Alan Alda's Real Name: Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo

Quick answer: Alan Alda's documented original name is Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo. Encyclopaedia Britannica records that he was born on January 28, 1936, in New York City, and that he is an American actor, director, and screenwriter best known for playing Capt. "Hawkeye" Pierce on MASH* (1972–83) (Britannica).

Real name and early life

The Library of Congress heading is "Alda, Alan, 1936-," with the variant "D'Abruzzo, Alphonso Joseph, 1936-." Britannica lists him as also known as Alphonso Joseph d'Abruzzo. He was the son of actor Robert Alda (1914–86). Britannica says he attended Fordham University before acting in Broadway plays including The Apple Tree and The Owl and the Pussycat. Those stage credits preceded the film roles that brought him wider notice and, soon after, the television work that made his name.

Career highlights

After notice for films such as Paper Lion (1968) and The Mephisto Waltz (1971), Alda became a television star as Hawkeye Pierce, a wisecracking but soulful U.S. Army surgeon during the Korean War, on MASH. The series ran from 1972 to 1983. He cowrote and directed many of the show's episodes and won numerous Emmy Awards for the work. Later television work included recurring roles on ER; The West Wing, for which he won an Emmy; 30 Rock; The Big C; The Blacklist; and Ray Donovan. He also appeared in the web series Horace and Pete (2016) and hosted Scientific American Frontiers from 1993 to 2007. Film credits include Same Time, Next Year (1978), Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989), Flirting with Disaster (1996), What Women Want (2000), Bridge of Spies (2015), and Marriage Story (2019). He received an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor for The Aviator (2004). Other films listed by Britannica include Tower Heist (2011), Wanderlust (2012), and The Longest Ride (2015). Films he directed include Sweet Liberty (1986) and Betsy's Wedding (1990). The Library of Congress heading confirms the 1936 birth year used in the authorized name, and the variant records the original surname D'Abruzzo under which searchers sometimes look him up. Britannica's later credits show how far he ranged after MASH, from hospital and political dramas to comedies such as 30 Rock and to the supporting-actor Oscar nomination for The Aviator, a reminder that his film work continued long after the series that made him famous had ended.

Name notes for searchers

Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo is the documented original name; he is known professionally as Alan Alda. Searchers looking for Hawkeye Pierce or the MASH* actor-director are usually aiming at the same person.