FILE - Actor Robert LuPone attends Miscast 2013 at Hammerstein Ballroom on March 4, 2013, in New York City. (Photo by Jim Spellman/WireImage) NEW YORK - Bob LuPone, who as an actor earned a Tony Award nomination in the original run of "A Chorus Line" and played Tony Soprano’s family physician, and also helped found and lead the influential off-Broadway theater company MCC Theater for almost 40 years, has died.
He was 76.LuPone, brother of Broadway icon Patti LuPone, died Saturday following a three-year battle with pancreatic cancer, according to Matt Ross Public Relations."The MCC Theater community mourns the loss of our much loved and uniquely inspiring partner, colleague and dear friend, Bob LuPone, who lived fearlessly and with great curiosity, good humor, a boundless passion for connection, and a whole lot of heart.
We will miss him deeply and always," the theater company said in a statement.LuPone's first professional job was in 1966, in the ensemble of the Westbury Music Fair’s production of "The Pajama Game" starring Liza Minnelli.
He made his Broadway debut in the 1968 production of Noel Coward’s "Sweet Potato" and later appeared in "Minnie’s Boys," "The Rothschilds" and "The Magic Show."LuPone was initially cast as Al in "A Chorus Line," but convinced creator and director Michael Bennett to let him play Zach after the original actor left.