Ann Wedgeworth
Who was the spouse of Rip Torn from 1955 to 1961?
Rip Torn Elmore Rual Rip Torn Jr . ( February 6 , 1931 – July 9 , 2019 ) was an American actor whose career spanned more than 60 years . Torn was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his part as Marsh Turner in Cross Creek ( 1983 ) . His work includes the role of Artie the producer on The Larry Sanders Show , for which he was nominated for six Emmy Awards , winning in 1996 . He also won an American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Male in a Series and two CableACE Awards for his work on the show , and for his roles as Zed in the Men in Black franchise ( 1997-2002 ) , and Patches OHoulihan in ( 2004 ) . Early life . Torn was born in Temple , Texas , on February 6 , 1931 , the son of Elmore Rual Tiger Torn , Sr . and Thelma Mary Torn ( née Spacek ) . The senior Elmore ( 1906–1971 ) was an agriculturalist and economist who worked to promote the consumption of black-eyed peas , particularly as a custom on New Years Day . Thelma was an aunt of actress Sissy Spacek . The family is of German , Austrian , and Czech/Moravian ancestry . The nickname Rip is a family tradition among men in the Torn family . Torn graduated from Taylor High School in Taylor , Texas , in 1948 . Torn was a member of the Texas A&M University Corps of Cadets , although he graduated from the University of Texas where he studied acting under the Shakespeare professor B . Iden Payne , and was a member of the Alpha Nu chapter of the Sigma Chi fraternity . After graduation , he served in the military police in the United States Army . Career . Film and television . After moving to Hollywood , Torn made his film debut in the 1956 film Baby Doll . Torn then studied at the Actors Studio in New York under Lee Strasberg , becoming a prolific stage actor , appearing in the original cast of Tennessee Williams play Sweet Bird of Youth , and reprising the role in the film and television adaptations . Torn later helped his younger cousin Sissy Spacek enroll in the Actors Studio . One of Torns earliest roles was in Pork Chop Hill , portraying the brother-in-law of Gregory Pecks character . He also had an uncredited role in A Face in the Crowd as Barry Mills . In 1957 , Torn portrayed Jody in an early episode of The Restless Gun . In 1957 , he starred as incarcerated Steve Morgan in the Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode Number Twenty-Two , and on the same series in 1961 , he played a recently released prisoner , Ernie Walters , in the Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode The Kiss-Off . After portraying Judas , betrayer of Jesus , in 1961 epic film King of Kings , Torn appeared as a graduate student with multiple degrees in 1963 television series Channing , and as Roy Kendall in the Breaking Point episode Millions of Faces . In 1964 , Torn appeared as Eddie Sanderson in the episode The Secret in the Stone in The Eleventh Hour and in the premiere of The Reporter . In 1964 , he co-starred in an episode of the hit TV series Combat ! with Vic Morrow , titled A Gift of Hope . In 1965 , in the film The Cincinnati Kid , he played Slade , a corrupt New Orleans millionaire , who pressures Steve McQueen during a high-stakes poker game . On television that year , Torn portrayed Colonel Royce in the episode The Lorelei of Twelve OClock High . Following these roles , he had turns as a character actor in numerous subsequent films . The part of George Hanson in Easy Rider was written for Torn by Terry Southern , but according to Southerns biographer Lee Hill , Torn withdrew from the project after co-director Dennis Hopper and he got into a bitter argument in a New York restaurant . Jack Nicholson played Hanson , instead , in a career-launching performance . In 1972 , Torn won rave reviews for his portrayal of a country and western singer in the cult film Payday . He co-starred with singer David Bowie in the 1976 science-fiction film , The Man Who Fell to Earth . He portrayed a Southern senator in 1979s The Seduction of Joe Tynan , opposite Alan Alda and Meryl Streep , and a music producer in Paul Simons 1980 film One-Trick Pony . In 1982 , Torn played a role as a black magic cult leader in the sword-and-sorcery movie The Beastmaster . He also co-starred in Jinxed! , a comedy with Bette Midler , and appeared as an airline executive in . He played a sheriff opposite Treat Williams and Kris Kristofferson in the 1984 thriller Flashpoint . Torn received an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor for his role in 1983s Cross Creek as a poor neighbor of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings in the orange groves of Florida . He was nominated for the CableACE Award for his portrayal of Big Daddy in the 1984 Showtime production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof . He co-starred with John Candy as a man who helps a tourist win a sailboat race in the 1985 comedy Summer Rental . He had a brief role as Sheriff Hank Pearson in Extreme Prejudice . In 1988 , he ventured into directing with The Telephone . The screenplay was written by Terry Southern and Harry Nilsson , and the film was produced by their company , Hawkeye . The story , which concerned an unhinged , out-of-work actor , had been written with Robin Williams in mind . After he turned it down , Whoopi Goldberg expressed a strong interest , but when production began , Torn reportedly had to contend with Goldberg constantly digressing and improvising , and he had to plead with her to perform takes that stuck to the script . Goldberg was backed by the studio , which also allowed her to replace Torns chosen DP , veteran cinematographer John A . Alonzo , with her then-husband . As a result of the power struggle , Torn , Southern , and Nilsson cut their own version of the film , using the takes that adhered to the script and this was screened at the Sundance Film Festival , but the studio put together a rival version using other takes and it was poorly reviewed when it premiered in January 1988 . In 1990 , he portrayed Colonel Fargo in By Dawns Early Light , a film from HBO about a fictional world war . In 1991 , he portrayed Albert Brooks characters celestial defense attorney in Defending Your Life . He was a jeweler who murdered his own nephew to steal a winning lottery ticket in an episode of Columbo that year on TV , Death Hits the Jackpot . In 1993 , Torn portrayed the OCP CEO in RoboCop 3 and starred opposite Tantoo Cardinal in Where the Rivers Flow North . He was a naval officer presiding over a wargame in the Kelsey Grammer submarine comedy Down Periscope in 1996 . In 1997 , Torn appeared in the Disney film Hercules , in which he voiced the god Zeus . Torn played MIB agency boss Zed in the 1997 hit film Men in Black , starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones , a role he reprised in the 2002 sequel Men in Black II . In 2001 , Torn portrayed James Jim Brody in the comedy film Freddy Got Fingered . In 2004 , he played the iconic wrench-tossing coach Patches OHoulihan in . Stage career . Broadway . Torn appeared in 10 Broadway plays and directed one . In 1959 , he made his feature Broadway debut when he played Tom Junior in Sweet Bird of Youth , for which he won a Theatre World Award and also received a Tony Award nomination . He returned next in 1962 in the play Daughter of Silence as Carlo , following that with a role in the 1963 production of Strange Interlude . In 1964 , he played Lyle Britten in Blues for Mister Charlie , and four years later , he was Roberto in The Cuban Thing for its only performance on September 24 , 1968 . In 1971 , he portrayed Edgar in Dance of Death , and directed his first Broadway play in 1973 : Look Away . In 1975 , he portrayed the Son in the Broadway revival of The Glass Menagerie and 5 years later , portrayed Don in Mixed Couples . For 13 years , Torn was absent from Broadway , but returned in 1993 to portray Chris Christopherson in Anna Christie . In his last Broadway appearance in 1997 , Torn portrayed Will Kidder in The Young Man from Atlanta . Off-Broadway . Torn made his feature off-Broadway acting debut as Eben Cabot in the play Desire Under the Elms , followed by Peter in The Kitchen at the 81st Street Theatre . His third off-Broadway role was Marion-Faye-A-Pimp in The Deer Park , for which he won the 1967 Obie Award for Distinguished Performance . He performed at the Lucille Lortel Theatre in the play Dream of a Blacklisted Actor , and later at the Joseph Papp Public Theaters Anspacher Theater as William McLeod in Barbary Shore . He last acted off-Broadway at the American Place Theatre as Henry Hackamore in Sam Shepards 1979 play Seduced : a Play in Two Acts . Torns off-Broadway debut as director was for the Evergreen Theater with the play The Beard ; he won the 1968 Obie for Distinguished Direction for that work . He next directed The Honest-to-God Schnozzia at the Gramercy Arts Theater , followed by August Strindbergs Creditors and The Stronger—in which he acted beside his wife at the time , Geraldine Page for the Joseph Papp Public Theater . Torn and Page also co-produced that production , and had previously presented the two plays along with Miss Julie at the off-off-Broadway Hudson Guild Theatre the year before . The Larry Sanders Show . From 1992 to 1998 , Torn portrayed Artie in The Larry Sanders Show . For his work , Torn received six consecutive Emmy Award nominations as Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and won the award once ( 1996 ) . Torn was the only actor in the series who won an Emmy Award for his work . Other than the Emmy nominations and win , he received two American Comedy Awards nominations for Funniest Male Performance in a Series , winning once , and two CableACE Awards for his work on the series . Later career . Following The Larry Sanders Show , Torn appeared in many comedic roles in films . He was also known for his voice work and did voice-overs for many animated films . In 2007 and 2008 , he made five guest appearances on 30 Rock as the fictional chief executive officer of General Electric , Don Geiss . He was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series , but lost to Tim Conway , who guest-starred in the same sitcom . Torns character was reportedly killed off as a direct result of his 2010 arrest , though Tina Fey denied this in a DVD commentary . Torn voiced the character of Hephaestus in the 2010 video game , God of War III . Torn also appears in the music video for the They Might Be Giants song Cant Keep Johnny Down , from their 2011 album Join Us . In 2015 , he reprised his role as Zed in a Men in Black safety video for Air New Zealand with rugby player Israel Dagg and singer Stan Walker . Personal life . Family . Torn was married three times , and had six children and four grandchildren . His first marriage to actress Ann Wedgeworth lasted from 1956 to 1961 . They had a daughter , Danae Torn . In 1963 , Torn married Geraldine Page , and they remained married until her death in 1987 . They had a daughter , actress Angelica Page , and twin sons : actor Tony Torn , and Jon Torn ( an associate professor of electronic media and film at Northern Arizona University ) . Torn apparently delighted in the fact that the doorbell of their New York townhouse read Torn Page . Torn married actress Amy Wright in 1989 . They had two children , Katie and Claire Torn . Legal troubles . On January 29 , 2010 , Torn was arrested after breaking into a Litchfield Bancorp branch office in Lakeville , Connecticut , where he maintained a residence . He was charged with carrying a firearm without a permit , carrying a firearm while intoxicated , first-degree burglary , second-degree criminal trespassing , and third-degree criminal mischief . The Connecticut State Police said Torn broke into the bank thinking it was his home . In court , his lawyer told the judge his client needed help with alcohol abuse and that he could start treatment immediately in New York . Torn was released on $100,000 bail . As a condition of his release , Torn had to be evaluated for substance abuse . On August 11 , 2010 , Torn was denied special probation , which would have allowed his name to be cleared of charges . The judge in the case cited Torns history of alcohol abuse and the possession of a loaded weapon while intoxicated , which carries a minimum one-year sentence . On December 14 , 2010 , Torn pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment , criminal trespass , criminal mischief , and possession of a firearm , and was given a two-and-a-half-year suspended jail sentence , and three years probation . On-set conflicts . Appearing as an interview subject in Studs Terkels 1974 oral-history book Working , Torn confessed , I have certain flaws in my make-up . Something called irascibility . I get angry easily . I get saddened by things easily . While filming Maidstone ( 1968 ) , Torn struck director and star Norman Mailer in the head with a hammer . With the camera rolling , Mailer bit Torns ear and they wrestled to the ground . The fight continued until it was broken up by cast and crew members . The fight is featured in the film . Although the scene may have been planned by Torn , the blood shed by both actors was real , and Torn was reportedly outraged by Mailers direction . In 1994 , he filed a defamation lawsuit against Dennis Hopper over a story Hopper told on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno . Hopper claimed that Torn pulled a knife on him during pre-production of the film Easy Rider ( 1969 ) . According to Hopper , Torn was originally cast in the film , but was replaced with Jack Nicholson after the incident . Torn claimed in his lawsuit that Hopper pulled the knife on him . A trial court judge ruled in Torns favor and Hopper was ordered to pay $475,000 in compensatory damages , but denied Torns request for punitive damages , ruling Hopper had not acted with malice . Hopper appealed . On April 1 , 1998 , a California appellate court upheld the ruling for compensatory damages , and reversed the ruling for the punitive damages , requiring Hopper to pay another $475,000 . Death . Torn died on July 9 , 2019 , at his home in Lakeville , Connecticut , at the age of 88 due to complications from Alzheimers disease . External links . - Rip Torn | PlaybillVault.com - Rip Torn at The TV IV - Rip Torn at the University of Wisconsins Actors Studio audio collection - Production : Anna Christie—Working in the Theater Seminar video at American Theatre Wing , January 1993 - Rip Torn obituary : talent got trouble Sight & Sound , July 2019