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Actor Tony Roberts, known for acting in multiple Woody Allen directed movies, passed away in his Manhattan home on February 7, 2025. According to the New York Times report, the actor was going through complications related to lung cancer. He was 85 years old.
Tony Roberts played Rob, Alvy Singer's Hollywood actor friend and tennis partner, in Annie Hall. The hit movie, written, directed, and acted by Woody Allen, won four Oscars at the 50th Academy Awards in 1978. It also won one Golden Globe Award and five BAFTA Awards.
Tony Roberts is survived by his daughter, Nicole Burley.
Tony Roberts' life explored
According to The Hollywood Reporter, David Anthony "Tony" Roberts was born in New York on October 22, 1939. His father, Ken Roberts, was a radio announcer.
In a 2016 interview with Bill Boggs, Roberts revealed that his father used to take him to the recording studio when he was little. As a kid, he was fascinated with acting because of these visits. He further said,
"They would act in front of a little piece of metal on a stand, but their bodies and their expressions were so invested in what their story was. It was like watching grown-ups behave like children. That is what did it for me."
Roberts attended The High School of Music & Art in Manhattan and then Northwestern University, where he majored in speech and theater. According to The New York Times, in 1962, he made his Broadway debut with Something About a Soldier. In 1965, he appeared in the Broadway comedy Barefoot in the Park.
In his decades-long career, Roberts appeared on Broadway 23 times. He was nominated for Tony twice: for How Now, Dow Jones, and for Woody Allen's Play It Again, Sam.
According to Variety, in 1971, Roberts made his film debut in the Disney comedy The Million Dollar Duck. He also acted in Woody Allen's six movies: Play It Again, Sam, Annie Hall, Stardust Memories, A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy, Hannah and Her Sisters, and Radio Days. Roberts often played the role of the main character's best friend.
In an interview with Lohud in February 2014, Tony Roberts spoke of his admiration of Woody Allen and said how he wished to be like him, whom he deemed a knowledgeable man. He said,
"There have been times when I wished I was him. I would like to have his gift and his genius and his brain, which is something to revel at. He’s about as knowledgeable on most subjects as anyone I know — whether you’re talking music or painting or history or politics. He is up to the minute with a lot of intellectual input."
According to IMDb, the actor has also appeared in television series, such as Law & Order, All My Children, The Carol Burnett Show, The Thorns, Rosetti and Ryan, The Lucie Arnaz Show, The Four Seasons, and The Edge of Night.
Tony Roberts' last work was the TV remake of the hit movie Dirty Dancing, directed by Wayne Blair. It aired on ABC in May 2017.
