David Huddleston, the character actor best known for portraying titular roles in The Big Lebowski and Santa Claus: The Movie, has died. He was 85.
Huddleston's wife, Sarah C. Koeppe, says he died Tuesday of advanced heart and kidney disease in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Huddleston famously portrayed the blustery millionaire whose identity Jeff Bridges' character is mistaken for in the 1998 cult comedy The Big Lebowski.
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He also personified a jolly St. Nick alongside Dudley Moore in Santa Claus: The Movie and hilariously played the mayor in Blazing Saddles.
"It was a great privilege to work with David Huddleston on Blazing Saddles," creator Mel Brooks told industry publication The Hollywood Reporter.
"His performance was sublime. He helped make all those Johnsons of Rock Ridge immortal. He was one of a kind and will be greatly missed."
Other credits in Huddleston's 55-year career include the films Fools' Parade, Family Reunion and Bad Company, as well as a long list of guest appearances on such TV series as Gunsmoke, Trapper John M.D., Magnum P.I., The Wonder Years, The West Wing, The Wild Thornberrys, Gilmore Girls and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
Huddleston was born in 1930 in Vinton, Va. He served as an aircraft engine mechanic in the U.S. Air Force before studying acting in New York.
He began his career in the theatre, acting on Broadway as well as in national tours of such shows as Music Man, Mame and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.
Big Lebowski actor David Huddleston dies at 85
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