Edmund Lyndeck
Encyclopedia
Edmund Lyndeck is an American character actor
and musical theatre
performer.
Lyndeck, a former college professor, spent well over a dozen years in stock and regional theater roles before making his Broadway
debut in the original production of 1776
. After originating the role of John Witherspoon, Lyndeck went on to play Stephen Hopkins, Dr. Lyman Hall, and Charles Thomson before ending up on tour as John Dickinson. His other Broadway credits include Mrs. Warren's Profession
, Piaf: A Remembrance, A Doll's Life
, Merlin
, and Into the Woods
. His best-known role is the evil Judge Turpin
in the original production of Stephen Sondheim
's Sweeney Todd
, which he also repeated for the first national tour, the 1980 television broadcast, and a 1994 revival at the North Shore Music Theatre
. Lyndeck earned a Drama-Logue Award
for his performance in the tour's Los Angeles
berth.
Lyndeck works frequently in Pennsylvania
regional theater. He is a fixture at the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera
— most notably as Scrooge
in their annual musical version of A Christmas Carol
, a role he has performed every year since 1992.
Lyndeck appears occasionally on film, television, and table. He was a contract player on a now-defunct soap opera
, The Doctors, and has had guest roles in series like Ed
, The Cosby Show
, and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
. Lyndeck's best-known film role is as the marijuana-smoking grandfather in Road Trip; he is also known for his outrageous appearance in Adam Sandler
's Big Daddy
and his most recent appearance in The Notorious Bettie Page
. He has also done voiceovers for numerous television and film documentaries.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and musical theatre
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
performer.
Lyndeck, a former college professor, spent well over a dozen years in stock and regional theater roles before making his Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
debut in the original production of 1776
1776 (musical)
1776 is a musical with music and lyrics by Sherman Edwards and a book by Peter Stone. The story is based on the events surrounding the signing of the Declaration of Independence...
. After originating the role of John Witherspoon, Lyndeck went on to play Stephen Hopkins, Dr. Lyman Hall, and Charles Thomson before ending up on tour as John Dickinson. His other Broadway credits include Mrs. Warren's Profession
Mrs. Warren's Profession
Mrs Warren's Profession is a play written by George Bernard Shaw in 1893. The story centers on the relationship between Mrs Kitty Warren, a brothel owner, described by the author as "on the whole, a genial and fairly presentable old blackguard of a woman" and her daughter, Vivie...
, Piaf: A Remembrance, A Doll's Life
A Doll's Life
A Doll's Life is a musical with a book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Larry Grossman. It is among the most notorious flops in Broadway theatre history.The musical is set at a rehearsal of Ibsen's A Doll's House in 1982....
, Merlin
Merlin
Merlin is a legendary figure best known as the wizard featured in the Arthurian legend. The standard depiction of the character first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, written c. 1136, and is based on an amalgamation of previous historical and legendary figures...
, and Into the Woods
Into the Woods
Into the Woods is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. It debuted in San Diego at the Old Globe Theatre in 1986, and premiered on Broadway in 1987. Bernadette Peters' performance as the Witch and Joanna Gleason's portrayal of the Baker's Wife brought acclaim...
. His best-known role is the evil Judge Turpin
Judge Turpin
Judge Turpin is a fictional character in the various adaptations of the story Sweeney Todd. He is the main antagonist.-Character overview:...
in the original production of Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Joshua Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is the winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award...
's Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd (musical)
Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a 1979 musical thriller with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and libretto by Hugh Wheeler. The musical is based on the 1973 play Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Christopher Bond....
, which he also repeated for the first national tour, the 1980 television broadcast, and a 1994 revival at the North Shore Music Theatre
North Shore Music Theatre
North Shore Music Theatre is the largest operating regional theater in New England. It is located in Beverly, Massachusetts and is one of the few remaining theatre-in-the-round stages left in the United States.-History:...
. Lyndeck earned a Drama-Logue Award
Drama-Logue Award
The Drama-Logue Award was a theater award established in 1977, given by the publishers of Drama-Logue newspaper, a weekly west-coast theater trade publication. Winners were selected by the publication's theater critics, and would receive a certificate at an annual awards ceremony...
for his performance in the tour's Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
berth.
Lyndeck works frequently in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
regional theater. He is a fixture at the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera
Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera
Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera is a nonprofit professional theater company based in the Cultural District of Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA....
— most notably as Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge is the principal character in Charles Dickens's 1843 novel, A Christmas Carol. At the beginning of the novel, Scrooge is a cold-hearted, tight-fisted and greedy man, who despises Christmas and all things which give people happiness...
in their annual musical version of A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman & Hall on 17 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of...
, a role he has performed every year since 1992.
Lyndeck appears occasionally on film, television, and table. He was a contract player on a now-defunct soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
, The Doctors, and has had guest roles in series like Ed
Ed (TV series)
Ed is an NBC television program co-produced by David Letterman's Worldwide Pants Incorporated, NBC Productions, and Viacom Productions that aired from 2000 to 2004....
, The Cosby Show
The Cosby Show
The Cosby Show is an American television situation comedy starring Bill Cosby, which aired for eight seasons on NBC from September 20, 1984 until April 30, 1992...
, and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it is also primarily produced...
. Lyndeck's best-known film role is as the marijuana-smoking grandfather in Road Trip; he is also known for his outrageous appearance in Adam Sandler
Adam Sandler
Adam Richard Sandler is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, musician, and film producer.After becoming a Saturday Night Live cast member, Sandler went on to star in several Hollywood feature films that grossed over $100 million at the box office...
's Big Daddy
Big Daddy
- Politicians :* Idi Amin , President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979* Robert Byrd , American senator * Jesse Unruh , American Speaker of the California State Assembly- Sportsmen :...
and his most recent appearance in The Notorious Bettie Page
The Notorious Bettie Page
The Notorious Bettie Page is a 2005 American biographical film directed by Mary Harron. The screenplay by Harron and Guinevere Turner focuses on 1950s pinup and bondage model Bettie Page.-Plot:...
. He has also done voiceovers for numerous television and film documentaries.
Further reading
- Brown, Dennis. Actors Talk: Profiles and Stories from the Acting Trade. New York: Limelight, 1999. (Lyndeck is one of the actors interviewed.)