Martin
Landau

Rotten Tomatoes Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
FilmForce Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
There
aren’t many former New York Daily News cartoonists out there
who can say they were one of only two hopefuls accepted into Lee
Strasberg’s Actor’s Studio, with the notable exception
of Martin Landau. Born June 20, 1931 in Brooklyn, New York, Landau’s
career has spanned over five decades in film, television and the
stage and although he had many choice roles throughout his early
acting career, Landau didn’t truly reach the pinnacle until
he was well into his 50’s.
Landau’s
first screen role was in 1956 in an episode of “Armstrong
Circle Theatre” called “Terror at My Heels.”
He continued to work in T.V., appearing in shows like “Gunsmoke,”
“Maverick ” and “Rawhide,” until his first
film role in the 1959 film “Pork Chop Hill.” The film,
which starred Gregory Peck, is regarded as one of the true classics
of the war film genre. Later in that same year, Landau would appear
in another highly regarded film, however, this time he would be
working with the master of suspense in the film classic, “North
by Northwest.” Starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint and
a devious James Mason, the film is textbook Hitchcock in every
regard. In the film, Landau portrayed Mason’s sinister henchman,
Leonard, with frightening determination.
In
1963, Landau appeared in the infamous big budget remake of “Cleopatra.”
The film was poorly received both critically and financially but
that did not deter Landau from historical or biblical, epics and
in 1965 was featured in “The Greatest Story Ever Told.”
A year earlier, Landau portrayed Nelson Orion in the CBS television
movie, “The Ghost of Sierra de Cobra” (or “The
Haunted”). Written and directed by “Psycho”
screenwriter Joseph Stefano, the film is a lost gem of the horror
genre but no less worthy of being sought out by a modern audience.

In
1966, Martin Landau landed the role of Rollin Hand on the hit
television show, “Mission: Impossible.” His role on
the series lasted until 1969, the show would continue for another
four years. 1966 also saw Landau appear in the grand Steve McQueen
western, “Nevada Smith.” The film featured a stunning
cast from Karl Malden to Suzanne Pleshette and even featured an
appearance by future “Batman” Commissioner Gordon,
Pat Hingle. Landau more than held his own among the pool of talent
as Jesse Coe.
In
1971 Martin Landau was featured the obscure western, “A
Town Called Hell.” The film, which was a co-production between
Spain and England, featured a terrific performance by Landau as
well as Robert Shaw, of “Jaws” fame, and Luis Bunuel
favorite, Fernando Rey. The next year, Landau played the title
character in the television film, “Welcome Home, Johnny
Bristol.” The film almost plays out like a Vietnam era update
of William Wyler’s classic World War II film, “The
Best Years of Our Lives” as Landau’s Bristol returns
in search of his old hometown after a harrowing experience as
a POW.
1973
saw Landau in another star turn in the made for T.V. movie, “Savage.”
The film was director Steven-Where-Is-He-Now-Spielberg’s
final made for T.V. movie before his big star turn the following
year with his theatrical feature film debut, “The Sugarland
Express.” Not to be left in the dust, Landau would gain
cult fame in 1975 with his role as Commander John Koenig in the
sci-fi television series, “Space: 1999.” Post-Star
Trek but pre-Star Wars, the series treaded the fine line between
psychologically intense and flat-out silly and lasted only two
seasons before taking off into the oblivion of cancellation.

“Meteor,”
released in 1979, re-teamed Landau with Karl Malden, and featured
an impressive number of high profile and talented actors such
as Sean Connery, Natalie Wood and Henry Fonda as the president
of the United States. Unfortunately, all the talent on screen
was for naught as the film turned out to be an ill-conceived mess
that has since been largely forgotten.
The
eighties saw Landau in myriad forgettable roles in even more forgettable
films ranging from the truly awful (“Without Warning”)
to the truly ludicrous (“Cyclone”). That is, until
Francis Ford Coppola cast Landau in his 1988 film, “Tucker:
The Man and His Dream.” The film chronicled Preston Tucker’s
dream of creating an automobile and a factory to manufacture his
dream car as well as his eventual downfall; told in a romanticized
style reminiscent of the 1940’s era of moviemaking in Hollywood.
Landau’s performance as Abe Karatz earned him an Academy
Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor and looked to be a
turning point in Landau’s career.
Hot
off the heels of his Oscar nomination, Landau was cast in Woody
Allen’s 1989 film, “Crimes and Misdemeanors.”
Landau’s performance as an adulterous Ophthalmologist was,
arguably, one of the best seen in an Allen film. In 1990, Landau
portrayed Simon Wiesenthal in the made for television adaptation
of Wiesenthal’s novel, “Max and Helen.” Landau’s
performance was quite strong in a film that was fairly predictable.
Landau’s film choices during the early part of the nineties
didn’t get much better. He seemed to fall into the same
slump that plagued his career during the eighties.
It
seemed unlikely that Landau would ever land another major role
in a successful film again. Landau’s luck in Hollywood seemed
to have run dry, until Tim Burton cast Landau in his “Ed
Wood” in a role that would eventually become Landau’s
most memorable and praised in his long career. Covered in heavy
make-up, Landau’s performance as Bela Lugosi was full of
heartbreak, joy, sadness and wit. Although the film wasn’t
a runaway smash at the box office, Landau’s role did receive
wide acclaim and would earn him an Academy Award for Best Supporting
Actor.

Flush
with the recent success and attention from his “Ed Wood”
role, Martin Landau began to receive more and more supporting
roles in several high profile films such as “City Hall (1996),”
“Rounders (1998),” “The X-Files (1998)”
and Ron Howard’s prelude to reality T.V., “Edtv (1999).”
Landau closed out the 20th Century by making a cameo appearance
in another Tim Burton film, “Sleepy Hollow” as Peter
Van Garrett, during the film’s prologue sequence.
After
nearly five decades in show business, Landau has more than proven
that given the right opportunity and a great screenplay to work
with, such as Frank Darabont’s 2001 Jim Carrey drama, “The
Majestic,” he has the presence and power to move us and
deliver a truly memorable performance.
Joe
Cortez, 2004
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