Oscar-winning character actor Martin Landau was born on June 20, 1928, in Brooklyn, New York. At age 17, he was hired by the New York Daily News to work in the promotions department before he became 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 2,000 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 on the back of Dean's motorcycle into the New York City garage where he worked as a mechanic.
Landau acted during the mid-1950s in the television anthologies Playhouse 90 (1956), Studio One in Hollywood (1948), The Philco Television Playhouse (1948), Kraft Theatre (1947), Goodyear 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-Broadway 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 Mount 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. Despite the difficulties with the film, Landau's memorable portrayal in the key role of Rufio was highly favored by the audience and instantly catapulted his popularity.
In 1963, Landau played memorable roles in two episodes of the science-fiction anthology series The Outer Limits (1963), The Outer Limits: The Bellero Shield (1964), and The Outer Limits: The Man Who Was Never Born (1963). He was Gene Roddenberry's first choice to play Mr. Spock on Star Trek: The Original Series (1966), but the role went to Leonard Nimoy, who later replaced Landau on Mission: Impossible (1966), the show that really made Landau famous. Landau 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, recurring appearances, on Mission: Impossible (1966), but when the producers had problems with star Steven Hill, Landau was used to take up the slack. Landau's characterization was so well-received and so popular with the audience, 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 (1966) 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 television movie Welcome Home, Johnny Bristol (1972) on CBS, playing a prisoner of war returning to the United States 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 (1975) went out of production, and they were reduced to taking parts in the television movie The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island (1981). It was the nadir of both their careers, and Bain's acting days and their marriage were soon 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 such as 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 movie Max and Helen (1990). However, the summit of his post-Mission: Impossible (1966) career was about to be scaled. 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 Boulevard.
Martin Landau died in Los Angeles, California on July 15, 2017. (heart disease)
Known For
Credits
Cast Credits
In Plain Sight (2008)
Guest starring as Joseph Thomas
- Episode 2x12: Training Video (Jul 19, 2009) [Special Guest Star]
The Evidence (2006)
Starring as Dr. Sol Goldman
(8 episodes)
- Episode 1x08: And the Envelope Please (Jul 1, 2006)
- Episode 1x07: Stringers (Jun 24, 2006)
- Episode 1x06: Wine and Die (Jun 17, 2006)
- Episode 1x05: Yi vs. Li (Jun 10, 2006)
- Episode 1x04: Five Little Indians (Apr 12, 2006)
- Episode 1x03: Borrowed Time (Apr 5, 2006)
- Episode 1x02: Down for the Count (Mar 29, 2006)
- Episode 1x01: Pilot (Mar 22, 2006)
Without a Trace (2002)
Guest starring as Frank Malone
(5 episodes)
- Episode 7x24: Undertow (May 19, 2009)
- Episode 4x10: When Darkness Falls (Dec 8, 2005)
- Episode 3x22: John Michaels (May 12, 2005)
- Episode 3x10: Malone v. Malone (Dec 9, 2004)
- Episode 2x20: Shadows (Apr 15, 2004)
Spider-Man (1994)
Guest starring as MacGargan / Scorpion
(4 episodes)
- Episode 2x14: Chapter XIV - The Final Nightmare (Feb 24, 1996)
- Episode 2x02: Chapter II - Battle of the Insidious Six (Sep 16, 1995)
- Episode 2x01: Chapter I - The Insidious Six (Sep 9, 1995)
- Episode 1x06: The Sting of the Scorpion (Mar 11, 1995)
The Simpsons (1989)
Guest starring as Great Raymondo
- Episode 22x18: The Great Simpsina (Apr 10, 2011) [Special Guest Star]
Blacke's Magic (1986)
Guest starring as Broderick
- Episode 1x10: Last Flight to Moscow (Mar 12, 1986)
The Twilight Zone (1985)
Guest starring as William Cooper-Janes
- Episode 1x26: The Beacon (Dec 6, 1985)
Space: 1999 (1975)
Starring as Com. John Koenig
(47 episodes)
- Episode 2x24: The Dorcons (Nov 12, 1977)
- Episode 2x23: The Immunity Syndrome (Oct 29, 1977)
- Episode 2x22: Devil's Planet (Sep 1, 1977)
- Episode 2x20: The Seance Spectre (Aug 18, 1977)
- Episode 2x19: The Bringers of Wonder (2) (Aug 11, 1977)
- Episode 2x18: The Bringers of Wonder (1) (Aug 4, 1977)
- Episode 2x17: The Lambda Factor (Dec 23, 1976)
- Episode 2x16: The Beta Cloud (Dec 16, 1976)
- Episode 2x15: A Matter of Balance (Dec 9, 1976)
- Episode 2x14: Space Warp (Dec 2, 1976)
- Episode 2x13: Catacombs of the Moon (Nov 25, 1976)
- Episode 2x12: The AB Chrysalis (Nov 20, 1976)
- Episode 2x11: Seed of Destruction (Nov 11, 1976)
- Episode 2x10: The Taybor (Nov 4, 1976)
- Episode 2x09: All That Glisters (Oct 28, 1976)
- Episode 2x08: The Rules of Luton (Oct 23, 1976)
- Episode 2x07: The Mark of Archanon (Oct 16, 1976)
- Episode 2x06: New Adam, New Eve (Oct 9, 1976)
- Episode 2x05: Brian the Brain (Oct 2, 1976)
- Episode 2x04: One Moment of Humanity (Sep 25, 1976)
- Episode 2x03: Journey to Where (Sep 18, 1976)
- Episode 2x02: The Exiles (Sep 11, 1976)
- Episode 2x01: The Metamorph (Sep 4, 1976)
- Episode 1x24: The Last Enemy (Feb 19, 1976)
- Episode 1x23: The Testament of Arkadia (Feb 12, 1976)
- Episode 1x22: The Troubled Spirit (Feb 5, 1976)
- Episode 1x21: Space Brain (Jan 29, 1976)
- Episode 1x20: Missing Link (Jan 22, 1976)
- Episode 1x19: Ring Around the Moon (Jan 15, 1976)
- Episode 1x18: The Infernal Machine (Jan 8, 1976)
- Episode 1x17: The Last Sunset (Jan 1, 1976)
- Episode 1x16: Another Time, Another Place (Dec 18, 1975)
- Episode 1x15: The Full Circle (Dec 11, 1975)
- Episode 1x14: Earthbound (Dec 4, 1975)
- Episode 1x13: Matter of Life and Death (Nov 27, 1975)
- Episode 1x12: End of Eternity (Nov 20, 1975)
- Episode 1x11: Guardian of Piri (Nov 13, 1975)
- Episode 1x10: Black Sun (Nov 6, 1975)
- Episode 1x09: Mission of the Darians (Oct 30, 1975)
- Episode 1x08: Dragon's Domain (Oct 23, 1975)
- Episode 1x07: Alpha Child (Oct 16, 1975)
- Episode 1x06: Voyager's Return (Oct 9, 1975)
- Episode 1x05: Death's Other Dominion (Oct 2, 1975)
- Episode 1x04: War Games (Sep 25, 1975)
- Episode 1x03: Collision Course (Sep 18, 1975)
- Episode 1x02: Force of Life (Sep 11, 1975)
- Episode 1x01: Breakaway (Sep 4, 1975)
Guest starring as Com. John Koenig
- Episode 2x21: Dorzak (Aug 25, 1977) [Credit Only]
Columbo (1968)
Guest starring as Norman Paris
- Episode 1973-03-25: Double Shock (Mar 25, 1973)
Guest starring as Dexter Paris
- Episode 1973-03-25: Double Shock (Mar 25, 1973)
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1967)
Guest starring as Martin Landau
- Episode 2x12: Barbara Bain, Billy Barty, Jack Benny, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Rock Hudson, Martin Landau, Guy Lombardo, Otto Preminger (Dec 16, 1968) [Uncredited]
The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour (1967)
Guest starring as Martin Landau
- Episode 1x15: 19670521.Martin Landau,Barbara Bain,Sonny and Cher (May 21, 1967)
The Hollywood Squares (1966)
Guest starring as Panelist
(4 episodes)
- Episode 3x38: May 12-16, 1969 (May 12, 1969)
- Episode 3x15: December 2-6, 1968 (Dec 2, 1968)
- Episode 2x13: Nov. 27 - Dec. 1, 1967 (Nov 27, 1967)
- Episode 1x35: June 12 - 16, 1967 (DT) (Jun 12, 1967)
Mission: Impossible (1966)
Starring as Rollin Hand
(73 episodes)
- Episode 3x25: The Interrogator (Apr 20, 1969)
- Episode 3x24: Illusion (Apr 13, 1969)
- Episode 3x23: The Vault (Apr 6, 1969)
- Episode 3x22: Nicole (Mar 30, 1969)
- Episode 3x21: Nitro (Mar 23, 1969)
- Episode 3x20: The Bunker (2) (Mar 9, 1969)
- Episode 3x19: The Bunker (1) (Mar 2, 1969)
- Episode 3x18: Live Bait (Feb 23, 1969)
- Episode 3x17: Doomsday (Feb 16, 1969)
- Episode 3x16: The Glass Cage (Feb 2, 1969)
- Episode 3x15: The System (Jan 26, 1969)
- Episode 3x14: The Test Case (Jan 19, 1969)
- Episode 3x13: The Mind of Stefan Miklos (Jan 12, 1969)
- Episode 3x12: The Exchange (Jan 4, 1969)
- Episode 3x11: The Freeze (Dec 23, 1968)
- Episode 3x10: The Bargain (Dec 15, 1968)
- Episode 3x09: The Play (Dec 8, 1968)
- Episode 3x08: The Diplomat (Dec 1, 1968)
- Episode 3x07: The Elixir (Nov 24, 1968)
- Episode 3x06: The Cardinal (Nov 17, 1968)
- Episode 3x05: The Execution (Nov 10, 1968)
- Episode 3x04: The Mercenaries (Oct 27, 1968)
- Episode 3x03: The Contender (2) (Oct 13, 1968)
- Episode 3x02: The Contender (1) (Oct 6, 1968)
- Episode 3x01: The Heir Apparent (Sep 29, 1968)
- Episode 2x25: Recovery (Mar 17, 1968)
- Episode 2x24: Trial by Fury (Mar 10, 1968)
- Episode 2x23: The Phoenix (Mar 3, 1968)
- Episode 2x22: The Killing (Feb 28, 1968)
- Episode 2x21: The Town (Feb 18, 1968)
- Episode 2x20: The Counterfeiter (Feb 4, 1968)
- Episode 2x19: The Condemned (Jan 28, 1968)
- Episode 2x18: The Emerald (Jan 21, 1968)
- Episode 2x17: A Game of Chess (Jan 14, 1968)
- Episode 2x16: The Spy (Jan 7, 1968)
- Episode 2x15: The Photographer (Dec 17, 1967)
- Episode 2x14: Echo of Yesterday (Dec 10, 1967)
- Episode 2x13: The Astrologer (Dec 3, 1967)
- Episode 2x12: The Council (2) (Nov 26, 1967)
- Episode 2x11: The Council (1) (Nov 19, 1967)
- Episode 2x10: Charity (Nov 12, 1967)
- Episode 2x09: The Seal (Nov 5, 1967)
- Episode 2x08: The Money Machine (Oct 29, 1967)
- Episode 2x07: Operation Heart (Oct 22, 1967)
- Episode 2x06: The Slave (2) (Oct 15, 1967)
- Episode 2x05: The Slave (1) (Oct 8, 1967)
- Episode 2x04: The Bank (Oct 1, 1967)
- Episode 2x03: The Survivors (Sep 24, 1967)
- Episode 2x02: Trek (Sep 17, 1967)
- Episode 1x28: The Psychic (Apr 22, 1967)
- Episode 1x27: The Traitor (Apr 15, 1967)
- Episode 1x26: A Cube of Sugar (Apr 1, 1967)
- Episode 1x25: Shock (Mar 25, 1967)
- Episode 1x24: The Train (Mar 18, 1967)
- Episode 1x23: Action! (Mar 4, 1967)
- Episode 1x22: The Confession (Feb 25, 1967)
- Episode 1x21: Snowball in Hell (Feb 18, 1967)
- Episode 1x20: The Legend (Feb 11, 1967)
- Episode 1x19: The Diamond (Feb 4, 1967)
- Episode 1x18: The Trial (Jan 28, 1967)
- Episode 1x17: The Frame (Jan 21, 1967)
- Episode 1x16: The Reluctant Dragon (Jan 14, 1967)
- Episode 1x15: The Legacy (Jan 7, 1967)
- Episode 1x13: Elena (Dec 10, 1966)
- Episode 1x11: Zubrovnik's Ghost (Nov 26, 1966)
- Episode 1x10: The Carriers (Nov 19, 1966)
- Episode 1x09: A Spool There Was (Nov 12, 1966)
- Episode 1x08: The Ransom (Nov 5, 1966)
- Episode 1x07: Wheels (Oct 29, 1966)
- Episode 1x06: Odds on Evil (Oct 22, 1966)
- Episode 1x05: Old Man Out (2) (Oct 15, 1966)
- Episode 1x04: Old Man Out (1) (Oct 8, 1966)
- Episode 1x01: Pilot (Sep 17, 1966)
Guest starring as General Dominguez
- Episode 1x01: Pilot (Sep 17, 1966)
Guest starring as Rollin Hand
(2 episodes)
- Episode 1x03: Operation Rogosh (Oct 1, 1966) [Special Guest Star]
- Episode 1x02: Memory (Sep 24, 1966) [Special Guest Star]
Guest starring as Miguel Cordova
- Episode 1x07: Wheels (Oct 29, 1966)
Get Smart (1965)
Guest starring as Maxwell Smart
- Episode 5x01: Pheasant Under Glass (Sep 26, 1969) [Uncredited]
The Wild Wild West (1965)
Guest starring as General Grimm
- Episode 1x11: The Night of the Red-Eyed Madmen (Nov 26, 1965)
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964)
Guest starring as Count Ladislaus Zark
- Episode 2x28: The Bat Cave Affair (Apr 1, 1966) [Special Guest Star]
The Greatest Show on Earth (1963)
Guest starring as Mario de Mona
- Episode 1x23: The Night the Monkey Died (Mar 10, 1964)
The Outer Limits (1963)
Guest starring as Richard Bellero, Jr.
- Episode 1x20: The Bellero Shield (Feb 10, 1964)
Guest starring as Andro
- Episode 1x06: The Man Who Was Never Born (Oct 28, 1963)
The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters (1963)
Guest starring as Cochio
- Episode 1x10: The Day of the Killer (Nov 17, 1963)
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962)
Guest starring as Martin Landau
- Episode 1975-08-29: Aug 29, 1975 (Aug 29, 1975)
The Mike Douglas Show (1961)
Guest starring as Co-Host
(10 episodes)
- Episode 15x40: Oct 24, 1975 (Oct 24, 1975)
- Episode 15x39: Oct 23, 1975 (Oct 23, 1975)
- Episode 15x38: Oct 22, 1975 (Oct 22, 1975)
- Episode 15x37: Oct 21, 1975 (Oct 21, 1975)
- Episode 15x36: Oct 20, 1975 (Oct 20, 1975)
- Episode 7x155: Apr 5, 1968 (Apr 5, 1968)
- Episode 7x154: Apr 4, 1968 (Apr 4, 1968)
- Episode 7x153: Apr 3, 1968 (Apr 3, 1968)
- Episode 7x152: Apr 2, 1968 (Apr 2, 1968)
- Episode 7x151: Apr 1, 1968 (Apr 1, 1968)
Guest starring as Martin Landau
(2 episodes)
- Episode 19x45: Nov 2, 1979 (Nov 2, 1979)
- Episode 15x10: Sep 12, 1975 (Sep 12, 1975)
The Tall Man (1960)
Guest starring as Francisco Valdez
- Episode 1x22: Dark Moment (Feb 11, 1961)
Guest starring as Father Guesclin
- Episode 2x35: The Black Robe (May 5, 1962)
The Untouchables (1959)
Guest starring as Jerry Fanning
- Episode 1x07: Mexican Stake-Out (Nov 26, 1959)
Guest starring as Larry Coombs
- Episode 3x06: Loophole (Nov 16, 1961)
The Twilight Zone (1959)
Guest starring as Major Ivan Kuchenko
- Episode 5x29: The Jeopardy Room (Apr 17, 1964)
Guest starring as Dan Hotaling
- Episode 1x03: Mr. Denton on Doomsday (Oct 16, 1959)
Gunsmoke (1955)
Guest starring as Thorp
- Episode 4x02: The Patsy (Sep 20, 1958)
Guest starring as Britton
- Episode 12x02: The Goldtakers (Sep 24, 1966)
Oscars (1953)
Guest starring as Martin Landau
(4 episodes)
- Episode 1996-03-25: The 68th Annual Academy Awards (Mar 25, 1996)
- Episode 1995-03-27: The 67th Annual Academy Awards (Mar 27, 1995)
- Episode 1990-03-26: The 62nd Annual Academy Awards (Mar 26, 1990)
- Episode 1989-03-29: The 61st Annual Academy Awards (Mar 29, 1989)