Ben Gazzara

Ben Gazzara
Gazzara in the 1960s
Born	Biagio Anthony Gazzara (1930-08-28)August 28, 1930 New York City, U.S.
Died	February 3, 2012(2012-02-03) (aged 81) New York City, U.S.
Education	The New School Actors Studio
Occupations	Actor director
Years active	1953–2012
Spouses	Louise Erickson ​ ​ (m. 1951; div. 1957)​ Janice Rule ​ ​ (m. 1961; div. 1979)​ Elke Krivat ​ ​ (m. 1982)​
Children	2

Biagio Anthony "Ben" Gazzara (August 28, 1930 – February 3, 2012) was an American actor and director of film, stage, and television. He received numerous accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award and a Drama Desk Award, in addition to nominations for three Golden Globe Awards and three Tony Awards.

Born to Italian immigrants in New York City, Gazzara studied at The New School and began his professional career with the Actors Studio, of which he was a lifelong member. His breakthrough role was in the Broadway play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1955–56), which earned him widespread acclaim. A memorable performance as a soldier on trial for murder in Otto Preminger's Anatomy of a Murder (1959) transitioned Gazzara to an equally successful screen career. As the star of the television series Run for Your Life (1965–1968), he was nominated for three Golden Globe Awards and two Emmy Awards. He won his only Emmy Award for the television film Hysterical Blindness (2002).

Gazzara was a recurring collaborator of John Cassavetes, working with him on Husbands (1970), The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976) and Opening Night (1977). His other best-known films include The Bridge at Remagen (1969), Capone (1975), Voyage of the Damned (1976), Saint Jack (1979), Road House (1989), The Spanish Prisoner (1997), The Big Lebowski, Buffalo '66, Happiness (all 1998), The Thomas Crown Affair, Summer of Sam (both 1999), Dogville (2003) and Paris, je t'aime (2006). He also had a successful and prolific film career in Europe, particularly Italy, where he worked with eminent directors such as Giuseppe Tornatore, Giuliano Montaldo, Marco Ferreri, and Lars von Trier.

Gazzara was known for his gritty, naturalistic portrayals of intense, often amoral characters. According to The Hollywood Reporter, "Gazzara positioned himself for 'creative elbow room,' seeking edgy characters in non-mainstream productions or infusing mainstream productions with idiosyncratic supporting turns."

Early life and education

Gazzara was born in New York City, the son of Sicilian immigrants Angelina (née Cusumano) and Antonio Gazzara, a laborer and carpenter; both parents were from the province of Agrigento—his mother from Castrofilippo and his father from Canicattì. He was raised in a monolingual, Italian-speaking household, and did not learn English until he went to school.

Gazzara grew up in New York's Kips Bay neighborhood; he lived on East 29th Street. He participated in the drama program at Madison Square Boys & Girls Club located across the street. He attended New York City's Stuyvesant High School, but finally graduated from Saint Simon Stock in the Bronx. Years later, he said that the discovery of his love for acting saved him from a life of crime during his teen years.

He went to City College of New York to study electrical engineering. After two years, he relented. He took classes in acting at the Dramatic Workshop of The New School in New York with the influential German director Erwin Piscator, and afterward joined the Actors Studio.

Career

Early career

Gazzara guest-starred in shows like Treasury Men in Action and Danger.

He received acclaim for his off-Broadway performance in End as a Man in 1953. The production was transferred to Broadway and ran until 1954.

In 1954, Gazzara (having modified his original surname from "Gazzarra") made several appearances in NBC's legal drama Justice, based on case studies from the Legal Aid Society of New York. He also guest-starred on shows such as Medallion Theatre and The United States Steel Hour.

Broadway success

Gazzara, photographed by Carl Van Vechten in 1955

Gazzara became a Broadway sensation when he portrayed the role of Brick in Tennessee Williams's Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1955–56) opposite Barbara Bel Geddes, directed by Elia Kazan. Gazzara turned down the role in the film version. The studio planned to offer the role to James Dean, but the part was given to Paul Newman after Dean's death.

He followed it with another long run in A Hatful of Rain (1956).

Gazzara was in the 1963 Actors Studio production of Strange Interlude on Broadway.

Film work

He joined other Actors Studio members in the 1957 film The Strange One produced by Sam Spiegel.

He had a Broadway flop with The Night Circus (1958) and continued to guest-star on shows like Playhouse 90, Kraft Television Theatre, Armchair Theatre and DuPont Show of the Month.

His second film was a high-profile performance as a soldier on trial for avenging his wife's rape in Otto Preminger's courtroom drama Anatomy of a Murder (1959).

Gazzara told Charlie Rose in 1998 that he went from being mainly a stage actor who often would turn up his nose at film roles in the mid-1950s to, much later, a ubiquitous character actor who turned very little down. "When I became hot, so to speak, in the theater, I got a lot of offers", he said. "I won't tell you the pictures I turned down, because you'll say, 'You are a fool'—and I was a fool."

He went to Italy to make a comedy, The Passionate Thief (1960), with Anna Magnani and Totò.

Back in the US he did a TV movie, Cry Vengeance!, and was second-billed in The Young Doctors (both 1961). He was also the mystery guest on What's My Line? (September 6, 1961).

He starred in Convicts 4 (1962).

He returned to Italy to make The Captive City (1962) with David Niven.

Gazzara was the male lead in A Rage to Live (1965) with Suzanne Pleshette.

Television star

Gazzara at premiere of Looking for Palladin in New York City on October 30, 2009

Gazzara became well known in several television series, beginning with Arrest and Trial, which ran from 1963 to 1964 on ABC.

He also appeared in the TV special A Carol for Another Christmas (1964) and had a short Broadway run in A Traveller without Luggage in 1964. He also guest-starred on Kraft Suspense Theatre.

He gained fame in the TV series Run for Your Life which ran from 1965 to 1968 on NBC, in which he played a terminally ill man trying to get the most out of the last two years of his life. For his work in the series, Gazzara received two Emmy nominations for "Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series" and three Golden Globe nominations for "Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama."

When the series ended Gazzara had a cameo in If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969) and a lead in the wartime action film The Bridge at Remagen (1969).

John Cassavetes

Some of the actor's most formidable characters were those he created with his friend John Cassavetes in the 1970s. They collaborated for the first time on Cassavetes's film Husbands (1970), in which he appeared alongside Peter Falk and Cassavetes.

Gazzara starred in a television movie, Pursuit (1972), the directorial debut of Michael Crichton. He also made the television movies When Michael Calls (1972), Fireball Forward (1972), and The Family Rico (1972).

He made The Sicilian Connection (1972) in Italy, and did a science fiction film The Neptune Factor (1973). There were more television films You'll Never See Me Again (1973) and Maneater (1973).

He starred in the television miniseries QB VII (1974), which won six primetime Emmy Awards. The six-and-a-half-hour series was based on a book by Leon Uris and co-starred Anthony Hopkins. He then played gangster Al Capone in the biographical film Capone (1975). Cassevetes was in the support cast.

Gazzara appeared on Broadway in Hughie (1975) then worked again for Cassavetes as director in The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976), in which Gazzara took the leading role of the hapless strip-joint owner, Cosmo Vitelli. He starred in an action movie, High Velocity (1976), and was one of many stars in Voyage of the Damned (1976).

Gazzara returned to Broadway for a production of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? with Colleen Dewhurst in 1976.

A year later, he starred in yet another Cassavetes-directed movie, Opening Night, as stage director Manny Victor, who struggles with the mentally unstable star of his show, played by Cassavetes's wife Gena Rowlands. He made an acclaimed TV movie The Death of Richie (1977).

Peter Bogdanovich

Gazzara's career received a boost when Peter Bogdanovich cast him in the title role of Saint Jack (1979). His increased profile helped him be cast in the male lead of Bloodline (1979) and the Korean War epic Inchon (1980) co-starring Laurence Olivier and Richard Roundtree.

He made another for Bogdanovich, They All Laughed (1981).

1980s

Gazzara made some films in Europe: Tales of Ordinary Madness (1981), The Girl from Trieste (1982), A Proper Scandal (1984), My Dearest Son (1985). He starred with Rowlands in the critically acclaimed AIDS-themed TV movie An Early Frost (1985), for which he received his third Emmy nomination.

He had a villainous role in the oft-televised Patrick Swayze film Road House, which the actor jokingly said is probably his most-watched performance.

Gazzara appeared in 38 films, many for television, in the 1990s. He worked with a number of renowned directors, such as the Coen brothers (The Big Lebowski), Spike Lee (Summer of Sam), David Mamet (The Spanish Prisoner), Walter Hugo Khouri (Forever), Vincent Gallo (Buffalo '66), Todd Solondz (Happiness), John Turturro (Illuminata), and John McTiernan (The Thomas Crown Affair).

He was on Broadway in Shimada (1992).

In his seventies, Gazzara continued to be active. In 2003, he appeared in Nobody Don't Like Yogi, an off-Broadway show about Yogi Berra that had a solid run, and was in a revival of Awake and Sing! (2006).

He was in the ensemble cast of the experimental film Dogville, directed by Lars von Trier of Denmark and starring Nicole Kidman, as well as the television film Hysterical Blindness (he received an Emmy Award for his role). In 2005, he played Agostino Casaroli in the television miniseries Pope John Paul II. He completed filming his scenes in the film The Wait in early 2012, shortly before his death.

In addition to acting, Gazzara worked as an occasional television director; his credits include the Columbo episodes A Friend in Deed (1974) and Troubled Waters (1975). Gazzara was nominated three times for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play—in 1956 for A Hatful of Rain, in 1975 for the paired short plays Hughie and Duet, and in 1977 for a revival of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, opposite Colleen Dewhurst.

Personal life

Gazzara was married three times, first to actress Louise Erickson (1951–1957). He married actress Janice Rule on November 25, 1961 in San Francisco. They had a daughter named Elizabeth. They divorced in 1979. He married model Elke Krivat in 1982 and remained married to her until his death. Gazzara adopted his wife's daughter Danja from her prior relationship. Following his separation from his first wife, Gazzara was engaged to stage actress Elaine Stritch and later disclosed a love affair with actress Audrey Hepburn. He and Hepburn co-starred in two of her final films, Bloodline (1979) and They All Laughed (1981).

In 1968, during filming of the war movie The Bridge at Remagen, co-starring Gazzara and friend Robert Vaughn, the Soviet Union and its allies invaded Czechoslovakia. The cast and crew were detained for a time; filming was later completed in West Germany. During their departure from Czechoslovakia, Gazzara and Vaughn assisted with the escape of a Czech waitress whom they had befriended. They smuggled her to Austria in a car waved through a border crossing that had not yet been taken over by the Soviet army in its crackdown on the Prague Spring.

Gazzara was featured in a 1994 article in Cigar Aficionado, in which he admitted smoking four packs of cigarettes a day until taking up cigar smoking in the mid-1960s.

Beginning in the late 1970s, Gazzara held permanent residence status in Italy. He maintained a second home in Umbria, where he lived while working in Europe.

Death

Gazzara was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1999. He suffered a stroke in 2005. On February 3, 2012, he died of pancreatic cancer at Bellevue Hospital Center in New York. He was cremated.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1957	The Strange One	Jocko De Paris
1959	Anatomy of a Murder	Lieutenant Frederick Manion
1960	The Passionate Thief	Lello
1961	The Young Doctors	Dr. David Coleman
1962	Convicts 4	John Resko
1962	The Captive City	Captain George Stubbs
1965	A Rage to Live	Roger Bannon
1969	If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium	Card Player
1969	The Bridge at Remagen	Sergeant Angelo
1970	King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis	Himself
1970	Husbands	Harry
1972	The Sicilian Connection	Giuseppe "Joe" Coppola
1973	The Neptune Factor	Commander Adrian Blake
1975	Capone	Al Capone
1976	The Killing of a Chinese Bookie	Cosmo Vittelli
1976	High Velocity	Cliff Baumgartner
1976	Voyage of the Damned	Morris Troper
1977	Opening Night	Manny Victor
1979	Saint Jack	Jack Flowers
1979	Bloodline	Rhys Williams
1981	Inchon	Major Frank Hallsworth
1981	They All Laughed	John Russo
1981	Tales of Ordinary Madness	Charles Serking
1982	The Girl from Trieste	Dino Romani
1984	A Proper Scandal	The Man with No Memory
1985	Woman of Wonders	Alberto
1985	My Dearest Son	Avv. Antonio Morelli
1986	The Professor	Franco
1987	Control	Mike Zella
1988	Quicker Than the Eye	Ben Norrell
1988	Don Bosco	John Bosco
1989	Champagne amer	Paul Rivière
1989	Road House	Brad Wesley
1990	Beyond the Ocean	John Tana	Also co-writer and director
1991	Forever	Marcello Rondi
1994	Sherwood's Travels	Raphael de Pietro
1994	Swallows Never Die in Jerusalem	Moshe
1995	Nefertiti, figlia del sole	Amenhotep III
1995	The Zone	Dick Althorp
1995	Banditi	Amos
1996	Scene of the Crime	Lieutenant Jack "Jigsaw" Lasky
1997	Farmer & Chase	Farmer
1997	Shadow Conspiracy	Vice President Saxon
1997	Stag	Frank Grieco
1997	The Spanish Prisoner	Klein
1997	Vicious Circles	March
1998	The Big Lebowski	Jackie Treehorn
1998	Too Tired to Die	John Sage
1998	Buffalo '66	Jimmy Brown
1998	Happiness	Lenny Jordan
1998	Illuminata	Old Flavio
1999	Summer of Sam	Luigi
1999	The Thomas Crown Affair	Andrew Wallace
1999	Shark in a Bottle	The Arranger
1999	Jack of Hearts	Bartossa
1999	Paradise Cove	Duke Mantee
2000	Blue Moon	Frank Cavallo
2000	Poor Liza	The Narrator
2000	Believe	Ellicott Winslowe
2000	Home Sweet Hoboken	—
2000	Very Mean Men	Gino Minetti
2000	Undertaker's Paradise	Jim
2000	The List	D.A. Bernard Salman
2000	Nella terra di nessuno	L'avvocato Scalzi
2003	L'ospite segreto	Solomos
2003	Dogville	Jack McKay
2005	Bonjour Michel	Michele Terranova
2005	Schubert	Don José
2006	Paris, je t'aime	Ben	Segment: "Quartier Latin"
2006	The Shore	Mr. Bob Harris
2008	Looking for Palladin	Jack Palladin
2008	Eve	Joe	Short film
2009	Holy Money	Vatican's Banker
2009	13	Schlondorff
2010	Christopher Roth	Paul Andersen
2011	Chez Gino	Oncle Giovanni
2011	Ristabbànna	Natale

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1951–1954	Danger	Various roles	4 episodes
1952–1953	Treasury Men in Action	Various roles	2 episodes
1952–1958	Kraft Television Theatre	Various roles	2 episodes
1954	Medallion Theatre	Dick	Episode: "The Alibi Kid"
1954	The United States Steel Hour	Richard Elgin Jr.	Episode: "The Notebook Warrior"
1954	Justice	Various roles	3 episodes
1957–1958	Playhouse 90	Various roles	2 episodes
1959	Armchair Theatre	Jim Mason	Episode: "You'll Never See Me Again"
1959	DuPont Show of the Month	Carlos Perez	Episode: "Body and Soul"
1961	Cry Vengeance!	Davidde	Television film
1963–1964	Arrest and Trial	Detective Sgt. Nick Anderson	Main role, 30 episodes
1964	A Carol for Another Christmas	Fred	Television film
1965	Kraft Suspense Theatre	Paul Bryan	Episode: "Rapture at Two-Forty"
1965–1968	Run for Your Life	Paul Bryan	Main role, 85 episodes Also director, 5 episodes
1967	Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre	Sidney	Episode: "Free of Charge"
1971	The Name of the Game	—	Director Episode: "Appointment in Palermo"
1972	When Michael Calls	Doremus Connelly	Television film
1972	Fireball Forward	Major General Joe Barrett
1972	The Family Rico	Eddie Rico
1972	Pursuit	Steven Graves
1973	You'll Never See Me Again	—
1973	Maneater	Nick Baron
1974	QB VII	Abe Cady	Main role, 2 episodes
1974–1975	Columbo	—	Director, 2 episodes
1977	The Death of Richie	George Werner	Television film
1977	The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald	Anson "Kip" Roberts
1982	A Question of Honor	Detective Joe DeFalco
1984	Hollywood's Most Sensational Mysteries	Narrator
1985	An Early Frost	Nick Pierson
1985	A Letter to Three Wives	Porter Holloway
1987	Police Story: The Freeway Killings	Captain Tom Wright
1987	Downpayment on Murder	Harry Cardell
1990	People Like Us	Gus Bailey
1991	Lies Before Kisses	Grant Sanders
1993	Blindsided	Ira Gold
1993	Love, Honor & Obey: The Last Mafia Marriage	Joseph Bonanno
1993	Cycle Simenon	John	Episode: "Les gens d'en face"
1994	Parallel Lives	Charlie Duke	Television film
1994	Fatal Vows: The Alexandra O'Hara Story	Papa
1995	Convict Cowboy	Warden
1996	Una donna in fuga	Don Peppe
1996	Strangers	Doctor	Episode: "A New Life"
1997	The Notorious 7	Dom Diablo	Television film
1998	Valentine's Day	Joe Buddha
1998	Angelo nero	Padre Guelfi
1998	Il tesoro di Damasco	Gregorio Kos
1999	Tre stelle	Colonel Marshall	Miniseries
2000	Un bacio nel buio	—	Television film
2000	Piovuto dal cielo	Cesare Palmieri
2001	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	E.A.D.A.	Episode: "Wrath"
2001	Brian's Song	Coach Halas	Television film
2002	Hysterical Blindness	Nick
2005	Pope John Paul II	Agostino Casaroli	Main role, 2 episodes
2006	And Quiet Flows the Don	General Secretov	Miniseries
2007	Donne sbagliate	Franco Maresco	Television film
2008	Empire State Building Murders	Paulie Genovese
2009	L'onore e il rispetto	Fred	6 episodes
2013	Pupetta: Il coraggio e la passione	Otello Di Bella	Main role, 4 episodes

Bibliography

• Gazzara, Ben (September 13, 2004). In the Moment: My Life as an Actor. Carroll & Graf Publishers. ISBN 978-0-7867-1399-8.

Awards and nominations

Institution	Category	Year	Work	Result
David di Donatello Awards	Best Actor	1985	A Proper Scandal	Nominated
Drama Desk Awards	Outstanding Actor in a Play	1976	Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?	Nominated
	Outstanding Solo Performance	2004	Nobody Don't Like Yogi	Nominated
	Outstanding Ensemble Performance	2006	Awake and Sing!	Won
Flaiano Prize	Career Award	1993	—	Won
Golden Globe Awards	Best TV Star – Male	1966	Run for Your Life	Nominated
		1967		Nominated
		1968		Nominated
Golden Raspberry Awards	Worst Supporting Actor	1983	Inchon	Nominated
		1989	Road House	Nominated
Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series	1967	Run for Your Life	Nominated
		1968		Nominated
	Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie	1986	An Early Frost	Nominated
	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie	2003	Hysterical Blindness	Won
Marco Island Film Festival	Golden Eagle Award	2000	—	Won
National Board of Review	Best Acting by an Ensemble	1998	Happiness	Won
Oldenburg Film Festival	German Independence Honorary Award	2001	—	Won
San Sebastián International Film Festival	Donostia Lifetime Achievement Award	2005	—	Won
Theatre World Awards	—	1954	End as a Man	Won
Tony Awards	Best Actor in a Play	1956	A Hatful of Rain	Nominated
		1975	Hughie / Duet	Nominated
		1977	Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?	Nominated

External links

• Ben Gazzara at IMDb 
• Ben Gazzara at the TCM Movie Database
• Ben Gazzara at the Internet Broadway Database
• Ben Gazzara at the Internet Off-Broadway Database