Biography
An exceptionally versatile performer, he could play all points on the moral compass with unwavering verisimilitude. Audiences believed him as both the lovelorn Mitch in "A Streetcar Named Desire" (1951) and the forthright Father Barry in "On the Waterfront" (1954) and as the lustful husband of a teenage bride in "Baby Doll" (1956) or as the tongue-in-cheek super-villain Julian Wells in "Murderers' Row" (1966). He shifted his attention to …
Latest Tv Credits
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Career Milestones
2000 | Made guest appearance as a priest on NBC's acclaimed "The West Wing" | |
1993 | Portrayed a bus driver who fought to save himself and a group of school children who were kidnapped and buried alive in the true story "They've Taken Our Children: The Chowchilla Kidnapping Story" (ABC) | |
1992 | Reprised his signature TV role of policeman Mike Stone in "Back to the Streets of San Francisco" (NBC) | |
1990 | Co-starred in the ABC movie "Call Me Anna," based on actress Patty Duke's autobiography | |
1989 | Portrayed wheelchair-bound Leon Klinghoffer who was murdered by terrorists in "The Hijacking of the Achille Lauro" (NBC) | |
1988 | Cast as Admiral Elmo Zumwalt, Jr., whose decision to authorize the use of Agent Orange in Vietnam has repercussions on his family in the fact-based CBS drama, "My Father, My Son" | |
1987 | Made last feature film appearance in courtroom drama, "Nuts" | |
1987 | Hosted and narrated a pair of NBC specials, "Unsolved Mysteries" | |
1985 | Appeared as the Walrus in an all-star CBS version of "Alice in Wonderland" | |
1984 | Offered memorable, Emmy-winning turn as a man who slowly comes to suspect his daughter was murdered by her husband in the based-on-fact NBC miniseries, "Fatal Vision" | |
1981 | Portrayed US Olympic hockey coach Herb Brooks in the ABC movie, "Miracle on Ice" | |
1980 | Starred in short-lived series "Skag" (NBC) | |
1979 | Had featured roles in two disaster-themed features, "Beyond the Poseidon Adventure" and "Meteor" | |
1977 | Starred in the small screen remake of "Captains Courageous" (ABC) | |
| Served as spokesman for American Express in memorable series of commercials, spouting tagline "Don't leave home without it" | ||
| Starred as Lieutenant Mike Stone on the ABC crime drama, "The Streets of San Francisco"; garnered four consecutive Emmy nominations as Lead Actor in a Drama Series from 1974 to 1977 | ||
1970 | Portrayed General Omar Bradley to George C. Scott's "Patton" | |
1967 | Acted opposite Michael Caine (as Harry Palmer) in the Ken Russell-directed "Billion Dollar Brain" | |
1965 | Co-starred in "The Cincinnati Kid" | |
1962 | Had banner year with four strong performances: as Warren Beatty's father in the drama "All Fall Down"; the prison warden in "Birdman of Alcatraz"; the patriarch of a pioneer family in "How the West Was Won"; and as the suitor to Madame Rose in "Gypsy" | |
1961 | Acted in Marlon Brando's directorial debut, "One-Eyed Jacks" | |
1960 | Co-starred in the Disney feature, "Pollyanna" | |
1957 | Cast as baseball player Jimmy Piersall's father in the biopic, "Fear Strikes Out" | |
1957 | Directed feature, "Time Limit" | |
1957 | Made last stage appearance to date in "The Egghead" | |
1956 | Reunited with Kazan and Tennessee Williams for the feature film "Baby Doll" | |
1955 | Returned to Broadway in "Desperate Hours" | |
1954 | Earned second Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor as the dockside priest in Kazan's "On the Waterfront" | |
1953 | Co-starred in the thriller, "I Confess," helmed by Alfred Hitchcock | |
1951 | Acted on stage in "Peer Gynt" | |
1951 | Reprised role of Mitch in the Kazan-directed feature version of "A Streetcar Named Desire"; won Supporting Actor Oscar | |
1949 | Early TV credits include "Little Women" (CBS) | |
| Co-starred as Mitch, the man who courts Blanche DuBois, in Broadway premiere of Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire," staged by Kazan | ||
1947 | Breakthrough stage role in original cast of Arthur Miller's drama, "All My Sons," directed by Elia Kazan | |
1943 | Was a member of the ensemble of "Winged Victory," produced on Broadway; reprised role in film adaptation | |
1940 | Film debut, "They Knew What They Wanted" | |
1938 | Appeared on Broadway in "How to Get Tough About It" and "Missouri Legend" | |
| Worked frequently on radio dramas | ||
1937 | Stage debut in "Golden Boy" | |
1937 | Moved to NYC | |
| After graduating high school, worked in steel mills for three years before attending drama school in Chicago | ||
| Raised in Gary, Indiana | ||
Awards
2003 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Life Achievement |
1985 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor In a Limited Series or a Special in Fatal Vision |
1977 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in The Streets of San Francisco |
1976 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in The Streets of San Francisco |
1975 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama in The Streets of San Francisco |
1975 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in The Streets of San Francisco |
1974 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in The Streets of San Francisco |
1962 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy Or Musical in Gypsy |
1956 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama in Baby Doll |
1956 | BAFTA Award for Foreign Actor in Baby Doll |
1954 | Academy Award for Actor In a Supporting Role in On the Waterfront |
1951 | Academy Award for Actor In a Supporting Role in A Streetcar Named Desire |