Herb Edelman as an announcer for Armed Forces Radio, he enrolled in Brooklyn College as a theater student, but eventually dropped out. He later worked as a hotel manager and as a taxicab driver. One of his fares was director Mike Nichols, who in 1963 cast Edelman in his breakthrough Broadway role, as the bewildered telephone repairman in Neil Simon's "Barefoot in the Park". Edelman reprised his role in the 1967 film version (starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda). He appeared in the movie versions of Simon's "The Odd Couple" (1968) and "California Suite" (1978). He also appeared in an installment of
Robert Redford Lifetime Achievement—in 2002. In 2010, he was made a chevalier of the "Légion d'Honneur". He has won BAFTA, Directors Guild of America, Golden Globe, and Screen Actors Guild awards. In April 2014, "Time" magazine included Redford in their annual "Time" 100 as one of the "Most Influential People in the World", declaring him the "Godfather of Indie Film". In 2016, Redford was honored with a Presidential Medal of Freedom. Redford was born on August 18, 1936, in Santa Monica, California, to Martha W. ("née" Hart) and Charles Robert Redford Sr., a milkman-turned-accountant. He has a stepbrother, William, from his father's