Biff Elliot

 Biff Elliot, born Leon Shalek, July 26, 1923 – August 15, 2012)

He was perhaps best known for his role as popular detective Mike Hammer in the 1953 version of I, the Jury, and for his guest appearance as Schmitter in the Star Trek episode "The Devil in the Dark". Born in Massachusetts, Elliot had a childhood nickname "Bith" but later adapted it to "Biff" when he went into boxing, which he did when he was 16 and his family had moved to Presque Isle, Maine. He then became known as Biff Harris. Eventually Elliot went on to become the North Maine champion and even reached the New England regional championship, but once his mother found out about his boxing, she refused to allow him to continue. In 1943 Elliot signed up for the United States Army, was placed in the 34th Infantry Division and later stationed to North Africa. After being discharged in 1945, Elliot enrolled at The University of Maine and graduated in 1949. He moved to New York, hoping to start a writing career, but turned to acting when that didn't go well. He first started doing stage and television work, mostly playing tough, working-class characters. After being spotted by an agent from Hollywood, he was flown to California to audition in Mickey Spillane's I, the Jury. After a successful 15-minute audition, Elliot landed his first leading role on film and became the first actor to portray the famed Mike Hammer in a motion picture. Elliot was signed for a long term contract as Mike Hammer but the public didn't take to him and other actors were cast in the role. Over the next few years, Elliot was a prominent fixture in classic war films of the 1950s and '60s, appearing in Between Heaven and Hell, The Enemy Below, Pork Chop Hill, and PT 109. But mostly he worked in television.

In 1959, Elliot got a seemingly good break when playwright Clifford Odets happened to see I, the Jury and offered him a role in The Story on Page One, which Odets wrote and directed. Over the next decade, Elliot was mostly seen on television, including an appearance on Frank Lovejoy's detective series, Meet McGraw, and an appearance on Perry Mason. In 1967, he appeared in the Star Trek episode "The Devil in the Dark". Elliot would make his final film appearance in 1986 in a comedy, co-starring with Jack Lemmon in a scene from That's Life!. His brother was Win Elliott, a longtime CBS Radio Network sportscaster and 1950's TV game show host. Biff Elliot died at his home in Studio City, California on August 15, 2012, aged 89. He is interred at Westwood Memorial Park.