I first watched Harold and Maude (1971) at a young age. I was probably flipping through the channels, and it was showing somewhere. At the time, I didn’t catch any of the subtleties of the film or whether or not the relationship between Harold and Maude was appropriate. I picked up on the part of the story about some rich kid who wanted some excitement in his life and turned a Jaguar into a hearse. Of course, I had no idea who Bud Cort was at the time; to me, it was just some name in the credits.

Early Life

Bud Cort was born Walter Edward Cox on March 29, 1948, in Rye, New York. His father worked as an orchestra leader, while his mother was a publicist connected to the film industry, giving him early exposure to the entertainment industry.

As a teenager, Cort developed a strong interest in acting and began studying performance at a young age. He attended Iona Preparatory School, where he was known to skip classes to attend Broadway shows.

After high school, he applied to study acting at New York University but was initially turned away. He later gained admission by submitting artwork and enrolled as a scenic art major instead. Around this time, he adopted the stage name “Bud Cort” to avoid confusion with actor Wally Cox.

In New York, he performed in nightclubs as part of a comedy team, and it was in New York that he was spotted by filmmaker Robert Altman.

Career

Having done stage work and appearing in small roles in television throughout the late 1960s, his breakthrough came when director Robert Altman cast him in M*A*S*H (1970) as Private Lorenzo Boone. That same year, Altman gave him a leading role in Brewster McCloud.

His most famous performance, however, was in 1971, when director Hal Ashby cast him as Harold, a death-obsessed young man, in Harold and Maude. The story follows Harold, a wealthy and morbid young man who stages elaborate fake suicides to shock his emotionally distant mother and spends much of his time attending funerals for strangers. At a funeral, he meets Maude (Ruth Gordon), a 79-year-old woman who also enjoys going to funerals, albeit for different reasons. Maude is the opposite of Harold, living freely, enjoying life, and the two develop a friendship with a bit of romance involved. Cort earned nominations for both a Golden Globe and a BAFTA.

The film initially struggled at the box office, with people uncomfortable at the age gap between the two and the dark humor.  But thanks to time, memorable performances, word of mouth, and a soundtrack featuring music by Cat Stevens, the film has since become a cult classic.

Despite this early success, Cort’s career faced setbacks. In 1979, he was seriously injured in a car accident that left him with multiple fractures and required extensive recovery, including plastic surgery and physical therapy.

However, he continued acting in both stage and film. building a steady career as a character actor. His later credits included films such as Heat, Dogma, and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. He also worked in television and voice acting, including roles in animated series like Superman: The Animated Series and Justice League Unlimited.

Legacy

Bud Cort has appeared in two films that have been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant: M*A*S*H (1970) and Harold and Maude (1971). He has appeared alongside many of the greatest actors of his generation and leaves a legacy that is most strongly tied to Harold and Maude, a film that grew from a modest release into a lasting cultural touchstone. His performance as Harold helped define a generation of unconventional storytelling and continues to resonate with audiences drawn to characters who exist outside the mainstream.

Cort died on February 11, 2026, in Norwalk, Connecticut, at the age of 77, following a long illness.