Alan Alda’s life and career in 6 photos as he celebrates his 90th birthday

Alan was born Alphonso Joseph D’Bruzzo to Robert Alda and Joan Browne in Manhattan. His dad was an actor and singer who created the stage name Alda by combining the first two letters of his first and last names.

His mom was a beauty pageant winner who was later diagnosed with schizophrenia. Growing up, Alan traveled often to support his dad’s career. “He was very famous but he hardly made much money because that was at a time when Warner had those seven-year contracts,” he told The Guardian in 2025.

Life wasn’t always easy for Alan. When he was six, his mom tried to stab his dad, a symptom of her schizophrenia. A year later, Alan contracted polio. Reflecting on his disease, Alan told AARP: “It was hard on me, [but] it was harder, I think, on my parents, who couldn’t afford a nurse and had to torture me themselves. It’s always better to pay somebody to torture your kid.”

The now 90-year-old began his career on the stage. He joined the improvisational group Second City in Chicago, which also launched the careers of Steve Carell and Tina Fey. In 1961, he made his Broadway debut in Purlie Victorious.

From there, Alan just kept acting. In 1966, he was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his role in The Apple Tree. Soon after, Alan started acting on television and in films like Gone Are the Days!, the film version of a Broadway play.

Alan was the driving force behind M*A*S*H and its stunning success, starring as the loveable lead Hawkeye Pierce. During his 11 years on the groundbreaking sitcom, he wrote and directed many episodes and went to bat on more than one occasion for the cast.

With his support, Loretta Swit’s character went from solely being called “Hot Lips” to getting a real name. After she died on May 30, 2025, Alan wrote to X: “She worked hard in showing the writing staff how they could turn the character from a one joke sexist stereotype into a real person — with real feelings and ambitions. We celebrated the day the script came out, listing her character not as Hot Lips but as Margaret. Loretta made the most of her time here.”

During his time on M*A*S*H, Alan was nominated for 21 Emmy Awards, won five, and became the highest paid person in TV when he earned $225,000 an episode in 1981.

With M*A*S*H under his belt, Alan became a leading man. He starred in films like The Four Seasons, A New Life, and Crimes and Misdemeanors. In 2004, Alan joined The West Wing where he portrayed California Republican U.S. Senator and presidential candidate Arnold Vinick. He won an Emmy for his portrayal.

In 2005, Alan starred alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in Martin Scorsese’s The Aviator and was nominated for his first Academy Award. For the next few years, Alan acted on Broadway, in 30 Rock, and in Ray Donovan alongside Liev Schreiber.

While the actor was attending Fordham University in the Bronx, he met his future wife, Arlene Weiss. In 2021, he recalled how they bonded over a dessert, saying: “We [ate] rum cake off the floor and were inseparable after that. But I was captivated by her even earlier in the meal when I heard her at the end of the table laughing at my jokes. She had me at Ha.”

In 1957, Alan and Arlene married. They went on to become parents of three daughters – Elizabeth, Eve, and Beatrice. The couple raised their kids in Leonia, New Jersey.

In 2015, Alan was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. He shared the news publicly three years later during an appearance on CBS This Morning. “I’ve had a full life since [my diagnosis],” he said. “I’ve acted, I’ve given talks, I help at the Alda Center for Communicating Science… It hasn’t stopped my life at all. I’ve had a richer life than I’ve had up until now.”

After being diagnosed, Alan started exercising more and more. “A lot of people hear they have Parkinson’s and get depressed and panicky and don’t do anything, just hoping it’ll go away. It’s not going to, but you can hold off the worst symptoms. Movement helps: walking, biking, treadmills,” he told AARP.