Trivia

He was nominated for the 1972 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance in "The Royal Family" at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was awarded the 2011 Equity Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play for "Broadway Bound" at the Drury Lane Oakbrook Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was nominated for a 1974 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Actor in a Principal Role for his performance in Joe Orton's play, "Loot," at the Candlelight Forum Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was nominated for a 1974 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Actor in a Principal Role for his performance in Sir Tom Stoppard's play, "The Real Inspector Hound," at the Candlelight Forum Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was nominated for a 1975 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Actor in a Principal Role for his performance in Neil Simon's play, "The Good Doctor" at the Candelight Forum Theatre in Chicago, Illinois. (1975)

He was nominated for a 1974 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Actor in a Principal Role for his performance in the play, "Forty Years On," at the Candelight Forum Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was nominated for a 1975 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Director of a Play for "Under Milkwood," at the Orphans Theatre in Chicago, Illinois. (1975)

He was nominated for a 1992 Joseph Jefferson Award for Director of a Play for "The Belmont Avenue Social Club" at the Northlight Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was awarded the 1997 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play for "Racing Demon" at the Organic Touchstone Company in Chicago, Illinois.

He was nominated for a 2000 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play for "Visiting Mr. Green" at the Northlight Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was nominated for a 2004 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play for "Tuesdays with Morrie" at the Northlight Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was awarded the 2014 Joseph Jefferson Equity Award for Supporting Actor in a Play for "Smokefall" at the Goodman Theatre and South Coast Repertory Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was awarded the 2016 Joseph Jefferson (Equity) Award for Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play for "The Price" at the TimeLine Theatre Company in Chicago, Illinois.

He was nominated for a 2017 Joseph Jefferson Equity Award for Principal Actor in a Play for "Relativity" at the Northlight Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was awarded the 1978 Joseph Jefferson Award for Director of a Play for "Lunching" at the Body Politic Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was nominated for a 1978 Joseph Jefferson Award for Director of a Play for "Uncommon Women and Others" at the St. Nicholas Theater Company in Chicago, Illinois.

Before becoming a full-time actor, he was an exterminator.

He got into acting after receiving rave reviews for playing Pecos Bill in a PTA play at his child's school. The nonprofessional community theaters in the area heard about him. Since there were few men in community theater, he became a sought-after commodity. He eventually became a full-time professional actor in his mid-40s.

For 20 years, he worked with his brother-in-law in an extermination business.

His Army assignments included being chief of the message center for Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, in which role he dispatched the official notification of Germany's surrender.

Nussbaum continued to act through his 90s, and he was still working on theatre projects up until his death in 2023.

He also did national commercials for United Airlines and Scope mouthwash.

In the 1960s, he was active in a developing professional theatrical community in Chicago, meeting a young David Mamet in the process.

Nussbaum also appeared in local TV commercials for Chicago's Northwest Federal Savings[5] (with the jingle, "It's Northwest Federal Savings time, sixty-three hours a week").

As a director, his work has included Where Have You Gone, Jimmy Stewart? (2002) by Art Shay.