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David Joseph Margulies (February 19, 1937 – January 11, 2016) was an American actor. He is known for his role as the Mayor of New York City in Ghostbusters (1984) and Ghostbusters II (1989), and his recurring role as Neil Mink on The Sopranos (2000–2007).

Early life

Margulies was born in Brooklyn, New York City to a Jewish family. He was the son of Runya (née Zeltzer), a nurse and museum employee, and Harry David Margulies, a lawyer. He graduated from City College of New York.

Career

Margulies made his stage debut in the off-Broadway play Golden 6 (1958). In that same year, he joined the American Shakespeare Festival as an apprentice, which led to his receiving an Actors' Equity Association contract for the 1960 theater season. His first Broadway appearance was in the 1973 revival of The Iceman Cometh.

His film credits include The Front (1976), Last Embrace (1979), All That Jazz (1979), Hide in Plain Sight (1980), Dressed to Kill (1980), Times Square (1980), I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can (1982), Daniel (1983), Ghostbusters (1984), Brighton Beach Memoirs (1986), 9½ Weeks (1986), Ishtar (1987), Running on Empty (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Out on a Limb (1992), A Stranger Among Us (1992), Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), and Fading Gigolo (2013).

His television credits include Kojak, Tales from the Darkside, Spenser: For Hire, The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd, Chicago Hope, NYPD Blue, Northern Exposure, Touched by an Angel, four episodes of Law & Order, and eight episodes of The Sopranos as mob boss Tony Soprano's lawyer Neil Mink.

Personal life

Margulies died on January 11, 2016, of cancer in Manhattan, New York, at the age of 78. He was survived by his partner, actress Lois Smith, as well as his son Johnathon and his grandson from his marriage which had ended in divorce.

Filmography

• Scarecrow in a Garden of Cucumbers (1972) as Walter Mitty (film debut)
• The Front (1976) as Phelps
• Last Embrace (1979) as Rabbi Josh Drexel
• All That Jazz (1979) as Larry Goldie
• Night-Flowers (1979) as Psychiatrist
• Hide in Plain Sight (1980) as Detective Reilly
• Dressed to Kill (1980) as Dr. Levy
• Times Square (1980) as Dr. Zymansky
• I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can (1982) as Walter Kress
• Daniel (1983) as Dr. Duberstein
• Ghostbusters (1984) as Mayor Lenny Clotch
• Tales from the Darkside (1985, "Distant Signals" TV episode) as Gil Hurn
• 9½ Weeks (1986) as Harvey
• Brighton Beach Memoirs (1986) as Mr. Farber
• Candy Mountain (1987) as Lawyer
• Ishtar (1987) as Mr. Clarke
• Magic Sticks (1987) as Goldfarb
• Running on Empty (1988) as Dr. Jonah Reiff
• Ghostbusters II (1989) as Lenny Clotch, The Mayor of New York City
• Funny About Love (1990) as Dr. Benjamin
• Law & Order (1991–2004, TV) as Various Roles
• A Stranger Among Us (1992) as Lt. Oliver
• Out on a Limb (1992) as Mr. Buchenwald
• Day of Atonement (1992) (English version, voice)
• Family Prayers (1993) as Uncle Sam
• Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994) as Doctor
• The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Hollywood Follies (1994, TV) as Carl Laemmle
• Hudson River Blues (1997) as Stan
• Lifebreath (1997) as Abe Gross
• Celebrity (1998) as Counselor Adelman
• Man of the Century (1999) as Mr. Meyerscholtz
• Looking for an Echo (2000) as Dr. Ludwig
• The Sopranos (2000–2007, TV) as Neil Mink
• Touched by an Angel (2001, TV) as Sam Silverstein
• Bought & Sold (2003) as Kutty Nazarian
• Invitation to a Suicide (2004) as Roman Malek
• Whiskey School (2005) as Rex Michaels
• Ira & Abby (2006) as Dr. Arnold Friedman
• Noise (2007) as Heart Attack Man
• All Good Things (2010) as Mayor
• Roadie (2011) as Don Muller
• The Girl on the Train (2013) as Morris Herzman
• Fading Gigolo (2013) as Chief Rebbe
• A Most Violent Year (2014) as Saul Lefkowitz
• Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2015, TV) as Dr. Eric Setrakian
• License Plates (2016) as Jacob
• Madoff as Elie Wiesel
• Adam Bloom (2016) as Harris Sutton (final film)
• Curmudgeons (2016, Short) as Ralph (released posthumously)

Additional Broadway credits

• Comedians (1976)
• The West Side Waltz (1981)
• Brighton Beach Memoirs (1983)
• Conversations with My Father (1992)
• Angels in America: Millennium Approaches (1993)
• Angels in America: Perestroika (1993)
• A Thousand Clowns (1996 revival)
• 45 Seconds from Broadway (2001)
• Wonderful Town (2003 revival)

References

1. Roberts, Sam (January 12, 2016). "David Margulies, 'Ghostbusters' Mayor and Tony Soprano's Lawyer, Dies at 78". The New York Times. Retrieved January 31, 2024.
3. Bloom, Nate. "Celebrity Jews", jweekly.com, March 10, 2006; accessed December 19, 2015.
4. David Margulies profile, filmreference.com; accessed January 13, 2016.
5. David Margulies profile, milkenarchive.org; accessed December 19, 2015.
6. "Bard Academy Awards Equity Contracts to 7". Bridgeport, CT. The Bridgeport Post. April 17, 1960. p. 13. Retrieved April 2, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
7. ^ David Margulies at IMDb
8. "Stage and Screen Actor David Margulies Passes Away at 88". BroadwayWorld.com. Archived from the original on January 12, 2016. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
9. "Reddit comment from his grandson with picture; states "one of" his sons". Archived from the original on August 20, 2022. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
10. Reddit comment from his grandson; mods verified it in the comment below his.

External links

• David Margulies at the Internet Broadway Database
• David Margulies at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• David Margulies at IMDb 

• 1937 births
• 2016 deaths
• 20th-century American male actors
• 21st-century American male actors
• American male film actors
• American male stage actors
• American male television actors
• City College of New York alumni
• Jewish American male actors
• Male actors from Brooklyn
• 20th-century American Jews
• 21st-century American Jews