Ron Leibman

Ronald Leibman (October 11, 1937 - December 6, 2019) was an American actor.

He won both the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play in 1993 for his performance as Roy Cohn in Angels in America. Leibman also won a Primetime Emmy Award for his role as Martin 'Kaz' Kazinsky in his short-lived crime drama series Kaz. In 1986 Leibman was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for the role of Morris Huffner in Christmas Eve. Leibman is most known for providing the voice of Ron Cadillac in Archer and for playing Dr. Leonard Green, Rachel's rich, short-tempered father, on the sitcom Friends.

Early life and education

Leibman was born to a Jewish family in New York City to Grace (née Marks) and Murray Leibman, who worked in the garment business. Leibman graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University.

Career

Leibman was a member of the Compass Players in the late 1950s, and was admitted to the Actors Studio shortly thereafter. Leibman is Jewish.

Leibman won an Emmy Award, Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series, in 1979 for his convict-turned-lawyer character in Kaz (1978–79), a series which he also created and co-wrote. He was featured as a northern Jewish union organizer in the award-winning movie Norma Rae (1979).

He co-starred with second wife Jessica Walter in Tartuffe at the Los Angeles Theatre Center in 1986, and they co-starred again in Neil Simon's play Rumors in 1988 on Broadway. They also appeared together as husband and wife in the film Dummy (2003) and in the TV series Law & Order in the episode "House Counsel" in 1995.

Leibman received a 1993 Tony Award for his performance as Roy Cohn in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Angels in America.

He played Dr. Leonard Green, Rachel Green's overbearing father, on the sitcom Friends. He had a recurring role on The Sopranos as Dr. Plepler. In 1983, Leibman starred in the Australian movie Phar Lap as David J. Davis, the owner of legendary New Zealand/Australian racehorse Phar Lap, who won the 1930 Melbourne Cup and the 1932 Agua Caliente Handicap.

In 2013, Leibman began appearing as a recurring character on the TV series Archer as Ron Cadillac. He stars as the husband to Malory Archer, voiced by his real life wife Jessica Walter.

Personal life

Leibman has been married twice. His first wife was actress Linda Lavin (1969–1981). In 1983, he married actress Jessica Walter.