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'''Frank Gorshin''' {{born|5|April|1933|died|17|May|2005}} was an impressionist, comedian, and actor who played [[Commissioner]] [[Bele]] in {{TOS|Let That Be Your Last Battlefield}}. |
'''Frank Gorshin''' {{born|5|April|1933|died|17|May|2005}} was an impressionist, comedian, and actor who played [[Commissioner]] [[Bele]] in {{TOS|Let That Be Your Last Battlefield}}. |
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− | He is best remembered for his portrayal of The Riddler on the campy 1960s ''Batman'' television series, for which he received his first Emmy nomination (the only one for the series). In his early career, he performed his impressionist/comedy act many times on ''The Ed Sullivan Show'', and was even one of Sullivan's guests on the legendary February 9th, 1964 show that featured the [[United States of America|American]] debut of [[wikipedia:The Beatles|The Beatles]]. In later years, he portrayed classic [[cartoon]] characters like "Foghorn Leghorn", "Daffy Duck", and "Yosemite Sam" in various animated shorts. This talent for mimicry would lead to his masterful portrayal of legendary comedian [[George Burns]] in his one-man play "Say Goodnight, Gracie." He also played the role of Burns in his final film, 2005's ''Angels with Angles'', with [[Amy Wieczorek]] as Burns' wife and partner, [[Gracie Allen]]. |
+ | He is best remembered for his portrayal of The Riddler on the campy 1960s [[wikipedia:Batman (TV series)|''Batman'']] television series, for which he received his first Emmy nomination (the only one for the series). In his early career, he performed his impressionist/comedy act many times on ''The Ed Sullivan Show'', and was even one of Sullivan's guests on the legendary February 9th, 1964 show that featured the [[United States of America|American]] debut of [[wikipedia:The Beatles|The Beatles]]. In later years, he portrayed classic [[cartoon]] characters like "Foghorn Leghorn", "Daffy Duck", and "Yosemite Sam" in various animated shorts. This talent for mimicry would lead to his masterful portrayal of legendary comedian [[George Burns]] in his one-man play "Say Goodnight, Gracie." He also played the role of Burns in his final film, 2005's ''Angels with Angles'', with [[Amy Wieczorek]] as Burns' wife and partner, [[Gracie Allen]]. |
Gorshin had a role in the 1957 film ''The True Story of Jesse James'', starring [[Jeffrey Hunter]] and featuring [[Frank Overton]] and [[Clegg Hoyt]]. In 1959, he made an uncredited appearance in the western ''Warlock'', as did [[Paul Comi]]. TOS actor [[DeForest Kelley]] and guest actor [[Whit Bissell]] had larger, credited roles in this film. Gorshin's first substantial role was in the 1960 film ''Bells Are Ringing'', with [[Dean Martin]] and "[[The Cloud Minders]]" guest actor [[Roy Jenson]]. |
Gorshin had a role in the 1957 film ''The True Story of Jesse James'', starring [[Jeffrey Hunter]] and featuring [[Frank Overton]] and [[Clegg Hoyt]]. In 1959, he made an uncredited appearance in the western ''Warlock'', as did [[Paul Comi]]. TOS actor [[DeForest Kelley]] and guest actor [[Whit Bissell]] had larger, credited roles in this film. Gorshin's first substantial role was in the 1960 film ''Bells Are Ringing'', with [[Dean Martin]] and "[[The Cloud Minders]]" guest actor [[Roy Jenson]]. |
Revision as of 22:48, 20 January 2008
Template:Realworld
Actor: | Frank Gorshin |
Character: | Bele |
Series: | TOS |
Episode: | "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" |
Born: | 5 April 1933 |
Place of Birth: | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
Died: | 17 May 2005 |
Place of Death: | Burbank, California |
Frank Gorshin (5 April 1933 – 17 May 2005; age 72) was an impressionist, comedian, and actor who played Commissioner Bele in TOS: "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield".
He is best remembered for his portrayal of The Riddler on the campy 1960s Batman television series, for which he received his first Emmy nomination (the only one for the series). In his early career, he performed his impressionist/comedy act many times on The Ed Sullivan Show, and was even one of Sullivan's guests on the legendary February 9th, 1964 show that featured the American debut of The Beatles. In later years, he portrayed classic cartoon characters like "Foghorn Leghorn", "Daffy Duck", and "Yosemite Sam" in various animated shorts. This talent for mimicry would lead to his masterful portrayal of legendary comedian George Burns in his one-man play "Say Goodnight, Gracie." He also played the role of Burns in his final film, 2005's Angels with Angles, with Amy Wieczorek as Burns' wife and partner, Gracie Allen.
Gorshin had a role in the 1957 film The True Story of Jesse James, starring Jeffrey Hunter and featuring Frank Overton and Clegg Hoyt. In 1959, he made an uncredited appearance in the western Warlock, as did Paul Comi. TOS actor DeForest Kelley and guest actor Whit Bissell had larger, credited roles in this film. Gorshin's first substantial role was in the 1960 film Bells Are Ringing, with Dean Martin and "The Cloud Minders" guest actor Roy Jenson.
Gorshin also had a role in the 1978 mini-series Greatest Heroes of the Bible. Other Star Trek alumni featured on this series include Ted Cassidy, Jeff Corey, Nehemiah Persoff, John Schuck, and Dean Stockwell.
In 1993, Gorshin appeared in the film Amore!, which also starred TOS actor James Doohan. That same year, he appeared in The Meteor Man, featuring Tommy "Tiny" Lister, Jr., Wallace Shawn, and Deborah Lacey. And in 1995, he made an appearance in the acclaimed science fiction thriller, Twelve Monkeys, co-starring Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country actor Christopher Plummer. (Gorshin and Plummer also appeared together in 1987's The Gnomes' Great Adventure.) One of Gorshin's last films was the 2002 comedy Manna from Heaven, which co-starred Louise Fletcher and Seymour Cassel.
In 2003, Gorshin reunited with most of the surviving Batman cast members, including TV Catwoman Julie Newmar and movie Catwoman Lee Meriwether, in the TV special Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt.
Gorshin died in 2005 in Burbank, California, following bouts with lung cancer, emphysema and pneumonia. He was 72 years old.
Other Trek connections
Addtional projects in which Gorshin appeared with other Star Trek performers include:
- Studs Lonigan (1960, with Stanley Adams)
- Where the Boys Are (1960, with Jon Lormer)
- Sail a Crooked Ship (1961, with Guy Raymond)
- The George Raft Story (1961, with Seamon Glass and Roy Jenson)
- The Great Imposter (1961, with Willard Sage)
- Disney's That Darn Cat! (1965, with Karl Held, Liam Sullivan, and Bride of Frankenstein star Elsa Lanchester)
- Skidoo (1968, with Peter Lawford)
- Sky Heist (1975 TV movie, with Arch Whiting, Al Wyatt, Ed McCready, Stan Barrett, Bill Catching, James Daris, Steven Marlo, and Joseph Campanella)
- Record City (1978, with Wendy Schaal, Ed Begley, Jr., and Alan Oppenheimer)
- Legends of the Superheroes (1979 TV movie, with William Schallert and Mickey Morton) as the Riddler
- Death Car on the Freeway (1979 TV movie, with Roger Aaron Brown)
- Goliath Awaits (1981 TV movie, with Duncan Regehr)
- The Edge of Night (TV series, 1981-82, with James Horan)
- A Masterpiece of Murder (1986, with Clive Revill, Jason Wingreen, and Louise Sorel)
- Hollywood Vice Squad (1986, with Emilia Crow and Ronny Cox)
- Beverly Hills Bodysnatchers (1989, with Brooke Bundy, Keone Young, and Vic Tayback)
- Sweet Justice (1992, with Marjean Holden, Chuck Hicks, Scott Leva, Jeff Pruitt, Michael Canavan, and Marty Rackham)
- Body Double (1992, with Marty Rackham)
- Midnight (1989, with Robert Miano and Tommy "Tiny" Lister, Jr.)
- Buford's Got a Gun (1995 short subject, with Dan Gauthier)
- Twilight of the Ice Nymphs (1997, with Alice Krige)
- After the Game (1997, with Mike Genovese, Sam Anderson, and Richard Lineback)
- The Phantom Eye (1999 TV mini-series, with Michael J. Anderson)
- Luck of the Draw (2000, with Patrick Kilpatrick, Christopher Doyle, Andy Milder, and Erik Cord)
Trivia
Gorshin's passing came just four days before the first appearance of "The Riddler" (voiced by horror movie icon Robert Englund) on the animated series The Batman, on which Gorshin himself played the role of "Hugo Strange".
External Links
- Frank Gorshin at Wikipedia
- Template:IMDb-link
- Frank Gorshin at TriviaTribute.com - pictures and trivia