Actor Jack Axelrod, Best Known for General Hospital and Grey’s Anatomy, Dead at 93

Actor Jack Axelrod died at the age of 93.

His representative, Jennifer Garland, confirmed the news to The Hollywood Reporter and Entertainment Weeklysaying he died of natural causes in Los Angeles on November 28.

“I had the pleasure of spending a lot of time with him in his final years, as he had no immediate family,” Garland said in a statement to Entertainment Weekly. “We spent a lot of time outside, where Jack loved to draw, read newspaper articles and recite Shakespeare’s sonnets.”

Axelrod — who is best known for his roles in General Hospital and Grey’s Anatomy — began taking acting classes at the University of California, Berkeley, before becoming a licensed architect in Washington, according to his IMDB profile. However, his unwavering passion for acting led him to take a six-year acting course with German actress Uta Hagen at the Herbert Berghof Studio drama school in New York.

Jack Axelrod and Katherine Heigl seen in the ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ episode ‘Let the Truth Sting’.

The Everett Collection

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After graduating, Axelrod acted in various theaters while also working as an architect, according to IMDB. He built his acting resume and eventually got his big break starring in Woody Allen’s 1971 film. Bananas.

Axelrod continued to appear in numerous TV series and films throughout his years as an actor, most notably in a recurring role in General Hospital as mob boss Victor Jerome. He also appeared in Grey’s Anatomy — where he played an elderly comatose patient named Charlie Yost – iu My name is Earl as Electrolarynx Guy.

Jack Axelrod in ‘It’s a Miserable Life’.

The Everett Collection

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Additionally, Axelrod has made guest appearances on a long list of shows including Dallas, Dynasty, Boy Meets World, Murphy Brown, Alias, Frasier, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Scrubs, Private Practice, Dexter and Shameless.

He also appeared in several films including Hancock (2008), Labor pains (2009), Little Fockers (2010), Fred & Vinnie (2011), Super 8 (2011) and Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011).

Jack Axelrod in ‘It’s a Miserable Life’.

Paul Sarkis/Showtime/Courtesy of the Everett Collection

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He acted in several Broadway and Off Broadway productions, including a 1969 production of Macbethwhere Banquo played, per EW. He appeared in the play Gandhi, which made it to Broadway.

Axelrod would go on to share his love of acting with the next generation, serving in the theater departments of several universities over the years, including Boston University, Penn State University, Temple University, CalState Northridge & Bakersfield, Cal Arts and Brandeis University, according to IMDB. Before his death, he was also a visiting teacher at the Aaron Speiser Acting Studio in Los Angeles.

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Source: HIS Education