Martin LandauBirth Place: Brooklyn, New York, USA Date of Birth: June 20, 1931 Heritage: American Famous for: Oscar nominee for 'Tucker: The Man and His Dream' (1988) Contact Martin Landau | 
|
Martin Landau Videos:
 |  |
|
Ed Wood Background: “What I do best, what I've always done best, is act.” Martin Landau American actor Martin Landau gained notice on the stage in the off-Broadway production of Anton Chekhov's “Uncle Vanya” (1956) and the Broadway production of “Middle of the Night” (1957) before being seen in the movies “North by Northwest” (1959) and “The Greatest Story Ever Told” (1965). However, the actor did not gain true prominence until he was cast as Rollin Hand on the long-running CBS adventure series “Mission: Impossible,” opposite then wife Barbara Bain. During his three-year tenure on the show (1967-1969), he netted a Golden Globe Award and his first three Emmy nominations. After leaving the show, Landau had problems finding good jobs and eventually moved to England, where he and his wife starred in the short-lived series “Space: 1999” (1975-1977). His career continued to decline and he did not enjoy a career renaissance until the late 1980s when he won Oscar nominations for his work in Francis Ford Coppola's “Tucker: The Man and His Dream” (1988, also netted a Golden Globe Award) and Woody Allen's “Crimes and Misdemeanors” (1989). He received further recognition in 1994 when Tim Burton hired him to play the supporting role of screen horror icon Bela Lugosi on the biopic “Ed Wood.” For his effort, the New York native finally took home an Oscar and also collected such awards as a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Saturn Award, an American Comedy Award, a New York Film Critics Circle Award and a National Society of Film Critics Award. More recently, Landau earned Emmy nominations for his guest starring roles in CBS' “Without a Trace” (2004-2005) and HBO's “Entourage” (2006). Landau admirers should not miss him in such upcoming movies as “Harrison Montgomery,” “Ivory” (2008), “City of Ember” (2008), “Billy: The Early Years” (2008) and “Lovely, Still” (2009). Landau and ex-wife Barbara Bain share two daughters.
Childhood and Family: Martin Landau was born on June 20, 1931, in Brooklyn, New York. He was raised in a Jewish family by Morris Landau, an Australian immigrant who worked as a machinist, and Selma Landau. At age 17, he joined the New York Daily News as an assistant cartoonist and remained there for five years. After attending New York's Actors Studio, in which he studied under the guidance of Lee Strasberg and with classmate Steve McQueen, Martin decided to become a full-time actor. He later also taught acting. Some of his former students include Anjelica Huston and Jack Nicholson. On January 31, 1957, Martin married Chicago-born actress Barbara Bain (born on September 13, 1931). Barbara gave birth to their first child, daughter Susan Meredith Landau, in 1965. Their second daughter, Juliet Rose Landau, was born in 1970. Martin and his wife divorced in 1993 after having been together for 36 years.
Career: 17-year-old Martin Landau got his career start as a staff cartoonist and illustrator for the New York Daily News and worked there for five years. During his stint, he illustrated Billy Rose's “Pitching Horseshoes” newspaper column and worked for cartoonist Gus Edson on “The Gumps” comic strip. However, Landau's main aspiration was to become an actor and in 1951, he debuted on stage in “Detective Story” at the Peaks Island Playhouse in Peaks Island, Maine. Before long, he added to his acting resume performances in the off-Broadway production of “First Love.” In 1955, Landau began his training at Lee Strasberg's prestigious Actors Studio in New York. During the mid-1950s, he appeared in a number of television shows, such as “Kraft Theater,” “The Philco Television Playhouse,” “Omnibus,” “Playhouse 90,” “Studio One” and “Goodyear Playhouse,” but it was his performance in the 1956 off-Broadway revival of Anton Chekhov's “Uncle Vanya,” where he replaced star Franchot Tone, that won the actor some notice. The following year, Landau made his Broadway debut in “Middle of the Night.” He next joined the touring company with star Edward G Robinson, a gig that brought him to the West Coast. Landau's first foray to the big screen came in 1959 when he landed a small part in Lewis Milestone's war drama “Pork Chop Hill,” which starred Gregory Peck. He then played the villainous role of Leonard on the Alfred Hitchcock suspense thriller “North by Northwest” (also 1959), starring Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint. Also that year, he supported Glenn Ford and Debbie Reynolds in George Marshall's highly underestimated comedy, “The Gazebo.” Landau spent the early 1960s making a string of guest appearances on TV series like “Outlaws,” “The Law and Mr. Jones,” “Adventures in Paradise,” “Bonanza,” “The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor” and “The Untouchables” before returning to film in 1962's “Stagecoach to Dancers' Rock.” In 1963, Landau was cast in the big budget “Cleopatra” (1963), starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. He was also seen on the small screen playing roles on two episodes of the ABC science-fiction anthology series “The Outer Limits.” After a short return to the big screen, during which time he offered a memorable turn as Caiaphas in George Stevens' successful biopic of Jesus, “The Greatest Story Ever Told” (1965), Landau enjoyed huge TV success when he won the regular role of Rollin Hand on the popular spy series “Mission: Impossible” (CBS, 1966-1973). Playing the master-of-camouflage from 1966 to 1969, he showed his versatility and was handed three Emmy nominations for Outstanding Continued Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Series (1967-1969) and a 1968 Golden Globe for Best Male TV Star. His wife, Barbara Bain, also costarred on the show as Cinnamon Carter. Both Landau and his wife left “Mission: Impossible” in 1969 following a contract disagreement. While the series went on to enjoy success for four more seasons, the twosome experienced difficulties. Landau managed to get roles in movies like “They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!” (1970), “A Town Called Hell” (1971) and “A Special Magnum for Tony Saitta/Strange Shadows in an Empty Room” (1976) and in TV films such as “Welcome Home, Johnny Bristol” (1972) and “Columbo: Double Shock” (1973). In 1973, he joined director Steven Spielberg for the pilot “Savage,” but NBC did not pick up the show. In the mid-1970s, Landau and his wife decided to move England to find work. The continent provided the couple starring roles in the adventure series “Space: 1999,” which ran from 1975 to 1977. After the show’s cancellation and making three films in 1980, Landau was reunited with his wife for the made-for-TV films “The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island” (1991), in which they played the supporting roles of J.J. Pierson and Dr. Olga Schmetner, respectively. It marked their last on-screen appearances together. Landau next found himself in forgettable roles in films like “The Being” (1983), “W.A.R. Women Against Rape” (1987), “Delta Fever” (1987) and “Cyclone” (1987), and guest starring in several TV shows, including NBC's sitcom, “Buffalo Bill” (1984), “Murder, She Wrote” (1984) and “The Twilight Zone” (1985). He also starred in a revival of “Dracula” on Broadway and then in a national touring production of the play. It was in 1988 that the actor finally enjoyed a revival thanks to his notable supporting role in the Francis Ford Coppola biopic “Tucker: The Man and His Dream.” In addition to winning the Best Supporting honors at the Chicago Film Critics Association and Kansas City Film Critics Circle, he was also handed a Golden Globe Award and his first Oscar nomination. He furthered proved he was back in the saddle again by nabbing his next Academy Award nomination for the Woody Allen comedy “Crimes and Misdemeanors” (1989), where he played the scene-stealing role of Claire Bloom's cheating husband. Landau continued to build his reputation with strong performances in TV films, including HBO's “By Dawn's Early Light” (1990), TNT's “Max and Helen” (1990) and USA Network's “Legacy of Lies” (1992), from which he won a 1993 CableACE in the category of Best Supporting Actor in a Movie or Miniseries. After costarring in the Barry Primus-directed comedy/drama film “Mistress” (1992), he again received success on the wide screen playing the supporting role of Bela Lugosi on the biopic “Ed Wood” (1994), helmed by Tim Burton. He took home an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Saturn Award, an American Comedy Award, a New York Film Critics Circle Award, a National Society of Film Critics Award and a BAFTA nomination for his portrayal. Landau was next cast as a judge in the Harold Becker failed drama “City Hall” (1996), opposite Al Pacino, John Cusack and Bridget Fonda, played the woodcarver Geppetto in a live-action version of “The Adventures of Pinocchio” (1996) and worked with director Robert Townsend and actors Halle Berry and Natalie Desselle in the comedy “B.A.P.S” (1997). He also played Matt Damon's mentor in “Rounders” (1998), made a cameo appearance in the movie version of the hit TV show “The X-Files” (1998), acted alongside Matthew McConaughy in the Ron Howard-directed “EDtv” (1999) and had an unaccredited part in the Johnny Depp vehicle “Sleepy Hollow” (1999), which was directed by Burton. Meanwhile, on the small screen, he was seen in the TNT biblical miniseries “Joseph” (1995, costarring Ben Kingsley and Paul Mercurio) and the Showtime miniseries “Bonanno: A Godfather's Story” (1999). 2000-2004 saw roles in the wrestling comedy “Ready to Rumble,” the indie-comedy “Very Mean Men,” the two-part TV movie “In the Beginning,” opposite Jacqueline Bisset and Bill Campbell, Jim Carrey's vehicle “The Majestic,” Ron Shelton's comedy “Hollywood Homicide,” starring Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett, “The Aryan Couple” and Mark Sobel's drama “The Commission,” with Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston. From 2004 to 2005, Landau played the recurring role of Frank Malone on the CBS series “Without a Trace” and won two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series (2004, 2005) for his work. The veteran actor played Dr. Sol Gold on eight episodes of “The Evidence” (2006) and an old-school producer named Bob Ryan in three episodes of the HBO series “Entourage” (2006). He picked up his next Emmy nomination for his work in the latter series. Also that year, moviegoers could find him in the movies “Love Made Easy” and “An Existential Affair.” Currently, Landau has completed filming “Harrison Montgomery” and “David & Fatima,” both of which are slated for 2008 releases. He also has roles in the upcoming “Ivory” (2008), “Billy: The Early Years” (2008), “City of Ember” (2008) and “Lovely, Still” (2009). His fans can also hear his voice in the animated film “9” (2008).
|
|
