Jack Klugman

 Jack Klugman (April 27, 1922 – December 24, 2012)

Klugman began his career in 1950. He later moved on to television and film work with roles in 12 Angry Men (1957) and Cry Terror! (1958). During the 1960s, he guest-starred on numerous television series. Klugman won his first Primetime Emmy Award for his guest-starring role on The Defenders, in 1964. In 1954, he played Jim Hanson on the soap opera, The Greatest Gift (TV series). The following year, he appeared in the live television broadcast of Producers' Showcase, in the episode "The Petrified Forest" with Humphrey Bogart and Henry Fonda. Klugman later said the experience was the greatest thrill of his career. Klugman went on to star in several classic films, including 12 Angry Men (1957) as juror #5. Of the 12 actors to play a juror in the film, Klugman was the last survivor. In 1959, he returned to Broadway in the original production of Gypsy: A Musical Fable. In 1960, he was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor (Musical) for his role in the show, but lost to Tom Bosley in Fiorello!. He remained with Gypsy until it closed in March 1961. From 1960 to 1963, Klugman appeared in four episodes of the The Twilight Zone series: "A Passage for Trumpet" (1960), "A Game of Pool" (1961), "Death Ship" (1963), and "In Praise of Pip" (1963). Klugman tied with Burgess Meredith for the most appearances in a starring role on the series. In 1970, Klugman reprised his Broadway role of Oscar Madison in the television adaptation of The Odd Couple, opposite Tony Randall. The series aired from 1970 to 1975. Klugman won his second and third Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award for his work on the series.

From 1976 to 1983, he starred in the title role in Quincy, M.E. for which he earned four Primetime Emmy Award nominations. A longtime smoker, Klugman was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1974. The cancer returned in 1989. During the course of treatment, Klugman lost a vocal cord which left him with a raspy voice. Jack Klugman died at the age of 90 on Christmas Eve 2012, and is interred at Westwood Memorial Park.