Early life

Landau was born in Brooklyn, New York on June 20, 1928, the son of Selma and Morris Landau. His family was Jewish; his father, an Austrian-born machinist, scrambled to rescue relatives from the Nazis. He attended James Madison High School and the Pratt Institute before finding full-time work as a cartoonist.

Career

Cartoonist

At the age of 17, Landau started working as a cartoonist for the Daily News, illustrating Billy Rose's column "Pitching Horseshoes" and also assisting Gus Edson on the comic strip The Gumps during the 1940s and 1950s, eventually drawing the "Sunday strip" for Edson. (Some sources confuse him with comic book artist Kenneth Landau, and incorrectly claim that he drew for comic books using the name Ken Landau as a pseudonym.) At 22, he quit the Daily News to concentrate on theater acting.

Film, television and theater

Influenced by Charlie Chaplin and the escapism of the cinema, Landau pursued an acting career. He attended the Actors Studio, becoming good friends with James Dean, and was later in the same class as Steve McQueen. In 1957, he made his Broadway debut in Middle of the Night. In 1959, Landau made his first major film appearance, as Leonard, in Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest.

Landau played the role of master of disguise Rollin Hand in the US television series Mission: Impossible, becoming one of its better-known stars. According to The Complete Mission: Impossible Dossier by Patrick J. White (Avon Books, 1991), Landau at first declined to be contracted by the show because he did not want it to interfere with his film career; instead, he was credited for "special guest appearances" during the first season. He became a full-time cast member in the second season, although the studio agreed (at Landau's request) to contract him only on a year-by-year basis rather than the then-standard five years. The role of Hand required Landau to perform a wide range of accents and characters, from dictators to thugs, and several episodes had him playing dual roles—not only Hand's impersonation, but also the person whom Hand is impersonating. Landau co-starred in the series with his then wife, Barbara Bain.

In the mid-1970s, Landau and Bain returned to TV in the British science-fiction series Space: 1999 (first produced by Gerry Anderson in partnership with Sylvia Anderson, and later by Fred Freiberger). Although the series remains a cult classic for its high production values, critical response to Space: 1999 was unenthusiastic during its original run, and it was cancelled after two seasons. Landau himself was critical of the scripts and storylines, especially during the series' second season, but praised the cast and crew. He later wrote forewords to Space: 1999 co-star Barry Morse's theatrical memoir Remember With Advantages (2006) and Jim Smith's critical biography of Tim Burton. Following Space: 1999, Landau appeared in supporting roles in a number of films and TV series, including the TV film The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island (1981), which again co-starred Bain (and marked the final time they appeared together on screen).

In the late 1980s, Landau made a career comeback, earning an Academy Award nomination for his role in Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988). This was followed by a second nomination, for 1989's Crimes and Misdemeanors, and later a win, for 1994's Ed Wood (in which he plays Bela Lugosi). Upon accepting the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, Landau was visibly frustrated by the orchestra's attempt to cut short his speech; when the music level rose, he pounded his fist on the podium and shouted "No!" He later stated that he had intended to thank Lugosi and dedicate the award to him, and that he was annoyed that he was not being given an opportunity to mention the name of the person he had portrayed. Landau also received a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Golden Globe Award and a Saturn Award for the role, as well as accolades from a number of critics groups. When Landau won the Academy Award, a reporter for the Los Angeles Times announced: "the award goes to Martin Landau; its shadow goes to Bela Lugosi." On the film's DVD release, Landau states that he was highly impressed by the comment.

In the early seasons of Without a Trace (2002-09), Landau was nominated for an Emmy Award for his portrayal of the Alzheimer's-afflicted father of FBI Special Agent in Charge Jack Malone, the series' lead character. In 2006, he made a guest appearance in the series Entourage as a washed-up but determined and sympathetic Hollywood producer attempting to relive his glory days, a portrayal that earned him a second Emmy nomination.

Landau appeared in the film Have a Little Faith based on Mitch Albom's book of the same name, in which he plays Rabbi Albert Lewis.

In recognition of his services to the motion picture industry, Martin Landau has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6841 Hollywood Boulevard.

Acting coach

Encouraged by his own mentor, Lee Strasberg, Landau has also taught acting. Actors coached by him include Jack Nicholson and Anjelica Huston. In 2009, Landau and his Actors Studio colleagues, director Mark Rydell and writer Lyle Kessler, collaborated to produce the educational Total Picture Seminar, a two-day event covering the disciplines of acting, directing and writing for film.

Personal life

Landau has two daughters, Susan and Juliet, from his marriage to actress and former co-star Barbara Bain. They married on January 31, 1957 and divorced in 1993. Landau lives in West Hollywood, California.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1959	Pork Chop Hill	Lieutenant Marshall
1959	North by Northwest	Leonard
1959	Gazebo, TheThe Gazebo	The Duke, a.k.a. A. Wellington Broos
1962	Stagecoach to Dancers' Rock	Dade Coleman
1963	Decision at Midnight	Nils
1963	Cleopatra	Rufio
1964	Ghost of Sierra de Cobre, TheThe Ghost of Sierra de Cobre	Nelson Orion
1964	Twilight Zone, TheThe Twilight Zone	Agent Gruchenko
1965	Hallelujah Trail, TheThe Hallelujah Trail	Chief Walks-Stooped-Over
1965	Greatest Story Ever Told, TheThe Greatest Story Ever Told	Caiaphas
1966	Nevada Smith	Jesse Coe
1970	Operation Snafu	Joe Mellone
1970	They Call Me Mister Tibbs!	Logan Sharpe
1971	A Town Called Bastard	The Colonel
1972	Black Gunn	Capelli
1972	Welcome Home, Johnny Bristol	Johnny Bristol
1976	Strange Shadows in an Empty Room	Dr. George Tracer
1979	Meteor	Major General Adlon
1979	The Death of Ocean View Park	Tom Flood
1980	Without Warning	Fred "Sarge" Dobbs
1980	Last Word, TheThe Last Word	Captain Garrity
1980	Return, TheThe Return	Niles Buchanan
1982	Alone in the Dark	Byron "Preacher" Sutcliff
1982	The Fall of the House of Usher	Roderick Usher
1983	Trial by Terror
1983	The Being	Garson Jones
1984	Access Code	Agency Head
1984	Terror in the Aisles		Archival footage
1985	Treasure Island	Old Captain
1987	W.A.R.: Women Against Rape	Judge Shaw
1987	Cyclone	Bosarian
1987	Sweet Revenge	Cicero
1987	Empire State	Chuck
1987	Delta Fever	Bud
1987	Run If You Can	Malvani
1988	Tucker: The Man and His Dream	Abe Karatz / Voice of Walter Winchell	Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor Utah Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated — Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated — Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated — New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor
1989	Paint It Black	Daniel Lambert
1989	The Neon Empire	Max
1989	Crimes and Misdemeanors	Judah Rosenthal	Nominated — Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated — Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor Nominated — Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor
1990	Real Bullets	Sallini
1991	Firehead	Admiral Pendleton
1992	Mistress	Jack Roth
1993	No Place to Hide	Frank McCoy
1993	Sliver	Alex Parsons
1993	12:01	Dr. Thadius Moxley
1994	Eye of the Stranger	Mayor Howard Bains
1994	Color of Evening, TheThe Color of Evening	Max Loeb
1994	Intersection	Neal
1994	Ed Wood	Bela Lugosi	Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor Saturn Award for Best Actor Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role Society of Texas Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role Nominated — Utah Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor
1994	Time Is Money	Mac
1995	Joseph	Jacob
1996	Elevator, TheThe Elevator	Roy Tilden
1996	City Hall	Judge Walter Stern
1996	Adventures of Pinocchio, TheThe Adventures of Pinocchio	Mister Geppetto
1997	B*A*P*S	Mr. Donald Blakemore
1997	Legend of the Spirit Dog	Storyteller	Voice role
1998	X Files, TheThe X Files	Alvin Kurtzweil, MD
1998	Rounders	Abe Petrovsky
1999	EDtv	Al
1999	Carlo's Wake	Carlo Torello
1999	Joyriders, TheThe Joyriders	Gordon Trout
1999	New Adventures of Pinocchio, TheThe New Adventures of Pinocchio	Geppetto
1999	Sleepy Hollow	Peter Van Garrett	Uncredited
2000	Ready to Rumble	Sal Bandini
2000	Shiner	Frank Spedding
2000	In the Beginning	Abraham
2000	Very Mean Men	Mr. White
2001	Majestic, TheThe Majestic	Harry Trimble
2003	Hollywood Homicide	Jerry Duran
2003	Wake	Older Sebastian Riven
2003	Commission, TheThe Commission	Senator Richard Russell
2004	Aryan Couple, TheThe Aryan Couple	Joseph Krauzenberg
2006	Love Made Easy	Don Farinelli Sr
2006	Existential Affair, AnAn Existential Affair	Doctor
2008	David & Fatima	Rabbi Schmulic
2008	City of Ember	Sul
2008	Billy: The Early Years	Older Charles Templeton
2008	Harrison Montgomery	Harrison Montgomery
2008	Lovely, Still	Robert Malone
2008	Ivory	Leon Spencer
2009	9	2	Voice role
2012	Frankenweenie	Mr. Rzykruski	Voice role
2015	Entourage	Bob Ryan
2015	Remember	Max

Selected television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1957	Harbormaster	First Mate	Episode: "Sanctuary"
1958	Lawman	Bob Ford	Episode: "The Outcast"
1958	Sugarfoot	Jim Kelly	Episode: "The Ghost"
1959	The Lawless Years	Silva	Episode: "Lucky Silva"
	The Twilight Zone	Dan Hotaling	Episode: "Mr. Denton on Doomsday"
	Johnny Staccato	Jerry Lindstrom	Episode: "Murder for Credit"
	Tales of Wells Fargo	Doc Holliday	Episode: "Doc Holliday"
1960	Tate	John Chess	Episode: "Tigrero"
	Johnny Ringo	Wes Tymon	Episode: "The Derelict"
	The Islanders	Arnie	Episode: "Duel of Strangers"
	Adventures in Paradise	Sackett	Episode: "Nightmare on Nakupa"
	Wagon Train	Preacher	Episode: "The Cathy Eckhart Story"
1961	Adventures in Paradise	Miller	Episode: "Mr. Flotsam"
	Bonanza	Emiliano	Episode: "The Gift"
	The Rifleman	Miguel	Episode: "The Vaqueros"
	The Tall Man	Francisco	Episode: "Dark Moment"
	The Law and Mr. Jones		Episode: "Lincoln"
	The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor	Vince Treynor	Episode: "Shadow of His Brother"
1962	The Tall Man	Father Gueschim	Episode: "The Black Robe"
1963	The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters	Cochio	Episode: "The Day of the Killer"
	Mr. Novak	Victor Rand	Episode: "Pay the Two Dollars"
	The Outer Limits	Andro	Episode: "The Man Who Was Never Born"
1964	The Defenders	Dr. Daniel Orren	Episode: "The Secret"
	The Greatest Show on Earth	Mario de Mona	Episode: "The Night the Monkey Died"
	The Alfred Hitchcock Hour	Lawyer	Episode: "Second Verdict"
	The Outer Limits	Richard Bellero	Episode: "The Bellero Shield"
	The Twilight Zone	Major Ivan Kuchenko	Episode: "The Jeopardy Room"
1965	Mr. Novak	Robert Coolidge	Episode: "Enter a Strange Animal"
	A Man Called Shenandoah	Jace Miller	Episode: "The Locket"
	The Big Valley	Mariano Montoya	Episode: "The Way to Kill a Killer"
1966	Branded	Edwin Booth	Episode: "This Stage of Fools"
1966-1969	Mission: Impossible	Rollin Hand	Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Television Series Drama Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
1969	Get Smart	Max's new face	Episode: "Pheasant Under Glass"
1973	Columbo	Identical-twin brothers Dexter Paris and Norman Paris	Episode: "Double Shock"
1975-1977	Space: 1999	Commander John Koenig, leader of Moonbase Alpha	48 episodes
1981	The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island	J.J. Pierson
1985	The New Twilight Zone	William Cooper-Janes	Episode: "The Beacon/One Life, Furnished in Early Poverty"
1990	Max and Helen	Simon Wiesenthal	Nominated — CableACE Award for Supporting Actor in a Movie or Miniseries
1990	By Dawn's Early Light	President of the United States	Nominated — CableACE Award for Actor in a Movie or Miniseries
1992	Legacy of Lies	Abraham Resnick	CableACE Award for Supporting Actor in a Movie or Miniseries
1993	12:01	Dr. Thadius Moxley
1994	Spider-Man	The Scorpion/Mac Gargan	Voice, seasons 1-2
1999	Bonanno: A Godfather's Story	Joseph Bonanno (age 94)
2000	In the Beginning	Abraham
2004-2005	Without a Trace	Frank Malone	4 episodes Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series
2006	The Evidence	Dr. Sol Gold	8 episodes
	Entourage	Bob Ryan	3 episodes Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
2008	Entourage	Bob Ryan	1 episode
2009	In Plain Sight	Joseph Thomas/Joseph Tancredi	Training video, special guest appearance
2011	The Simpsons	The Great Raymondo	Guest voice appearance Episode: "The Great Simpsina"
2011	Have a Little Faith	Rabbi Albert Lewis
2013	The Anna Nicole Story	J. Howard Marshall II	Lifetime movie
2014	Outlaw Prophet: Warren Jeffs	Rulon Jeffs	Lifetime movie

[ Source: Wikipedia ]