Rod Steiger(1925-2002)
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Rodney Stephen Steiger was born in Westhampton, New York, to Augusta Amelia (Driver) and Frederick Jacob Steiger, both vaudevillians. He was of German and Austrian ancestry. After his parents' divorce, Steiger was raised by his mother in Newark, New Jersey. He dropped out of Westside High
school at age 16 and joined the Navy. He saw action in the Pacific on a
destroyer. Steiger returned to New Jersey after the war and worked for the
VA. He was part of an amateur acting group, and then joined the Actors'
Studio using his GI Bill benefits.
Steiger received his first film roles in the early 1950s. His first
major one was in Teresa (1951), but his
first lead role was in the TV version of
Marty (1953).
The movie version, however, had
Ernest Borgnine in the lead and won him
an Academy Award. Steiger's breakthrough role came in 1954, with the
classic
On the Waterfront (1954). Since
then he has been a presence on the screen as everything from a popular
leading man to a little-known character actor. Steiger made a name for
himself in many different types of roles, from a crooked promoter in
The Harder They Fall (1956)
to the title character in
Al Capone (1959). He was one of dozens
of stars in the epic World War II film
The Longest Day (1962). In 1964,
he received his second Oscar nomination for
The Pawnbroker (1964). The next
couple of years he was at the height of his powers. In 1965, he starred
in the dark comedy
The Loved One (1965), and in
David Lean's epic
Doctor Zhivago (1965). In 1966, he
starred in the
BBC Play of the Month (1965)
episode "Death of a Salesman" as Willy Loman in the TV version of his
stage play "Death of a Salesman," but in 1967, he landed what many
consider his greatest role: Sheriff Bill Gillespie in
In the Heat of the Night (1967),
opposite Sidney Poitier. Steiger
deservedly took home the Best Actor Oscar for his work in that film.
He took another controversial role as a man with many tattoos in
The Illustrated Man (1969)
and as a serial killer in the classic
No Way to Treat a Lady (1968).
After that, he seemed to have withdrawn from high-profile movies and
became more selective in the roles he chose. He turned down the lead in
Patton (1970) and also in
The Godfather (1972). Among his
more notable roles in the 1970s are
Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971),
Lolly-Madonna XXX (1973), as
Benito Mussolini in
The Last 4 Days (1974),
Portrait of a Hitman (1979),
Jesus of Nazareth (1977),
F.I.S.T. (1978) and
The Amityville Horror (1979).
He starred in the critically acclaimed
The Chosen (1981) with
Robby Benson and
Maximilian Schell, perhaps the
highlight of his 1980s movie career. Steiger increasingly moved away
from the big Hollywood pictures, instead taking roles in foreign
productions and independent movies. As the 1980s ended, Steiger landed
a role as the buttoned-up New York City Chief of Police in
The January Man (1989).
Steiger was seriously affected by depression for 8 years. As he
returned to the screen in the late 1990s he began creating some of his
most memorable roles. He was the doctor in the independently-made movie
Shiloh (1996), about an abused dog. He was
the crazed, kill-'em-all army general in
Mars Attacks! (1996) who always
called his enemies peace-mongers. He took a small part as a Supreme
Court judge in The Hurricane (1999)
and as a preacher in the badly produced film
End of Days (1999). He was still
active in films moving into the new millennium.
school at age 16 and joined the Navy. He saw action in the Pacific on a
destroyer. Steiger returned to New Jersey after the war and worked for the
VA. He was part of an amateur acting group, and then joined the Actors'
Studio using his GI Bill benefits.
Steiger received his first film roles in the early 1950s. His first
major one was in Teresa (1951), but his
first lead role was in the TV version of
Marty (1953).
The movie version, however, had
Ernest Borgnine in the lead and won him
an Academy Award. Steiger's breakthrough role came in 1954, with the
classic
On the Waterfront (1954). Since
then he has been a presence on the screen as everything from a popular
leading man to a little-known character actor. Steiger made a name for
himself in many different types of roles, from a crooked promoter in
The Harder They Fall (1956)
to the title character in
Al Capone (1959). He was one of dozens
of stars in the epic World War II film
The Longest Day (1962). In 1964,
he received his second Oscar nomination for
The Pawnbroker (1964). The next
couple of years he was at the height of his powers. In 1965, he starred
in the dark comedy
The Loved One (1965), and in
David Lean's epic
Doctor Zhivago (1965). In 1966, he
starred in the
BBC Play of the Month (1965)
episode "Death of a Salesman" as Willy Loman in the TV version of his
stage play "Death of a Salesman," but in 1967, he landed what many
consider his greatest role: Sheriff Bill Gillespie in
In the Heat of the Night (1967),
opposite Sidney Poitier. Steiger
deservedly took home the Best Actor Oscar for his work in that film.
He took another controversial role as a man with many tattoos in
The Illustrated Man (1969)
and as a serial killer in the classic
No Way to Treat a Lady (1968).
After that, he seemed to have withdrawn from high-profile movies and
became more selective in the roles he chose. He turned down the lead in
Patton (1970) and also in
The Godfather (1972). Among his
more notable roles in the 1970s are
Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971),
Lolly-Madonna XXX (1973), as
Benito Mussolini in
The Last 4 Days (1974),
Portrait of a Hitman (1979),
Jesus of Nazareth (1977),
F.I.S.T. (1978) and
The Amityville Horror (1979).
He starred in the critically acclaimed
The Chosen (1981) with
Robby Benson and
Maximilian Schell, perhaps the
highlight of his 1980s movie career. Steiger increasingly moved away
from the big Hollywood pictures, instead taking roles in foreign
productions and independent movies. As the 1980s ended, Steiger landed
a role as the buttoned-up New York City Chief of Police in
The January Man (1989).
Steiger was seriously affected by depression for 8 years. As he
returned to the screen in the late 1990s he began creating some of his
most memorable roles. He was the doctor in the independently-made movie
Shiloh (1996), about an abused dog. He was
the crazed, kill-'em-all army general in
Mars Attacks! (1996) who always
called his enemies peace-mongers. He took a small part as a Supreme
Court judge in The Hurricane (1999)
and as a preacher in the badly produced film
End of Days (1999). He was still
active in films moving into the new millennium.