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Bele
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 193317 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:

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".

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