RON Leibman, an Emmy-winning actor who played Rachel Green’s father Dr. Leonard Green in the hit show Friends, has died at the age of 82.
Leibman died in New York City on Friday after battling pneumonia, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
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Despite being known for his role as Rachel’s mean father in the hit 90s and early 2000s show, Leibman later admitted that initially turned down the role in Friends.
In a 2011 interview with the A.V. Club, he said: “I had never seen the show when they asked me to do it.
“I’m not a big television-watcher. It sounded stupid to me, so I turned it down.”
It was, however, Leibman’s daughter, a fan of the show, who persuaded him to change his mind.
The character of Dr. Green, Leibman said, was probably the most well-recognized of his career, and through the role his daughter delightedly got to meet Jennifer Aniston and co., making him a “big hero in the house.”
He said: “It’s amazing, the power of the tube. I’ve done all this body of work, and they say, ‘Oh, yes, Rachel’s father.’ I go, ‘Give me a break.'”
The actor also picked up an Emmy Award in 1979 for his role as Martin “Kaz” Kazinsky in the series Kaz, which Leibman was the co-creator of.
Leibman would describe the 23-episode series as “short-lived, well-remembered,” pointing out that the show was cancelled two weeks after he received his Emmy.
In 1986, he was nominated for a Golden Globe for his supporting role int he TV movie Christmas Eve.
A renowned theatre actor, too, Leibman collected a Tony Award in 1993 for his role in the Pulitzer Prize-winning production Angels in America: Millennium Approaches.
Leibman played a fictional version of Senator Joseph McCarthy’s chief counsel Roy Cohn.
Other notable movies Leibman appeared in include Norma Rae, Slaughterhouse Five, and Where’s Poppa?
A native of New York, Leibman’s most recent role was as Ron Cadillac, who he voiced in the animated sitcom Archer.
Leibman is survived by his wife, Emmy award-winning actress Jessica Walter, whom he married in 1983, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
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