Charles Durning obituary: Dog Day Afternoon and Tootsie actor dies aged 89

Charles Durning, the WWII hero-turned-character actor who starred in renowned films such as Dog Day Afternoon, To Be or Not To Be and Tootsie, has died at the age of 89.

Long-time agent and friend Judith Moss confirmed Durning’s death in the early hours of Christmas morning via natural causes.

Prior to his involvementĀ  in film, he fought in the Second World War for which he survived the Normandy Beach landings only to then be taken prisoner in the Battle of the Bulge. He went on to receive the Silver Star and three Purple Hearts.

Durning had to wait until his late forties to break into acting when he appeared in the Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning play That Championship Season in 1972.

He eventually made it onto the big-screen playing slimy characters in various films including Lt. Snyder in the Oscar-winning drama The Sting (1973), his Golden-Globe nominated role as Moretti in the Sidney Lumet crime thriller Dog Day Afternoon (1975) and the villain Doc Hopper in The Muppet Movie (1979).

In the 1980s, he claimed two Oscar nominations in successive years. The first was for his performance as a comically corrupt governor in The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas in 1983 and his second for his portrayal of a bumbling Nazi officer in Mel Brooks’s To Be Or Not to Be in 1984.

He was also known in that decade for his role as Jessica Lange’s dad who savours a soft spot for Dustin Hoffman’s female soap star in the popular Oscar-winning comedy Tootsie (1982).

After then appearing in the likes of Dick Tracy (1990), One Fine Day (1996) and O’Brother Where Art Thou? (2000), Durning chose to focus on starring in smaller films and television shows.

Amongst those included his recurring role as Tommy Gavin’s cranky father Mickey in the firefighter series Rescue Me (2004-11) and providing the voice of Peter Griffin’s strict stepfather Francis Griffin in early episodes of Family Guy (1999-now).

He is survived by his high school sweetheart, Mary Ann Amelio and their children, Michele, Douglas and Jeannine.

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