Eric Thayer/Reuters
Rip Torn, the Emmy winning actor best known for his role as Artie the producer on The Larry Sanders Show, died Tuesday afternoon at age 88. Torn was nominated for nine Emmy Awards, receiving a nomination for every one of the Sanders show’s six seasons, and won the award in 1996. Torn was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1984 for his role as Marsh Turner in Cross Creek. He starred in a slew of other comedies and dramas, including Defending Your Life, 30 Rock, Dodgeball, and the first two Men in Black films. Born Elmore Rual Torn Jr. on Feb. 6, 1931, in Temple, Texas, Torn attended Texas A&M and the University of Texas, where he majored in animal husbandry. Torn later hitchhiked to Hollywood with the idea of becoming a movie star so he could make enough money to buy a ranch, according to IMDB. According to his publicist, Torn passed away peacefully at his home in Lakeville, Connecticut.