Editing Jason Robards (section)

==Career==
=== 1947–1961: Theatre debut and breakthrough ===
[[File:Maureen Stapleton Jason Robards Seven Lively Arts 1958.jpg|thumb|left|Robards and [[Maureen Stapleton]] in ''[[Toys in the Attic (play)|Toys in the Attic]]'' (Broadway, 1960)]]
Robards moved to New York City and began working on radio and stage. His first role was the 1947 short film ''Follow That Music''. He made his Broadway debut in the popular hit ''[[Stalag 17]]'', joining the cast during its run; Robards also worked as an assistant stage manager. In 1953 he appeared in ''American Gothic'' directed by Jose Quintero. Robards also began getting roles in some television dramas, such as episodes of ''The Magnavox Theatre'', ''Mama'', ''The Man Behind the Badge'', ''The Big Story'', ''Philco Television Playhouse'' (including Gore Vidal's "The Death of Billy the Kid"), ''Armstrong Circle Theatre'', ''Appointment with Adventure'', ''Justice'', ''Star Tonight'' and ''Goodyear Playhouse''.

Robards' big break was landing the starring role in [[José Quintero]]'s 1956 [[off Broadway]] theatre revival production - and the later 1960 television film - of O'Neill's ''[[The Iceman Cometh]]'', portraying the philosophical salesman Hickey; he won an [[Obie Award]] for his stage performance. He later portrayed Hickey again in another 1985 [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] revival also staged by Quintero.

Robards originated the role of Jamie Tyrone Jr. in the original Broadway production of O'Neill's [[Pulitzer Prize]]- and [[Tony Award]]-winning ''[[Long Day's Journey into Night]]'' (1956), which was also directed by Quintero and ran for 390 performances. Robards appeared alongside [[Fredric March]], [[Florence Eldridge]] and Bradfor Dillman. Robards earned the [[Theatre World Award]] for his performance and was also nominated for the [[Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.playbill.com/production/long-days-journey-into-night-helen-hayes-theatre-vault-0000004510|title= Long Day's Journey into Night (Broadway, 1956)|website= Playbill|access-date= March 17, 2024}}</ref>

Robards continued to be busy on television, guest starring in ''The Alcoa Hour'', ''Seven Lively Arts'', ''Studio One'' and ''Omnibus''.

After his Broadway success, Robards was invited to make his feature film debut in the [[Anatole Litvak]] directed drama ''[[The Journey (1959 film)|The Journey]]'' (1959) starring [[Yul Brynner]] and [[Deborah Kerr]].

He returned to Broadway acting in [[Budd Schulberg]]'s play ''[[The Disenchanted]]'', winning the [[Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play]].<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=Variety|title=The Disenchanted|page=72|date=5 November 1958|url=https://archive.org/details/variety212-1958-11/page/n73/mode/2up?}}</ref> It only had a short run but the [[Lillian Hellman]] play ''[[Toys in the Attic (play)|Toys in the Attic]]'' (1960), where Robards acted  opposite [[Maureen Stapleton]] and [[Irene Worth]], ran 456 performances. For the role he was nominated for the [[Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.playbill.com/production/toys-in-the-attic-hudson-theatre-vault-0000005847|title= Toys in the Attic (Broadway, 1960)|website= Playbill|access-date= March 17, 2024}}</ref>

Robards starred in the TV version of ''[[For Whom the Bell Tolls (Playhouse 90)|For Whom the Bell Tolls]]'' for ''[[Playhouse 90]]'', ''Billy Budd'' for ''[[The Dupont Show of the Month]]'', ''A Doll's House'', and ''[[The Iceman Cometh (The Play of the Week)|The Iceman Cometh]]''.<ref>{{cite news|title=Great Hemingway Role Falls To Robards|newspaper=The Hartford Courant|date=March 8, 1959|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/60619068/great-hemingway-role-falls-to-robards/|via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref>

In 1961 Robards starred in ''[[Big Fish, Little Fish]]'' by Hugh Wheeler directed by John Gielgud.<ref>Hampton, Wilborn. [https://www.nytimes.com/1987/07/28/obituaries/hugh-wheeler-award-winning-playwright.html Obituary: "Hugh Wheeler, Award Winning Playwright"], ''The New York Times'', July 28, 1987, retrieved March 14, 2014</ref> This was followed by the enormously popular Broadway hit ''[[A Thousand Clowns (play)|A Thousand Clowns]]'' (1962–63) by Herb Gardner. In Hollywood Robarts appeared in two flop films, ''[[By Love Possessed (film)|By Love Possessed]]'' (1961) and ''[[Tender Is the Night (film)|Tender is the Night]]'' (1962).<ref>{{cite book|page=65|url=https://archive.org/details/hollywoodhaunted0000unse_r7i7/page/65/mode/1up?q=%22by+love+possessed%22|title= hollywood the haunted house|year=1967|first=Paul|last=Mayersberg}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Henry|last=King|title=Henry King, director : from silents to ʼscope|year=1995|publisher= Directors Guild of America|url=https://archive.org/details/henrykingdirecto00king/page/186/mode/1up?|page=186|isbn=978-1-882766-03-1 }}</ref>

=== 1962–1980: Film stardom and acclaim ===
[[File:Jason Robards-1968-1.jpg|thumb|upright|right|Robards in a publicity photo for ''[[Once Upon a Time in the West]]'' (1968)]]
He became a familiar face to movie audiences throughout the 1960s. He repeated his role in ''Long Day's Journey into Night'' in the [[Long Day's Journey into Night (1962 film)|1962 film]] and played playwright [[George S. Kaufman]] in the film ''[[Act One (film)|Act One]]'' (1963) based on the [[Moss Hart]] [[Act One (play)|play of the same name]]. In the latter Robards acted alongside [[George Hamilton (actor)|George Hamilton]], [[George Segal]], [[Jack Klugman]] and [[Eli Wallach]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/66776/act-one#overview|title= Act One (1963)|website= [[Turner Classic Movies]]|access-date= March 17, 2024}}</ref>

Robards returned to Broadway to appear in two plays directed by Elia Kazan, Arthur Miller's ''[[After the Fall (play)|After the Fall]]'' (1964) and S.N. Behrman's ''But For Whom Charlie'' (1964). Roberts was also in Eugene O'Neil's ''[[Hughie]]'' (1964) directed by Quintero

In films, Robards played ''[[Abe Lincoln in Illinois (Hallmark Hall of Fame)|Abe Lincoln in Illinois]]'' (1964) for television and Murray Burns in the comedy-drama ''[[A Thousand Clowns (film)|A Thousand Clowns]]'' (1965) repeating his stage performance, for which he was nominated for the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy]]. He was in two episodes of ''[[Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre]]'' including an adaptation of ''[[One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich]]''.

His films included ''[[Big Hand for the Little Lady]]'' (1966), a comedy Western, and ''[[Any Wednesday (film)|Any Wednesday]]'' (1966), an adaptation of a popular Broadway hit. Robards did ''[[Noon Wine]]'' (1966) for [[Sam Peckinpah]] on television, the film that revived Peckinpah's career.<ref>{{cite book |first=Garner |last=Simmons| title=Peckinpah, A Portrait in Montage| publisher=University of Texas Press |year = 1982|pages=76–79 | isbn= 0-292-76493-6}}</ref> On Broadway he was in ''[[The Devils (play)|The Devils]]'' (1966), which only had a short run.

In 1967 Robards portrayed [[Doc Holliday]] in the western film ''[[Hour of the Gun]]'' and played [[Al Capone]] in ''[[The St. Valentine's Day Massacre (film)|The St. Valentine's Day Massacre]]''. That same year he acted in ''[[Divorce American Style]]'' acting alongside [[Dick Van Dyke]], [[Debbie Reynolds]], [[Van Johnson]], and [[Jean Simmons]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/23748/divorce-american-style#overview|title= Divorce American Style (1967)|website= TCM|access-date= March 17, 2024}}</ref>

The following year he played Manuel "Cheyenne" Gutiérrez in the [[Sergio Leone]] western film ''[[Once Upon a Time in the West]]'' (1968). He acted opposite [[Henry Fonda]], [[Charles Bronson]], and [[Claudia Cardinale]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/4751/once-upon-a-time-in-the-west#overview|title= Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)|website= TCM|access-date= March 17, 2023}}</ref> That year he also acted in the [[William Friedkin]] directed musical comedy ''[[The Night They Raided Minsky's]]'' (1968) and the biographical drama ''[[Isadora (film)|Isadora]]''.

Robards did ''The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'' for television and on  Broadway Robards was in ''[[We Bombed in New Haven]]'' (1968) a play by Joseph Heller.

Robards acted in the 1970 film ''[[Tora! Tora! Tora!]]'', a depiction of the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, that led the United States into World War II.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tora_tora_tora|title= Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)|website= [[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date= February 10, 2024}}</ref> Robards played Brutus in ''[[Julius Caesar (1970 film)|Julius Caesar]]'' (1970) opposite Charlton Heston, did ''[[Rosolino Paternò, soldato...]]'' (1970) in Italy and played the lead in ''[[The Ballad of Cable Hogue]]'' (1970) for Peckinpah.  Robards starred in ''[[Fools (1970 film)|Fools]]'' (1970),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/fools-1971|title=Reviews : Fools|author=[[Roger Ebert]]|website=RogerEbert.com|publisher=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]|date=February 15, 1971}}</ref> ''[[Johnny Got His Gun (film)|Johnny Got His Gun]]'' (1971), ''[[Murders in the Rue Morgue (1971 film)|Murders in the Rue Morgue]]'' (1971) for AIP, and ''[[The War Between Men and Women]]'' (1972). On television he did ''[[The House Without a Christmas Tree]]'' (1972), ''[[The Thanksgiving Treasure]]'' and ''Old Faithful'' (1973).

Robards continued to appear on Broadway in revivals such as ''The Country Girl'' (1972) and ''[[A Moon for the Misbegotten]]'' (1973). He repeated his performance in ''Moon'' for television in 1975.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Voglino |first=Barbara |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NDS1Ttk6ddIC&dq=%22Jason+Robards%22+%22A+Moon+for+the+Misbegotten%22&pg=PA112 |title=Perverse Mind: Eugene O'Neill's Struggle with Closure |date=1999 |publisher=Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press |isbn=978-0-8386-3833-0 |pages=112 |language=en}}</ref>

Robards had a small role in Peckinpah's ''[[Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid]]'' (1973). He was also in ''[[A Boy and His Dog (1975 film)|A Boy and His Dog]]'' (1975), ''[[The Easter Promise]]'' (1975), ''[[Mr. Sycamore]]'' (1975), and ''[[Addie and the King of Hearts]]'' (1976).

Robards appeared in two dramatizations based on the [[Watergate scandal]]; in 1976, he portrayed ''[[Washington Post]]'' executive editor [[Ben Bradlee]] in the film ''[[All the President's Men (film)|All the President's Men]]'', based on [[All the President's Men|the book]] by [[Carl Bernstein]] and [[Bob Woodward]]. He won the [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor]], denying [[Network (1976 film)|''Network'']] a chance to sweep all four acting categories (something only [[Humphrey Bogart]] had done previously). The next year, he played fictional president Richard Monckton (based on [[Richard Nixon]]) in the 1977 television miniseries ''[[Washington: Behind Closed Doors]]'', based on [[John Ehrlichman]]'s ''[[roman à clef]]'' ''[[The Company (Ehrlichman novel)|The Company]]''.

Robards was reunited with O'Neill and Quintero for ''[[A Touch of the Poet]]'' on stage in 1977. He was alson in ''[[The Spy Who Never Was]]'' (1977), ''[[Julia (1977 film)|Julia]]'' (1977), ''[[Comes a Horseman]]'' (1978), ''[[A Christmas to Remember (1978 film)|A Christmas to Remember]]'' (1978), ''[[Hurricane (1979 film)|Hurricane]]'' (1979), ''[[Caboblanco|Cabo Blanco]]'' (1980), ''[[Haywire (1980 film)|Haywire]]'' (1980) (as [[Leland Hayward]], ''[[F.D.R.: The Last Year]]'' (1980), ''[[Raise the Titanic (film)|Raise the Titanic]]'' (1980), ''[[Melvin and Howard]]'' (1980) (as [[Howard Hughes]]), and ''[[The Legend of the Lone Ranger]]'' (1981).<ref>At the Movies: The Man Who Made 'Klute' Directs Jane Fonda as a Rancher
Flatley, Guy. New York Times 3 June 1977: 26.</ref><ref>Movies: Bronson: After 62 films, still the reliable pro Siskel, Gene. Chicago Tribune 7 Sep 1980: d3.</ref> On stage, Robards was in ''Hughie'' (1981). Robard's performance in ''Melvin and Howard'' earned him another Oscar nomination.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Society |first=Eugene O'Neill |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sNAZ2KjFf64C&q=%20%22Hughie%22 |title=Jason Robards Remembered: Essays and Recollections |date=2002-04-03 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-0-7864-1356-0 |pages=202 |language=en}}</ref>

=== 1981–1999: Established actor and final roles ===
Robards had lead roles in ''[[Max Dugan Returns]]'' (1983) by [[Neil Simon]] and ''[[Something Wicked This Way Comes (film)|Something Wicked This Way Comes]]'' (1983) from the novel by [[Ray Bradbury]]. He played Dr. Russell Oakes in the 1983 television film ''[[The Day After]]''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lipschutz |first=Ronnie D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Iy_i0-PZX3IC&dq=%22Jason+Robards%22+%22the+day+after%22&pg=PA95 |title=Cold War Fantasies: Film, Fiction, and Foreign Policy |date=2001 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-0-7425-1052-4 |pages=95 |language=en}}</ref>

In 1983 Robards appeared in a popular Broadway revival of ''[[You Can't Take It with You (play)|You Can't Take It With You]]'', a 1985 revival of ''The Iceman Cometh'' with Quintero and ''A Month of Sundays'' (1987) directed by [[Gene Saks]]. Robards appeared in the lead role of James Tyrone Sr., in a 1988 production of ''Long Day's Journey into Night'' directed by Quintero.

For television Robards did ''[[Sakharov (film)|Sakharov]]'' (1984), ''[[The Atlanta Child Murders (miniseries)|The Atlanta Child Murders]]'' (1984), ''[[The Long Hot Summer (1985 film)|The Long Hot Summer]]'' (1985), ''Johnny Bull'' (1986), ''[[The Last Frontier (miniseries)|The Last Frontier]]'' (1986), ''[[Laguna Heat]]'' (1987), ''Breaking Home Ties'' (1987), ''[[Inherit the Wind (1988 film)|Inherit the Wind]]'' (1988) and ''[[The Christmas Wife]]'' (1988). For films he made ''[[Square Dance (film)|Square Dance]]'' (1987), ''[[Bright Lights, Big City (film)|Bright Lights, Big City]]'' (1988), and ''[[The Good Mother (1988 film)|The Good Mother]]'' (1988). Robards also appeared onstage in a revival of O'Neill's ''[[Ah, Wilderness!]]'' (1988) directed by [[Arvin Brown]], ''Love Letters'' (1990) with [[Colleen Dewhurst]], ''[[Park Your Car in Harvard Yard]]'' (1991) by [[Israel Horovitz]], as well as [[Harold Pinter]]'s ''[[No Man's Land (play)|No Man's Land]]'' (1994).{{Citation needed|date=October 2022}}

In 1989 he acted in the [[Ron Howard]] directed comedy-drama ''[[Parenthood (film)|Parenthood]]'' starring [[Steve Martin]] and [[Dianne Wiest]] and the British drama ''[[Reunion (1989 film)|Reunion]]'' with a screenplay by [[Harold Pinter]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/parenthood|title= Parenthood|website= [[Rotten Tomatoes]]|accessdate= March 17, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1031829-reunion|title= Reunion|website= [[Rotten Tomatoes]]|accessdate= March 17, 2024}}</ref>  That year he also acted in the comedy ''[[Dream a Little Dream (film)|Dream a Little Dream]]'' and the psychological thriller ''[[Black Rainbow]]''.

The following year he acted in the crime comedy ''[[Quick Change]]'' starring [[Bill Murray]], [[Geena Davis]], and [[Randy Quaid]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/quick_change|title= Quick Change|website= [[Rotten Tomatoes]]|accessdate= March 17, 2024}}</ref>  On TV he did ''The Perfect Tribute'' (1991), ''[[Chernobyl: The Final Warning]]'' (1991), ''[[An Inconvenient Woman]]'' (1991), ''[[Mark Twain and Me]]'' (1991), and ''Heidi'' (1993). For films Robards was in ''[[Storyville (film)|Storyville]]'' (1992), ''The Adventures of Huck Finn'' (1992) and in 1993 he acted in [[Harold Pinter]]'s British legal film ''[[The Trial (1993 film)|The Trial]]'' opposite [[Kyle MacLachlan]] and [[Anthony Hopkins]] and the [[AIDS]] legal drama ''[[Philadelphia (film)|Philadelphia]]'' starring [[Tom Hanks]] and [[Denzel Washington]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1047936-trial|title= The Trial|website= [[Rotten Tomatoes]]|accessdate= March 17, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/philadelphia|title= Philadelphia|website= [[Rotten Tomatoes]]|accessdate= March 17, 2024}}</ref>

Robards portrayed three presidents in films. He played [[Abraham Lincoln]] in the television films ''Abe Lincoln in Illinois'' (1964) and ''The Perfect Tribute'' (1991), and supplied the voice for the 1992 television documentary miniseries ''Lincoln''. He also played the role of [[Ulysses S. Grant]] in ''[[The Legend of the Lone Ranger]]'' (1981) and supplied the Union General's voice in the [[PBS]] miniseries ''[[The Civil War (miniseries)|The Civil War]]'' (1990). He also played [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] in F.D.R.: The Last Year (1980).  Robards appeared in the documentary ''[[Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio]]'' (1992).

Robards appeared in ''[[The Roots of Roe]]'' (1993), ''[[The Paper (film)|The Paper]]'' (1994), ''[[Little Big League]]'' (1994), ''The Enemy Within'' (1994), ''[[My Antonia (film)|My Antonia]]'' (1995), ''[[Crimson Tide (film)|Crimson Tide]]'' (1995), ''Journey'' (1995), ''[[A Thousand Acres (film)|A Thousand Acres]]'' (1997), ''[[Heartwood (film)|Heartwood]]'' (1998), ''[[The Real Macaw (film)|The Real Macaw]]'' (1998), and ''[[Beloved (1998 film)|Beloved]]'' (1998) In 1995 Robards appeared on stage in ''[[Molly Sweeney]]''. He played a [[Member of Congress|congressman]] in [[Tony Scott]]'s political thriller ''[[Enemy of the State (film)|Enemy of the State]]'' starring [[Will Smith]] (1998).<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/enemy_of_the_state|title= Enemy of the State (1998)|website= [[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date= March 26, 2024}}</ref> In his final film role, he played a cancer patient in the [[Paul Thomas Anderson]] directed drama ''[[Magnolia (film)|Magnolia]]'' (1999).<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/magnolia|title= Magnolia (1999)|website= [[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date= March 17, 2023}}</ref> His last TV appearance was in ''Going Home'' (2000).