"That's your daughter!" - Veteran actor Alan Alda reveals his face blindness made him not recognize his own daughter

Alan Alda, 89, has publicly opened up about his hardships with face blindness, also known as prosopagnosia. Patients suffering from this rare neurological condition struggle with the ability to recognize people's faces.

In an exclusive conversation with People, published on May 23, 2025, the Bridge of Spies actor looked back on his challenging experience and revealed how he couldn’t identify his own daughter, Beatrice.

During that time, Beatrice had to dye her hair blonde for her on-screen character in The Four Seasons. Recalling that day, Alda explained,

"I saw this person with horn-rimmed glasses and blonde hair staring at me, and it was starting to get distracting. I said to the assistant director, 'Don't let these strangers come on the set.'"

The assistant director corrected Alan, clarifying,

"That's your daughter!"

The veteran actor further chimed in,

"I don't think she was too happy about that, because neither of us knew that there was such a thing as face blindness [at the time]."

Alan Alda detailed his health updates in a recent interview

Alda still finds it challenging to identify people at times. During his recent conversation, he added,

"When somebody comes up to me, as if they know me, I often don't know if they know me from seeing me on the screen or if I actually know them. I could have dinner with somebody, spend two hours with somebody next to me, and the next day not know who they are."

In 2015, the Crimes and Misdemeanors star was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. A few days back, Alan spoke with the outlet over a Zoom session and shared updates on his present health condition.

He shared:

"Making progress".

With a small pause in between, he continued,

"I didn’t say in which direction."

Managing Parkinson's and continuing life is not easy. Reflecting on his experience, Alan shared how this journey has

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"gone from a part-time job to almost a full-time job keeping track of all these little solutions. But it keeps me always looking for the funny side."

Amid all these medical concerns, he continues to work hard and give his best in front of the camera. In his late 80s, he made a cameo in the reimagined adaptation of Alan Alda’s 1981 film, The Four Seasons. The eight-episode comedy-drama premiered globally on Netflix on May 1, 2025.

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