Nehemiah Persoff was a prolific character actor whose many memorable roles included Rebbe Mendel, the father of Barbra Streisand’s character in “Yentl.”
- Died: April 5, 2022 (Who else died on April 5?)
- Details of death: Died in San Luis Obispo, California of heart failure at the age of 102.
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Acting career
Born in Israel, Persoff came to the U.S. as a child. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II, beginning his acting career after returning home and studying in the inaugural class at the Actors Studio. Among his first acting jobs was “On the Waterfront,” in which he played the cab driver in the famous “I coulda been a contender” scene. Persoff went on to play notable roles in films including “Some Like it Hot,” “The Greatest Story Ever Told,” “Twins,” and a voice role as Papa Mousekewitz in “An American Tail.” He was also well known for dozens of TV credits. Persoff starred in the classic “Judgement Night” episode of “The Twilight Zone,” playing a Nazi U-boat captain doomed to relive his crimes over and over. Persoff had a recurring role on “The Untouchables” and made many other appearances on shows including “Gilligan’s Island,” “Mission Impossible,” “Naked City,” “Hawaii Five-O,” “Barney Miller,” “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” “Murder, She Wrote,” and “Law & Order.” Most recently, he played a small role in the 2003 TV miniseries “Angels in America.”
Persoff on filming “The Untouchables”
“Jake Guzik was the first character I played on ‘The Untouchables.’ I loved doing that show mostly because Robert Stack was so great in his role. To me he was invaluable. Bob Stack (in the role of federal Prohibition agent Elliot Ness) was so nose-in-the-air stuck-up, he was so correct and superior, so aristocratic, that without any effort on my part, it brought out the rebel in me (wherever it lay dormant). It struck a vein of anger in me – anger which, in my mind, is such an important part of what makes a gangster (one who rebels against the rules and wants things his way). I did five or six episodes and I certainly attribute much of my success to Bob.” —from a 2010 interview for Cinema Retro
Tributes to Nehemiah Persoff
Full obituary: The New York Times
