David Huddleston, who played the Big Lebowski opposite Jeff Bridges, dies of heart and kidney disease aged 85

Published: 23:34 GMT, 4 August 2016 | Updated: 07:47 GMT, 5 August 2016

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David Huddleston, a character actor best known for portraying titular roles in The Big Lebowski and Santa Claus: The Movie, has died. He was 85.

Huddleston's wife, Sarah C. Koeppe, says he died Tuesday of advanced heart and kidney disease in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Huddleston famously portrayed the blustery millionaire whose identity Jeff Bridges' character is mistaken for in the 1998 cult comedy The Big Lebowski.

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RIP: Actor David Huddleston has died at the age of 85

Other credits in his 55-year-long career include the films Blazing Saddles, The Producers and Santa Claus: The Movie, as well as such TV series as The West Wing, Gilmore Girls and The Wonder Years.

Huddleston was born in 1930 in Vinton, Virginia. He served as an aircraft engine mechanic in the U.S. Air Force before studying acting in New York.

The character actor had a sprawling list of credits both on the big and small screen as well as the stage, but it was the 'other' Jeffrey Lebowski he will be most fondly remembered for.

Jeffrey Lebowski: The character actor had a sprawling list of credits both on the big and small screen as well as the stage, but it was the 'other' Jeffrey Lebowski he will be most fondly remembered for.

Despite only having a handful of scenes in the Coen brothers' classic, they are among the film's most memorable, including the showdown between him and his namesake The Dude, as they debate over who is responsible for replacing the pee-soaked rug that really tied the room together.

As is the definition of cult movies, the film - which also starred John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, Julianne Moore, Tara Reid, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Sam Elliott and John Turturro - didn't do very well when it was first released.

But it has since gone on to become one of the most beloved films of all time