Martin Balsam

Martin Balsam Headshot

Actor

Birth Date: November 4, 1919

Death Date: February 13, 1996

Birth Place: Bronx, New York

The heavyset, balding Balsam was a familiar face as a character actor since his career began on Broadway in the early 1940s. After a hiatus to serve in the US Army during WWII, he found work on stage in a number of Broadway productions including "Lamp at Midnight," "Macbeth" and "The Closing Door" and on TV in such varied shows as "Philco Television Playhouse" (NBC), "The Goldbergs" (CBS) and "Captain Video" (ABC).

In the 50s and 60s, Balsam continued to appear on stage including appearances on Broadway in two of Tennessee Williams' plays: with Maureen Stapleton and Eli Wallach in "The Rose Tattoo" (1951) and "Camino Real" (1952) as well as a Tony Award-winning turn as three characters in Robert Anderson's comic one-acts "You Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running" (1967). Other credits include Bernie Dodd in Clifford Odets' "The Country Girl" (in Easthampton, New York, 1954), Hickey in Eugene O'Neill's "The Iceman Cometh" (in Los Angeles, 1961) and Willie Loman in Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman" (in Philadelphia, 1974).

On TV, Balsam was a constant presence, making numerous guest appearances on series from "Father Knows Best" to "The Untouchables" to "The Six Million Dollar Man." His TV-movies include supporting Frank Sinatra in "Contract on Cherry Street" (NBC, 1977), appearing opposite powerhouse actresses ranging from Jean Stapleton ("Aunt Mary" CBS, 1979) to Ellen Burstyn ("The People vs. Jean Harris" NBC, 1981) to Vanessa Redgrave ("Second Serve" CBS, 1986). On "Archie Bunker's Place" (CBS, 1979-81), he portrayed Bunker's liberal Jewish business partner Murray Klein.

Balsam entered films with Elia Kazan's "On the Waterfront" (1954) and was particularly memorable as the jury foreman in Sidney Lumet's "Twelve Angry Men" (1957), as the doomed private dick Arbogast in Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" (1960), as the police chief in "Cape Fear" (1962) and as the studio chief in Edward Dmytryk's "The Carpetbaggers" (1964). He received the 1965 Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor for his performance as Jason Robards Jr.'s agent brother in "A Thousand Clowns." Additional credits include Mike Nichols' "Catch 22" (1970), Lumet's "Murder on the Orient Express" (1974) and Alan J Pakula's "All the President's Men" (1976).

Balsam appeared as a judge in Martin Scorsese's remake of "Cape Fear" (1991) and made his final screen appearance as a detective in "The Silence of the Hams" (1994). Balsam died from a stroke in Rome, Italy in February 1996.

Credits

Días de cine clásico

Actor
Show
2018

Les classiques du cinéma

Actor
Juré n1
Show
2014

Oceano

Actor
Don Matias Quintero
Show
2014

Al Capone

Actor
Show
1997

Legend of the Spirit Dog

Actor
Gramps
Movie
1997

Soldato ignoto

Actor
Priest
Movie
1995

The Silence of the Hams

Actor
Detective Martin Balsam
Movie
1994

Cape FearStream

Actor
Judge
Movie
1991
75%

怒りのタッチダウン/人質奪回作戦

Actor
Movie
1990

Brother From Space

Actor
Father Howard
Movie
1989

The Child Saver

Actor
Sidney Rosenberg
Movie
1988

P.I. Private Investigations

Actor
Cliff Dowling
Movie
1987

Kids Like These

Actor
Grandpa
Movie
1987

La sporca insegna del coraggio

Actor
Major Briggs
Movie
1987

Blood commando

Actor
Movie
1987

Nuevamente Juntos

Actor
Movie
1986

Once Again

Actor
Movie
1986

The Delta ForceStream

Actor
Ben Kaplan
Movie
1986
15%

Whatever It Takes

Actor
Hap Perchicksky
Movie
1986

Second Serve

Actor
Dr. Beck
Movie
1986

The Twilight Zone

Actor
Series
1985

Space

Actor
Miniseries
1985

Murder in Space

Actor
Alexander Rostov
Movie
1985

Grown Ups

Actor
Jack
Movie
1985

St. Elmo's FireStream

Actor
Mr. Beamish
Movie
1985
42%

Death Wish 3Stream

Actor
Bennett
Movie
1985
16%

Murder, She WroteStream

Guest Star
Edgar Carmody
Series
1984

The Octopus

Actor
Frank Carrisi
Show
1984

The Goodbye People

Actor
Max Silverman
Movie
1984

Atracción Psicópata

Actor
Movie
1984

Hotel

Guest Star
Soap
1983

Quiero Vivir

Actor
Movie
1983

Condamnation sans appel

Actor
Movie
1983

I Want to Live

Actor
Jack Brady
Movie
1983

Little Gloria... Happy at Last

Actor
Show
1982

The Salamander

Actor
Captain Steffanelli
Movie
1981

The People vs. Jean Harris

Actor
Joel Aurnou
Movie
1981

The Love Tapes

Actor
David Franklin
Movie
1980

L'avvertimento

Actor
Questore Martorana
Movie
1980

There Goes the Bride

Actor
Elmer Babcock
Movie
1980

Archie Bunker's Place

Actor
Murray Klein
Series
1979

Gardenia: Il giustiziere della mala

Actor
Salluzzo
Movie
1979

Aunt Mary

Actor
Harry Strasberg
Movie
1979

Cuba

Actor
Gen. Bello
Movie
1979

The Seeding of Sarah Burns

Actor
Dr. Samuel Melman
Movie
1979

The House on Garibaldi Street

Actor
Isser Harel
Movie
1979

Gardenia

Actor
Movie
1979

The Millionaire

Actor
Arthur Haines
Movie
1978

Eyes Behind the Stars

Actor
Inspector Jim Grant
Movie
1978

Silver Bears

Actor
Joe Fiore
Movie
1978

Siege

Actor
Henry Fancher
Movie
1978

Rainbow

Actor
Louis B. Mayer
Movie
1978

Diamanti sporchi di sangue

Actor
Rizzo
Movie
1977

The SentinelStream

Actor
Prof. Ruzinsky
Movie
1977
45%

Contract on Cherry Street

Actor
Capt. Ernie Weinberg
Movie
1977

The Storyteller

Actor
Ira Davidoff
Movie
1977

Raid on Entebbe

Actor
Daniel Cooper
Movie
1977

Anger in His Eyes

Actor
Commissario
Movie
1977

Meet Him and Die

Actor
Giulianelli
Movie
1976

The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case

Actor
Edward J. Reilly
Movie
1976

Death Rage

Actor
Commissario
Movie
1976

All the President's MenStream

Actor
Howard Simons
Movie
1976
94%

Smiling Maniacs

Actor
Carlo Goja
Movie
1975

Cry Onion

Actor
Henry 'Jack' Pullitzer
Movie
1975

Season for Assassins

Actor
Commissioner Katroni
Movie
1975

Mitchell

Actor
James Arthur Cummings
Movie
1975

Mrs. R

Actor
Ham Russell Buckner
Movie
1975

Murder on the Orient Express (1974)

Actor
Show
1974

Trapped Beneath the Sea

Actor
T.C. Hollister
Movie
1974

Corruzione al palazzo di giustizia

Actor
Carlo Goja
Movie
1974

The Taking of Pelham One Two ThreeStream

Actor
Green
Movie
1974
98%

Murder on the Orient ExpressStream

Actor
Signor Bianchi
Movie
1974
90%

Miles to Go Before I Sleep

Actor
Ben Montgomery
Movie
1974

KojakStream

Guest Star
Ray Kaufman
Series
1973

Police Story

Actor
Det. Al Koster
Series
1973

The Six Million Dollar ManStream

Guest Star
first Dr. Rudy Wells
Series
1973

The Stone KillerStream

Actor
Al Vescari
Movie
1973

Counselor at Crime

Actor
Don Antonio Macaluso
Movie
1973

Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams

Actor
Harry Walden
Movie
1973

A Brand New Life

Actor
Jim Douglas
Movie
1973

The Six Million Dollar Man

Actor
Dr. Rudy Wells
Movie
1973

MaudeStream

Guest Star
Series
1972

Imputazione di omicidio per uno studente

Actor
Movie
1972

Il vero e il falso

Actor
Turrisi
Movie
1972

Night of Terror

Actor
Capt. Caleb Sark
Movie
1972

Confessions of a Police Captain

Actor
Commissario Bonavia
Movie
1972

The Anderson Tapes

Actor
Haskins
Movie
1971

The Man

Actor
Jim Talley
Movie
1971

The Enemy Before Us

Actor
Angie
Movie
1971

Catch-22Stream

Actor
Col. Cathcart
Movie
1970
81%

The Old Man Who Cried Wolf

Actor
Stanley Pulska
Movie
1970

Tora! Tora! Tora!Stream

Actor
Adm. Husband E. Kimmel
Movie
1970
55%

Little Big ManStream

Actor
Mr. Merriweather
Movie
1970
96%

Hunters Are for Killing

Actor
Wade Hamilton
Movie
1970

The Good Guys and the Bad Guys

Actor
Mayor Wilker
Movie
1969
17%

Me, Natalie

Actor
Uncle Harold
Movie
1969

Trilogy

Actor
Ivor Belli
Movie
1969

The Name of the Game

Guest Star
Series
1968

Nightmare

Actor
Herb Witmer
Movie
1968

HombreStream

Actor
Henry Mendez
Movie
1967
93%

After the Fox

Actor
Harry
Movie
1966

Al Borde del Abismo

Actor
Movie
1965

A Thousand Clowns

Actor
Arnold
Movie
1965

Harlow

Actor
Everett Redman
Movie
1965

The Bedford Incident

Actor
Lieutenant Commander Chester Potter, M.D., U.S.N.
Movie
1965

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.Stream

Guest Star
Series
1964
100%

The Carpetbaggers

Actor
Bernard B. Norman
Movie
1964

Seven Days in MayStream

Actor
Paul Girard
Movie
1964
92%

The FugitiveStream

Guest Star
Andrew Newmark
Series
1963

Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?

Actor
Sanford Kaufman
Movie
1963

Conquered City

Actor
Joseph Feinberg
Movie
1962

Cape FearStream

Actor
Police Chief Mark Dutton
Movie
1962
96%

Target: The Corruptors

Guest Star
Show
1961

Dr. Kildare

Guest Star
Series
1961

Cain's Hundred

Guest Star
Show
1961

Breakfast at Tiffany'sStream

Actor
O.J. Berman
Movie
1961
88%

Ada

Actor
Steve Jackson
Movie
1961

Route 66Stream

Guest Star
Series
1960

Everybody Go Home

Actor
Sergente Quintino Fornaciari
Movie
1960

PsychoStream

Actor
Det. Milton Arbogast
Movie
1960
97%

The Untouchables

Guest Star
Series
1959

The Twilight ZoneStream

Actor
Danny Weiss
Series
1959
92%

RawhideStream

Guest Star
Series
1959

Middle of the Night

Actor
Jack
Movie
1959

Al Capone

Actor
Mac Keeley
Movie
1959

Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse

Actor
Series
1958

Marjorie Morningstar

Actor
Dr. David Harris
Movie
1958

Wagon TrainStream

Guest Star
Series
1957

Have Gun -- Will TravelStream

Guest Star
Series
1957

12 Angry MenStream

Actor
Juror No. 1
Movie
1957
100%

Time Limit

Actor
Sgt. Baker
Movie
1957

Zane Grey Theater

Actor
Series
1956

Alfred Hitchcock PresentsStream

Actor
Eldon Marsh
Series
1955

On the WaterfrontStream

Actor
Gillette
Movie
1954
99%

The United States Steel Hour

Actor
Petty Officer
Show
1953

The Living Bible

Actor
Show
1952

SuspenseStream

Actor
Series
1949

Studio OneStream

Guest Star
Series
1948