Alan Grigsby Sues was born on March 7, 1926, in Ross, California, to Alice (née Murray) and Melvyn Sues, who raised racehorses, requiring the family to move frequently. He served in the U.S. Army in Europe during World War II.
Sues used his GI Bill benefits to pay for acting lessons at the Pasadena Playhouse, where he performed, later making his Broadway debut in the stage play Tea and Sympathy, directed by Elia Kazan, which had a successful run in New York City beginning in 1953. During this period, he met and married Phyllis Gehrig, a Dancer and Actress, subsequently starting a vaudevillian nightclub act in Manhattan — with which they toured North America before divorcing in 1958.
After touring the country with his wife, he got more work in stand-up comedy (at Reuben Bleu and Blue Angel, both clubs in Manhattan), worked with Julius Monk, and joined an improv/sketch group with The Mad Show, which led to his being cast in Laugh-In. Outside of Laugh-In, he appeared in the classic Twilight Zone episode "The Masks", in a non-comedic role. He also had supporting roles in the films Move Over, Darling (1963) and The Americanization of Emily (1964).
During the 1970s, Sues appeared as a Celebrity guest on some popular game shows of the era, including The Movie Game, Celebrity Sweepstakes, The Cross-Wits and Liar's Club.
Sues appeared in the short films Lord of the Road (1999) and Artificially Speaking (2009), the latter making its premiere at the 2009 Dances With Films festival in Los Angeles.
In 2008, fifty years after their divorce, Sues and his former wife, Phyllis, conducted a lengthy interview at his home for her website.
Sues died on December 1, 2011, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, West Hollywood, where he was taken after suffering an apparent heart attack while watching television with his beloved dog, Doris, according to his friend and accountant, Michael Michaud.
