Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor, producer, director, philanthropist and author. After an impoverished childhood with immigrant parents and six sisters, he made his film debut in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck.
Douglas soon developed into a leading box-office star throughout the 1950s, known for serious dramas, including westerns and war films. During his career, he appeared in more than 90 films. Douglas was known for his explosive acting style, which he displayed as a criminal defense attorney in Town Without Pity (1961).
Chaim Topol, Israeli Actor and ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ Star, Dies at 87
thewrap.comsaying in a statement that Topol was a “gifted actor who conquered many stages in Israel and overseas, filled the cinema screens with his presence and especially entered deep into our hearts.”Though Topal was best known for “Fiddler,” over his decades-long career he also starred in a range of films that have become recognized as classics.
Among them, he portrayed mad scientist Hans Zarkov in director Mike Hodges’ “Flash Gordon” (1980), and the smuggler-turned-hero Milos Columbo in the 1981 James Bond film “For Your Eyes Only.”Topal was born in Tel Aviv, then part of British Mandate Palestine, in 1935.
He first developed an interest in acting as a young child but it wasn’t until his mandatory enlistment in the Israeli Defense Force that he began performing as part of the service’s entertainment division.
Following his military service — which included active duty during the Suez Crisis in 1956 — he began working in mostly local theater.
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