Brave (1962).

In 1961, Matthau went back to stage acting with Once There Was a Russian. The play was a flop, but it opened the door for him to once more become a more active stage persona. On October 18, 1961, he opened A Shot in the Dark. The play lasted for 389 performances and won Matthau a Tony Award as best actor, featured or supporting. Matthau’s personal life was also going well. His marriage to Saroyan thrived, and on December 10, 1962, she gave birth to their son, Charles.

The two roles that established Matthau as a major actor followed within a few years of his first Tony Award. In 1964, he landed the role of Oscar Madison in Neil Simon’s The Odd Couple, which earned him his second Tony Award and established him as a solid, money-making lead actor. This win was followed by an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in the film The Fortune Cookie (1966) opposite Jack Lemmon. In the following years, Matthau accepted a plethora of film roles. Some of the most memorable films include Hello, Dolly! (1969) with Barbra Streisand, Pete ’n’ Tillie (1972) with Carol Burnett, and The Sunshine Boys (1975) with George Burns. The hits continued with films such as The Bad News Bears (1976), Little Miss Marker (1980), I Ought to Be in Pictures (1982), Dennis the Menace (1993), and Grumpy Old Men (1993). His final film role was in Hanging Up (2000).

During his last years, Matthau suffered from serious health problems. He was on dialysis for kidney failure, he had congestive heart failure, and he had damaged vertebrae in his back. On June 30, 2000, he experienced a massive heart attack and was taken to the St. John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, California. Matthau died on July 1, 2000, and was buried in Los Angeles.

Significance

Matthau’s costars and directors often commented on his intensity in learning the acting craft. He would ask questions about how a part should be played until he was sure he could become the character. This ability to take on varied roles led to a versatile career, which included Matthau’s appearances in dramas, comedies, romances, thrillers, crime stories, family films, adventures, musicals, and fantasies. He could be a generous teacher to younger actors who wanted to learn and a harsh critic of those he believed lacked talent. However, he was well liked by most of his colleagues, and his ability to make people laugh was unparalleled.

Bibliography

Costello, Ben. Jack and Walter: The Films of Lemmon and Matthau. Chandler, Ariz.: Five Star, 2009. This easy-to-read book provides details about the films that Matthau did with Lemmon. It also includes brief biographies of the authors and a strong collection of photographs.

Edelman, Rob, and Audrey Kupferberg. Matthau: A Life. New York: Taylor, 2002. This biography counters many of the stories that Matthau made up about his background. It provides an interesting view of the real man through both biography and interviews with his childhood friends, his colleagues, and his sons.

Hunter, Allan. Walter Matthau. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1984. This unauthorized biography provides interesting insights into Matthau’s life from friends and colleagues. Hunter includes some of the outlandish stories Matthau told journalists about his life.

Matthau, Carol. Among the Porcupines: A Memoir. New York: Random House, 1992. Matthau’s wife writes her autobiography but includes amusing anecdotes about her relationship with him. Includes a nice collection of personal photos.

Rubinstein, Leslie. “One Fortunate Cookie (Walter Matthau).” American Film 8 (July/August, 1983): 34. This is a short simple biography of the actor’s life. Easy to read but limited in content.