Astin started his performing career in theater, making his first
Broadway appearance as an understudy in
Major Barbara (1954) and also did voice-over work for commercials. He appeared as "Ready-Money Matt" in the long-running off-Broadway production of
Threepenny Opera (which began in 1954), starring
Lotte Lenya. His first big film break came with a small role in
West Side Story (1961), followed by roles in
That Touch of Mink (1962),
Move Over, Darling (1963). During this period, his talent for also playing comedy was spotted by actor
Tony Randall, leading to guest starring roles on the
sitcom Dennis the Menace, starring
Jay North;
The Donna Reed Show; and
Harrigan and Son, starring
Pat O'Brien, the first show broadcast on
CBS and the latter two shows broadcast on
ABC. In 1961, Astin appeared in the final episode of the ABC
police drama The Asphalt Jungle. On April 7, 1961, he played the role of Charlie in the
Twilight Zone episode, "
A Hundred Yards Over the Rim" which starred
Cliff Robertson. During the 1962–63 television season, Astin had his first lead in a television series, the ABC sitcom ''
I'm Dickens, He's Fenster'', co-starring with
Marty Ingels. Astin played Harry Dickens to Ingels's Arch Fenster, as two trouble-prone carpenters. The series combined witty dialogue with moments of
slapstick comedy. ''I'm Dickens, He's Fenster
received critical raves, but was against two high-rated shows, Sing Along with Mitch on NBC and Route 66 on CBS. By the time I'm Dickens, He's Fenster'' gained a following and started winning its time slot, ABC had already canceled the show. A total of 32 episodes were produced. Astin is widely known for
The Addams Family, a popular sitcom that ran on ABC from 1964 to 1966, based on cartoons created by
Charles Addams. Astin starred as Gomez Addams, the head of the macabre family. He later reprised the role of Gomez in the 1977 made-for-television film
Halloween with the New Addams Family and voiced the role of Gomez in the animated series
The Addams Family from 1992 to 1993. In the Canadian-American television series
The New Addams Family, which ran from 1998 to 1999, Astin appeared as Grandpapa Addams, with the role of Gomez played by
Glenn Taranto. With the death of
Lisa Loring, who played Wednesday, as of January 2023, Astin is the last surviving cast member of
The Addams Family. as
Gomez and
Morticia Addamsin
The Addams Family in 1964 Astin joined the retooled
The Pruitts of Southampton (re-titled
The Phyllis Diller Show) for the second half of the 1966–67 season, playing Diller's brother-in-law, Angus Pruitt. He also played the
Riddler in the second season of
Batman (
Frank Gorshin returned for the third and final season.) Astin portrayed the title character in the televison film
Evil Roy Slade (1972), starred as Bill Andrews in the film
Freaky Friday (1976), and played submarine commander Matthew Sherman on the 1970s television series
Operation Petticoat. He also made several appearances in the first two seasons of the popular mystery series
Murder, She Wrote, as scheming real estate developer (and finally Sheriff) Harry Pierce, who ends up as the murderer in his last episode. He had a recurring role on the sitcom
Night Court as Buddy, eccentric former mental patient and the father of lead character Harry Stone, who often ended his conversations with a big smile and the phrase,"...but I'm feeling MUCH better now!" Astin appeared in the films ''
National Lampoon's European Vacation (1985), and Teen Wolf Too (1987). He played the regular role of Ed LaSalle on the short-lived Mary Tyler Moore sitcom Mary during the 1985–86 television season. He also guest starred on numerous television series, including appearances on Duckman, Homeboys in Outer Space'',
Jack Palance's ABC circus drama
The Greatest Show on Earth, and a 1967 episode of
Gunsmoke as Festus Haggen's cousin Henry. Astin received an Academy Award nomination for
Prelude, a short film that he wrote, produced, and directed. He was nominated for an Ace Award for his work on
Tales from the Crypt, and received an Emmy Award nomination for the cartoon voice of Gomez on ABC-TV's
The Addams Family. He also voiced the character Bull Gator on the animated series
Taz-Mania. Astin served for four years on the board of directors of the
Writers Guild of America, and has been active in community affairs in Los Angeles and Santa Monica. Astin has continued to work in acting, appearing in a string of
Killer Tomatoes films as Professor Gangreen and as Professor Wickwire in
The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.. In 1996 he featured as The Judge, the ghost of an Old West gunslinger, in
Peter Jackson's
The Frighteners. He also has toured the one-man play
Edgar Allan Poe: Once Upon a Midnight, written by Paul Day Clemens and Ron Magid. In a December 2007
Baltimore Examiner interview, Astin said of his acting experience: Astin is a member of the board of directors of the
Columbia Center for Theatrical Arts in
Columbia, Maryland. ==Teaching==