Richard Benjamin

Biography

Richard Benjamin is an American actor and director who studied at the High School of Performing Arts and Northwestern University and got his break in a touring production of Barefoot in the Park in 1964. He earned an Emmy nomination for the CBS sitcom He & She and took his first film lead in Goodbye, Columbus (1969), followed by Catch-22 (1970), The Last of Sheila (1973) and Westworld (1973). His Golden Globe came for The Sunshine Boys (1975). He then turned to directing, starting with My Favorite Year (1982), which earned Peter O'Toole an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor, and going on to make The Money Pit (1986), My Stepmother Is an Alien (1988), Mermaids (1990), Made in America (1993) and Marci X (2003), as well as the television film The Pentagon Wars (1998). He continued acting in later years, in films including Deconstructing Harry (1997) and Henry Poole Is Here (2008).

88years old

Turns 89 on May 22in 221 days

Born May 22, 1938New York City
Star sign: GeminiThe sign runs May 21 to June 20

Movie Career

Films: 20
Career span: 55 years1969 to 2024

Genres

Comedy80%, 16 films
Drama35%, 7 films
Crime10%, 2 films
Documentary10%, 2 films
Romance10%, 2 films

First and latest

Did you know?!

A role that slipped away
Richard Benjamin decided to steer away from such roles, so he turned down a part in The Towering Inferno. Richard Chamberlain ended up playing that part.
First role
Benjamin's first lead film role came in Goodbye, Columbus, a 1969 adaptation of the Philip Roth novella, with Ali MacGraw. The film was a hit with critics and audiences.
Big break
Benjamin worked on the Where's Poppa? pilot, and that led to him being offered the director's job on My Favorite Year (1982), which starred Peter O'Toole. The film launched Benjamin as a director.

Richard Benjamin movies on Netflix

Ex-Husbands2024IMDb rating 6.0as Simon Pearce
Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind2020IMDb rating 7.1as Himself
Magician: The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson Welles2014IMDb rating 6.9as Self - Filmmaker
Henry Poole Is Here2008IMDb rating 6.4as Dr. Fancher
Keeping Up with the Steins2006IMDb rating 5.4as Ken
Marci X2003IMDb rating 3.0as Ben Feld
The Pentagon Wars1998IMDb rating 7.1as Casper Weinberger
Deconstructing Harry1997IMDb rating 7.3as Ken
Saturday the 14th1981IMDb rating 4.6as John
How to Beat the High Cost of Living1980IMDb rating 6.0as Albert
The Last Married Couple in America1980IMDb rating 5.4as Marv Cooper
Love at First Bite1979IMDb rating 6.1as Dr. Jeff Rosenberg
Scavenger Hunt1979IMDb rating 5.8as Stuart Selsome
House Calls1978IMDb rating 6.6as Dr. Norman Solomon
The Sunshine Boys1975IMDb rating 7.1as Ben Clark
The Last of Sheila1973IMDb rating 7.2as Tom
Westworld1973IMDb rating 6.9as Peter Martin
Catch-221970IMDb rating 7.1as Major Danby
Diary of a Mad Housewife1970IMDb rating 7.0as Jonathan Balser
Goodbye, Columbus1969IMDb rating 6.4as Neil Klugman

Best known for

The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.

Top

Westworld1973 Action, Sci-Fi, Thrilleras Peter Martin
IMDb rating 6.968K votes
Deconstructing Harry1997 Comedyas Ken
IMDb rating 7.351K votes
Catch-221970as Major Danby
IMDb rating 7.127K votes
The Last of Sheila1973as Tom
IMDb rating 7.210K votes
The Pentagon Wars1998as Casper Weinberger
IMDb rating 7.16.2K votes
Saturday the 14th1981as John
IMDb rating 4.65.9K votes
Marci X2003as Ben Feld
IMDb rating 3.05.6K votes
The Sunshine Boys1975as Ben Clark
IMDb rating 7.17.4K votes

Most often with

Herbert Ross directed two of these films. Ten actors appear in two of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.

Top

Walter Matthau

George Hamilton

Natalie Wood

Cheryl Hines

Dyan Cannon

Buck HenryHerbert RossDirector, 2 films

Films together

Walter Matthau2 films together, 1975 to 1978
Walter Matthau's page
- House Calls1978IMDb rating 6.6Benjamin as Dr. Norman SolomonMatthau as Dr. Charley Nichols
- The Sunshine Boys1975IMDb rating 7.1Benjamin as Ben ClarkMatthau as Willy Clark
George Hamilton2 films together, 1979 to 2020
George Hamilton's page
- Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind2020IMDb rating 7.1Benjamin as HimselfHamilton as Himself
- Love at First Bite1979IMDb rating 6.1Benjamin as Dr. Jeff RosenbergHamilton as Count Dracula
Natalie Wood2 films together, 1980 to 2020
Natalie Wood's page
- Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind2020IMDb rating 7.1Benjamin as HimselfWood as Himself
- The Last Married Couple in America1980IMDb rating 5.4Benjamin as Marv CooperWood as Mari Thompson
Cheryl Hines2 films together, 2006 to 2008
Cheryl Hines's page
- Henry Poole Is Here2008IMDb rating 6.4Benjamin as Dr. FancherHines as Meg Wyatt
- Keeping Up with the Steins2006IMDb rating 5.4Benjamin as KenHines as Casey Nudelman
Dyan Cannon2 films together, 1973 to 2020
Dyan Cannon's page
- Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind2020IMDb rating 7.1Benjamin as HimselfCannon as Himself
- The Last of Sheila1973IMDb rating 7.2Benjamin as TomCannon as Christine
Buck Henry2 films together, 1970 to 2014
Buck Henry's page
- Magician: The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson Welles2014IMDb rating 6.9Benjamin as Self - FilmmakerHenry as Self - Actor
- Catch-221970IMDb rating 7.1Benjamin as Major DanbyHenry as Colonel Korn
Herbert RossDirector, 2 films, 1973 to 1975
All films by Herbert Ross
- The Sunshine Boys1975IMDb rating 7.1Benjamin as Ben Clark
- The Last of Sheila1973IMDb rating 7.2Benjamin as Tom
Also two films together4 more actors
- Paula PrentissSaturday the 14th (1981) and Catch-22 (1970)
- Ronnie SchellHow to Beat the High Cost of Living (1980) and Love at First Bite (1979)
- Susan Saint JamesHow to Beat the High Cost of Living (1980) and Love at First Bite (1979)
- Susan TolskyHow to Beat the High Cost of Living (1980) and Love at First Bite (1979)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.