George Furth


George Furth was an American librettist, playwright, and actor.

Life and career

Furth was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of George and Evelyn Schweinfurth. He was of German and Irish ancestry, and was raised as a Christian Scientist. He received a Bachelor of Science in speech at Northwestern University in 1954 and received his master's degree from Columbia University.
A life member of the Actors Studio, Furth made his Broadway debut as an actor in the 1961 play A Cook for Mr. General, followed by the musical Hot Spot two years later. He was also known for his collaborations with Stephen Sondheim: the highly successful Company, the ill-fated Merrily We Roll Along, and the equally ill-fated drama Getting Away with Murder. Furth wrote the plays Twigs, The Supporting Cast, and Precious Sons as well as the book for the Kander and Ebb musical The Act.
One of Furth's latter writing projects was a foray into an area where he had not previously explored. He wrote the lyrics for a musical revue, with music by Doug Katsaros. Furth and Katsaros shaped the work with San Francisco director Mike Ward into The End-a new musical revue. The piece was performed at San Francisco's New Conservatory Theatre Center during the summer of 2004 and was billed as a "Pre-U.S. Tour Workshop Production". The piece was reworked twice, with the title changing to Last Call and Happy Hour, respectively.

Television

He began working in television in 1962, and was frequently cast as an ineffectual milquetoast or a nervous functionary. He was a fixture in situation comedies of the 1960s, making guest appearances in such popular shows as I Dream of Jeannie, That Girl, Green Acres, The Monkees, Batman; Tammy, The Odd Couple; Love, American Style; and F Troop. Furth's performance in an episode of McHale's Navy was noticed by the show's producer, Edward Montagne. This landed him a regular featured role in Montagne's McHale's Navy spinoff Broadside, as the commander's ambitious adjutant. His other continuing sitcom role was in the short-lived 1976 series The Dumplings.
He also played character roles in Bonanza, Adam-12, and Little House on the Prairie. In the 1980 TV movie The Scarlett O'Hara War, concerning the casting for Gone with the Wind, he portrayed director George Cukor.
He adapted his play Twigs as a 1975 television production, starring Carol Burnett.

Motion pictures

Furth appeared in many motion pictures, most memorably in The Boston Strangler, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Myra Breckinridge, Blazing Saddles, Shampoo, Oh, God!, The Cannonball Run, The Man with Two Brains, and Bulworth.
Furth continued working into the late 1990s, and was seen in Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman; Murphy Brown, L.A. Law, Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman; and Murder, She Wrote, among other shows. In 1990 he worked as a voice actor in several episodes of the animated television series The Adventures of Don Coyote and Sancho Panda for Hanna-Barbera Productions.

Personal life and death

Furth was gay, and was guarded about sharing details of his private life: "I just don't do interviews. That's why I have so many friends."
He and Stephen Sondheim both repeatedly refused to update Company to give it a gay slant.
Furth died at a hospital in Santa Monica, California, on August 11, 2008, at age 75.

Awards

Furth won both the Tony and Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical for Company and was nominated for a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding New Play for Precious Sons.

Filmography

  • The Best Man as Tom
  • The New Interns as Dr. Phil Osterman
  • A Very Special Favor as Pete
  • A Rage to Live as Paul Rutherford
  • The Cool Ones as Howie
  • Tammy and the Millionaire as Dwayne Whitt
  • Games as Terry, Party Guest
  • Nobody's Perfect as Hamner
  • How to Save a Marriage and Ruin Your Life as Roger
  • P.J. as Sonny Silene
  • What's So Bad About Feeling Good? as Murgatroyd
  • The Boston Strangler as Lyonel Brumley
  • Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid as Woodcock
  • Myra Breckinridge as Charlie Flager Jr.
  • The Third Girl from the Left as Zimmy
  • Sleeper as Guest at Luna's Party
  • Blazing Saddles as Van Johnson
  • Shampoo as Mr. Pettis
  • Norman... Is That You? as Mr. Sukara
  • American Raspberry as President
  • Airport '77 as Gerald Lucas
  • Oh God! as Briggs
  • Hooper as Bidwell
  • The Cannonball Run as Arthur J. Foyt
  • Megaforce as Professor Eggstrum
  • Young Doctors in Love as The Patients - Disgusting Looking Patient
  • Doctor Detroit as Arthur Skridlow
  • The Man with Two Brains as Timon
  • Murder, She Wrote as Farley Pressman
  • Foofur as Additional voices
  • The Adventures of Don Coyote and Sancho Panda as Additional voices
  • The Munsters Today as Dr. Carver
  • Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman as Jedidiah Bancroft
  • Goodbye Lover as Mr. Merritt
  • Bulworth as Older Man

    Television