Robert Elmer Balaban, Born: August 16, 1945, Chicago, Illinois, U.S (Height: 5' 5" [1.65 m]). is an American actor, author, comedian, director, and producer. He is best known for his appearances in the Christopher Guest mockumentary comedies Waiting for Guffman (1996), Best in Show (2000), A Mighty Wind (2003), and For Your Consideration (2006), as well as his roles in the films Midnight Cowboy (1969), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Altered States (1980), 2010 (1984), Deconstructing Harry (1997), and Capote (2005). Balaban has also directed three feature films, in addition to numerous television episodes and films. He is also an author of children's novels. Balaban began his career in the 1960s, appearing in small roles in films and television shows. He made his breakthrough role in the 1969 film Midnight Cowboy, playing a young hustler who befriends an aging rodeo cowboy. In the 1970s, Balaban appeared in a number of popular films, including Close Encounters of the Third...
The Grand Budapest Hotel
2014
Asteroid City
2023
The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun
2021
Midnight Cowboy
1969
Moonrise Kingdom
2012
Gosford Park
2001
Ghost World
2001
Isle of Dogs
2018
The Monuments Men
2014
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
1977
Unnatural Pursuits
1992
2010
1984
The Tuxedo
2002
Best in Show
2000
A Mighty Wind
2003
Catch-22
1970
Deconstructing Harry
1997
Spielberg
2017
Tex, the Passive/Aggressive Gunslinger
2000
The Five Stages of Grief
2011
The Majestic
2001
Girlfriends
1978
Capote
2005
The Mexican
2001
Funny
1988
Lady in the Water
2006
No Reservations
2007
Greedy
1994
License to Wed
2007
Thin Ice
2012
Absence of Malice
1981
Altered States
1980
Me, Natalie
1969
F--k
2010
For Love or Money
1993
Waiting for Guffman
1997
Alice
1990
Scene Stealers
2004
80 for Brady
2023
Fading Gigolo
2013