Martin Landau : Biography, Pictures, Photos, Trivia, Address, Filmography (Space 1999, Mission : Impossible)
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Martin Landau Commandant John Koenig in Space 1999, Rollin Hand in Mission : Impossible
Biography for Martin LandauMartin Landau, the Oscar-winning character actor, was born on June 20, 1931, in Brooklyn, New York. At the age of 17 he was hired by the New York Daily News as a staff cartoonist and illustrator. In his five years on the paper, he served as the illustrator for Billy Rose's "Pitching Horseshoes" column. He also worked for cartoonist Gus Edson on "The Gumps" comic strip. Landau's major ambition was to act, and in 1951 he made his stage debut in "Detective Story" at the Peaks Island Playhouse in Peaks Island, Maine. He made his off-Broadway debut that year in "First Love."
Landau was one of 2000 applicants who auditioned for Lee Strasberg's Actors Studio in 1955 - only he and Steve McQueen were accepted. Landau was a friend of James Dean, and McQueen, in a conversation with Landau, mentioned that he knew Dean and had met Landau. When Landau asked where they had met, McQueen informed him he had seen Landau riding into the New York City garage where he worked as a mechanic on the back of Dean's motorcycle.
He acted during the mid-1950s in the television anthologies "Playhouse 90" (1956), "Studio One" (1948), "The Philco Television Playhouse" (1948), "Kraft Television Theatre" (1947), "Goodyear Television Playhouse" (1951) and "Omnibus" (1952). He began making a name for himself after replacing star Franchot Tone in the 1956 off-Broadway revival of Anton Chekhov's "Uncle Vanya," a famous production that helped put off-Braoadway on the New York theatrical map.
In 1957 he made a well-received Broadway debut in the play "Middle of the Night." As part of the touring company with star Edward G. Robinson, he made it to the West Coast. He made his movie debut in Pork Chop Hill (1959) but scored on film as the heavy in Alfred Hitchcock's classic thriller, North by Northwest (1959), in which he was shot on top of Mt. Rushmore while sadistically stepping on the fingers of Cary Grant, who was holding on for dear life to the cliff face. He also appeared in the blockbuster Cleopatra (1963), the most expensive film ever made up to that time, which nearly scuttled 20th Century-Fox and engendered one of the great public scandals, the Elizabeth Taylor-Richard Burton love affair that overshadowed the film itself.
In 1963 Laundau played memorable roles on two episodes of the science-fiction anthology series "The Outer Limits" (1963), "The Bellero Shield" and "The Man Who Was Never Born". He was Gene Roddenberry's first choice to play Mr. Spock on "Star Trek" (1966), but the role went to Leonard Nimoy, who later replaced Landau on "Mission: Impossible" (1966), the show that really made Landau famous. He originally was not meant to be a regular on the series, which co-starred his wife Barbara Bain, whom he had married in 1957. His character, Rollin Hand, was supposed to make occasional, though recurring appearances, on "Mission: Impossble," but when the producers had problems with star Steven Hill, Landau was used to take up the slack. Hill was an Orthodox Jew deeply committed to his faith, and would not work the long hours the action series demanded of him if it conflicted with his beliefs, such as working on the Sabbath. Laundau, who was born into a Jewish family but was not particularly religious, had no problems with the demanding schedule. Laundau's characterization was so well-received and so popular with the audience that he was made a regular. Landau received Emmy nominations as Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for each of the three seasons he appeared. In 1968 he won the Golden Globe award as Best Male TV Star.
Eventually, he quit the series in 1969 after a salary dispute when the new star, Peter Graves, was given a contract that paid him more than Landau, whose own contract stated he would have parity with any other actor on the show who made more than he did. The producers refused to budge, and he and Bain, who had become the first actress in the history of television to be awarded three consecutive Emmy Awards (1967-69) while on the show, left the series, ostensibly to pursue careers in the movies. The move actually held back their careers, and "Mission: Impossible" went on for another four years with other actors.
Landau appeared in support of Sidney Poitier in They Call Me MISTER Tibbs! (1970), the less successful sequel to the Oscar-winning In the Heat of the Night (1967), but it did not generate more work of a similar caliber. He starred in the TV-movie Welcome Home, Johnny Bristol (1972) (TV) on CBS, playing a prisoner of war returning to the US from Vietnam. The following year he shot a pilot for NBC for a proposed show, "Savage." Though it was directed by emerging wunderkind Steven Spielberg, NBC did not pick up the show. Needing work, Landau and Bain moved to England to play the leading roles in the syndicated science-fiction series "Space: 1999" (1975).
Landau's and Bain's careers stalled after "Space 1999" went out of production, and they were reduced to taking parts in the TV movie The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island (1981) (TV). It was the nadir of both their careers, and Bain's acting days, and their marriage, soon were over. Landau, one of the most talented character actors in Hollywood, and one not without recognition, had bottomed out career-wise. In 1983 he was stuck in low-budget sci-fi and horror movies like The Being (1983), a role far beneath his talent.
His career renaissance got off to a slow start with a recurring role in the NBC sitcom "Buffalo Bill" (1983), starring Dabney Coleman. On Broadway he took over the title role in the revival of "Dracula" and went on the road with the national touring company. Finally, his career renaissance began to gather momentum when Francis Ford Coppola cast him in a critical supporting role in his Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988), for which Landau was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor. He won his second Golden Globe for the role.
The next year he received his second consecutive Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his superb turn as the adulterous husband in Woody Allen's Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989). He followed this up by playing famed Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal in the TNT TV-movie Max and Helen (1990) (TV). The summit of his post-"Mission: Impossible" carer was about to be scaled, however. He portrayed Bela Lugosi in Tim Burton's biopic Ed Wood (1994) and won glowing reviews. For his performance he won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar. Martin Landau, the superb character actor, finally had been recognized with his profession's ultimate award. His performance, which also won him his third Golden Globe, garnered numerous awards in addition to the Oscar and Golden Globe, including top honors from the New York Film Critics Circle and the National Society of Film Critics.
Landau continued to play a wide variety of roles in motion pictures and on television, turning in a superb performance in a supporting role in The Majestic (2001). He received his fourth Emmy nomination in 2004 as Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for "Without a Trace" (2002).
Martin Landau was honored with his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, located at 6801 Hollywood Blvd.
At the end of the college, Martin Landau studies the Fine Arts at the Pratt Institute and became an illustrator for five years on a daily basis "New York Daily News". Passionate about theater, he presented himself in 1955 for an audition at the Actor's Studio, where he was selected in the company of Steve McQueen. In the famous school, his prestigious teachers are called Lee Strasberg, Elia Kazan, Harold Clurman, Curt Conway ...
Then he made his debut in theater and television. He gets on Broadway boards in Goat Song, Stalag 17, Detective Story. But it was especially with the tour of Middle of the Night, his first great acting success, that Martin Landau stood out for Hollywood directors. He attracts attention from his second appearance to the cinema by playing Leonard, the damned soul of the spy Philip Van Damme (James Mason) in Death aux Trousses (1959) by Alfred Hitchcock.
In the mid -sixties, he became famous for millions of viewers by lending his features to Rollin Hand, the character of transformations of the Cult Mission impossible series, alongside his wife Barbara Bain, married in 1957. He will be among the three First seasons broadcast between 1966 and 1969, before being replaced by Leonard Nimoy. As a result of his regular activity on television, his film career continues at an idle pace. In 1975, he moved to his wife in England where they will both be the stars of a new television soap opera, Cosmos 1999 (1975-1977). His roles are now moving towards science fiction, notably with Meteor (1979) and Extraterrestrial Terror (1980).
After his divorce in 1987, his cinema career had a new boom with two nominations consecutive to the Oscar for best male role for Tucker (1988) and Crimes and Delits (1989). He obtained this Oscar and the consecration by playing actor Bela Lugosi in the now classic Ed Wood by Tim Burton, in 1994.
Since then, Martin Landau has continued to work for cinema. Among other things, he became Geppetto, the Pinocchio puppet manufacturer (1996). But he concentrates most of his activities as an actor confined to television. He has indeed participated in around twenty series and as many TV movies.
Martin Landau is an American actor born June 20, 1928 in Brooklyn, New York. He is known for his work in the films and television series from the 1950s to 2010. He won an Oscar for best actor in 1994 for his role in the film "Ed Wood" by Tim Burton.
Landau began his career as theater actor in New York before turning to television and cinema. He made his television debut in the 1950s in series like "suspicion" and "The Invaders". He also played in films such as "Cleopatra" and "The Greatest Story Every Told" before becoming a member of the famous series "Mission: Impossible" from 1966 to 1969, in which he interpreted the character of Rollin Hand.
Landau continued to work in cinema and television throughout his career. He played in films such as "Tucker: The Man and His Dream" by Francis Ford Coppola, "Crimes and Misdemeanors" by Woody Allen and "Rounders" by John Dahl. He also played in television series like "Entourage" and "Without was traced".
In 1994, Landau received an Oscar for best actor for his role in "Ed Wood" by Tim Burton, in which he played the role of the screenwriter Bela Lugosi. He also won a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award for this role.
Landau was also an artist accomplished outside his acting career. He was a talented painter and exhibited his works in several art galleries. He was also a member of the Actor's Studio, a renowned theater group in New York.
Unfortunately, Landau died on July 15, 2017 at the age of 89. His acting career of more than five decades earned him to be considered one of the greatest actors of his generation. Photos                      
Filmography
TriviaWas Gene Roddenberry's first choice to play Mr. Spock on the TV series "Star Trek" (1966). Ironically, when Landau later left "Mission: Impossible" (1966), his replacement was Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock).
At 17, he joined the New York Daily News as a cartoonist and worked there for five years.
Of the 2,000 performers that auditioned for Lee Strasberg's exclusive theatre school in 1955, only two were accepted: Steve McQueen and Landau.
Was named as "King of Brooklyn" at the Welcome Back to Brooklyn Festival in 1992.
Made a successful Broadway debut in 1957's "Middle of the Night".
A friend of James Dean, when Landau first met Steve McQueen and McQueen said he knew him, he asked where they had met. McQueen informed him he had seen Landau riding into the New York City garage where he worked as a mechanic on the back of Dean's motorcycle.
He has a Motion Picture star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame located at 6801 Hollywood Blvd.
From 1948-53, he made a living as a newspaper artist and staff cartoonist, for the New York's Daily News, as an illustrator for Billy Rose's "Pitching Horseshoes" newspaper column, and as an assistant cartoonist to Gus Edson for "The Gumps" comic strip.
In, 1973 he appeared in the series pilot for NBC for a program entitled "Savage". The pilot was directed by the young Steven Spielberg. It was not picked up.
Is portrayed by Samuel Gould in James Dean (2001) (TV)
He received two of his three Oscar-nominations for portraying real-life people. FamilySpouse : Barbara Bain (31 January 1957 - 1993) (divorced) 2 children
Father of Susan Landau Finch and Juliet Landau. Author of the card
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