Gould was one of the most prominent American film actors in the early-1970s, best known for playing Trapper John in Robert Altman's satirical 1970 film MASH. Time magazine placed him on one of its covers in 1970, when he was at the brief height of his long career, calling him a "star for an uptight age". Other notable film roles include Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (which earned him an Academy Award nomination), A Bridge Too Far, Capricorn One, and a remake of The Lady Vanishes. Gould played the detective Philip Marlowe in Altman's 1973 film The Long Goodbye (the role had previously been played by such distinguished actors as Humphrey Bogart and Robert Mitchum).
He hosted Saturday Night Live six times, his final time being the first episode of the disastrous Jean Doumanian season (season 6) in November 1980, where he was shocked to find that the original cast and producer had left and a new cast and producer had taken their place. He has never hosted after that, but has appeared in a season 16 (1990–1991) episode hosted by Tom Hanks where Hanks is welcomed into the Five-Timers club, a society for celebrities who have hosted SNL five times or more. Also in 1980, Gould filmed two movies for Disney studios, The Last Flight of Noah's Ark and The Devil and Max Devlin, in which he co-starred with Bill Cosby.
Gould's Broadway theatre credits include Irma La Douce, Say, Darling, I Can Get It for You Wholesale (in which he met Barbra Streisand), Drat! The Cat!, and Little Murders. He purchased the screen rights to Little Murders, and in addition to acting in the film version, served as uncredited executive producer.
His career slowed down after a series of critical and commercial flops in the mid-to-late 1970s, but he has remained steadily employed in supporting and character roles in television and movies. He starred in a sitcom called E/R in 1984–1985, and had a recurring guest role on Friends as Jack Geller, the father of Monica and Ross Geller.
Gould received critical praise for his role as an aging mobster in Warren Beatty's 1991 film Bugsy. In addition, he appeared in American History X as the boyfriend of Edward Norton's character's mother. He also co-starred as Reuben Tishkoff in the popular "caper" film Ocean's Eleven (2001), and its sequels: Ocean's Twelve (2004), and Ocean's Thirteen (2007).
Gould is most recently seen on advertisements for Save Ellis Island and is heard on radio commercials, most notably introducing himself by name on spots for the Gordon Flesch Company, a Madison, Wisconsin-based office products supplier.
He has also loaned his voice to several animated series, most notable among them, the Disney Channel animated series Kim Possible.
Gould became one of the many celebrity producers of The 1 Second Film collaboration in June of 2009.
Gould currently serves on the Screen Actors Guild National Board of Directors and has done so for the past six yearsHe has recently undergone hip replacement surgery.[5]
Elliott Gould has signed on for a guest spot on Law & Order, TVGuide.com has learned exclusively. The veteran film star will play a disgruntled business owner who takes the law into his own hands after a crime spree in his Harlem neighborhood.
