David Huddleston, character actor who was the 'Big Lebowski,' is dead at 85


David Huddleston began his acting career with touring productions of The Music Man and Mame, went on to act in TV shows like The Wonder Years, Gilmore Girls, The West Wing, and Murder, She Wrote, and played prominent roles in films such as Blazing Saddles, The Producers, Rio Lobo, and Santa Clause: The Movie. But he was best known as the titular millionaire in the 1998 cult favorite The Big Lebowski. Huddleston died on Tuesday in Santa Fe, New Mexico, his wife, Sarah Koeppe, said Thursday. He was 85, and the cause of death was advanced heart and kidney disease.
Huddleston once said that making the Mel Brooks film Blazing Saddles was "probably the most fun I ever had on a set," the Los Angeles Times reports, and according to Koeppe, Huddleston considered his "crowning achievement" playing Ben Franklin in the Broadway production of 1776, and his reprisal of the role in 2003 at Washington's Ford Theater. But it was his role as Lebowski that people recognized him for around the world. You can watch his first scene with Jeff Bridges, or The Dude, below. Peter Weber
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
In the Spotlight Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has been at odds with US forces
-
Music reviews: Ethel Cain, Amaarae, and The Black Keys
Feature "Willoughby Tucker, I'll Always Love You," "Black Star," and "No Rain, No Flowers"
-
Film reviews: Highest 2 Lowest and Weapons
Feature A kidnapping threatens a mogul's legacy and a town spins into madness after 17 children disappear
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's ills
Speed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, Stallone
Speed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's view
Speed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talk
Speed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'
Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wife
speed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
-
Giant schnauzer wins top prize at Westminster show
Speed Read Monty won best in show at the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show