Michael Lerner, prolific character actor, Oscar-nominated for Barton Fink , dies at age 81

Michel Lerner, a prolific character actor who was nominated for an Oscar for the Coen brothers' 1991 film Barton Fink, has died. He was 81.

Lerner's nephew, Sam Lerner (The Goldbergs) confirmed his death on Instagram with a post eulogizing his "brilliant" uncle. His cause of death was not immediately known.

"We lost a legend last night," Sam Lerner wrote. "It's hard to put into words how brilliant my uncle Michael was, and how influential he was to me. His stories always inspired me and made me fall in love with acting. He was the coolest, most confident, talented guy, and the fact that he was my blood will always make me feel special."

Dee Cercone/Everett Collection Michael Lerner

"Everyone that knows him knows how insane he was — in the best way," Lerner continued. "I'm so lucky I got to spend so much time with him, and we're all lucky we can continue to watch his work for the rest of time. RIP Michael, enjoy your unlimited Cuban cigars, comfy chairs, and endless movie marathon."

Michael Lerner was born in Brooklyn on June 22, 1941. At age 13, the sports aficionado appeared as a "quiz kid" on a local TV show. He went on to study acting at Brooklyn College, earned his masters at UC Berkeley, and attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art on a Fulbright Scholarship to study theater.

While in London, he shared a flat with John Lennon and Yoko Ono, and appeared in Ono's 1968 experimental short film Smile.

"She made a movie comprised of bare asses walking on a treadmill," Lerner said. "I'm in it and so is Paul McCartney. Plus I'm doing narration about censorship and all that crap."

Smile was his first film, followed by the more mainstream Alex in Wonderland starring Donald Sutherland and Ellen Burstyn in 1970, but Lerner made his television debut in 1963 on an episode of Dr. Kildare.

In 1969, Lerner guest starred on The Brady Bunch, and in the early-70s he racked up roles on The Doris Day Show, That Girl, The Bob Newhart Show, M.A.S.H., The Odd Couple, and numerous other shows. Meanwhile, in 1972 he played Robert Redford's speechwriter in the satire The Candidate, which won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.

Lerener worked steadily throughout the decade, both on television and film, and in 1981 he was featured alongside Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange in the remake of The Postman Always Rings Twice. Lerner played legendary studio head and ornery sonuvabitch Harry Cohn in 1983's Rita Hayworth: The Love Goddess, a TV movie starring Wonder Woman's Lynda Carter as the titular screen siren. He would revisit similar territory years later with the Coen brothers.

In 1989, Lerner appeared in Eddie Murphy's directorial debut Harlem Nights, starring Murphy and fellow comedy legends Richard Pryor and Redd Foxx. In 1991, Lerener landed the role of movie mogul Jack Lipnick in Barton Fink, the Coen brothers acclaimed film about a young New York playwright, Fink (John Turturro), hired to write a Hollywood film.

Lerner based his performance on studio head and ornery sonuvabitch Louis B. Mayer and was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 1992 Academy Awards, ultimately losing to Jack Palance for City Slickers. But Lerner still came away a winner.

"I'd been a working character actor for about 20 years, and then all of a sudden I got nominated and my money went up!" he reportedly said.

Lerner rarely had recurring roles on television, with the TV adaptation of Clueless being one notable exception; he played Cher's dad Mel Horowitz.

Other prominent credits from Lerner's impressive career include Newsies, The Beautician and the Beast, Entourage, Elf, Glee, and he re-teamed with the Coens for 2009's A Serious Man. Lerner returned to familiar territory for one of his final film roles, as Louis B. Mayer in 2022's Pervyy Oskar.

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