LOS ANGELES, CALIF. — Allan Arbus, a one-time fashion photographer who turned to acting and gained fame portraying quick-witted, liberal-leaning psychiatrist Maj. Sidney Freedman on the hit television series “M*A*S*H,” has died at his Los Angeles home.
Arbus died Friday at age 95, his daughter, Amy, told the New York Times.
The New York City native appeared on a variety of shows in the 1970s and 1980s, including “Taxi,” “Matlock” and “Starsky & Hutch.” But he was best known for his work as Freedman — spelled with two E’s, like freedom, he once quipped to a hard-core military officer on the show.
Arbus actually served in the U.S. Army during World War II, working as a photographer. After being discharged, he and his wife opened a fashion photography studio. Diane Arbus continued her photography career, but Allan eventually moved toward acting, and the couple — who had two daughters — divorced in 1969. Diane Arbus committed suicide in 1971.
Allan Arbus remarried five years later, and the couple had another daughter.
Arbus continued making guest appearances on various television shows into the 1980s and 1990s, including spots on “L.A. Law,” “Duet,” “Hardcastle and McCormick,” “Law & Order,” “Mad About You” and “Judging Amy.” His final TV role was in 2000 on HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”
