Tony Roberts

David Anthony Roberts (October 22, 1939 – February 7, 2025), known professionally as Tony Roberts, was an American actor born in Manhattan, New York City. His father, Ken Roberts, worked as a radio announcer, and his mother, Norma (née Finkelstein), was an animator. The family was Jewish. Roberts received his secondary education at the High School of Music & Art before going on to study at Northwestern University.

Roberts made his Broadway debut in 1962 in Something About a Soldier, a play written by Ernest Kinoy, and went on to maintain an active presence on Broadway spanning from 1961 to 2009. His stage work earned him two Tony Award nominations: a Best Actor in a Musical nomination in 1968 for How Now, Dow Jones, and a Best Featured Actor in a Play nomination in 1969 for Play It Again, Sam, the comedic play written by Woody Allen. Additional Broadway credits include Barefoot in the Park, Promises, Promises, Murder at the Howard Johnson's, Sugar, They're Playing Our Song, The Sisters Rosensweig, Victor/Victoria, The Tale of the Allergist's Wife, Arsenic and Old Lace, Cabaret, Jerome Robbins' Broadway, A Royal Family, Short Talks on the Universe, and Xanadu, to which he returned in 2007. In 1998, he played Buddy Plummer in Stephen Sondheim's Follies at the Paper Mill Playhouse in New Jersey.

Roberts became widely recognized for his recurring collaboration with filmmaker Woody Allen, appearing in six of his films. In Annie Hall (1977), he portrayed Alvy Singer's best friend, Rob. He also appeared in both the Broadway and film versions of Play It Again, Sam, as well as Stardust Memories (1980), A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy (1982), Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), and Radio Days (1987). In 2001, he took part in Allen's segment for The Concert for New York City.

Beyond his work with Allen, Roberts built a substantial film career across multiple genres. He played Deputy Mayor Warren LaSalle in The Taking of Pelham One Two Three and appeared in Sidney Lumet's Serpico and Just Tell Me What You Want. In 1983, he took a leading role in the horror film Amityville 3-D, playing John Baxter, a skeptical tabloid journalist who purchases a haunted house. He co-starred opposite George Burns in Eighteen Again! (1988), appeared as Professor Davis in the horror-dark comedy Popcorn (1991), and played Arnold Freidkin in Blake Edwards's Switch (1991). Earlier credits include The Million Dollar Duck (1971) and Star Spangled Girl (1971), both co-starring Sandy Duncan, as well as Key Exchange and Le Sauvage (both 1985), Seize the Day (1986), and Twelve and Holding (2005). His final theatrically released feature film role came in the 2014 independent romantic comedy-drama The Longest Week, in which he played a therapist, and his last made-for-television film appearance was in the 2017 ABC production Dirty Dancing.

On television, Roberts was the third actor to portray Lee Pollock on the soap opera The Edge of Night. In 1977, he starred alongside Squire Fridell in the short-lived NBC legal drama Rosetti and Ryan. He guest-starred on The Love Boat in 1978 and was featured alongside Penny Fuller, who had previously played his wife on The Edge of Night, in the ABC comedy The Thorns. His television appearances also included The Carol Burnett Show, Matlock, Law & Order, and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. Roberts was a regular performer on the CBS Radio Mystery Theater and recorded audiobook adaptations of numerous novels, including works by Stuart Woods, Andrew Vachss, Kurt Vonnegut, and Spencer Johnson.

Roberts died of lung cancer at his Manhattan home on February 7, 2025, at the age of 85.