Howard Da Silva

Infobox actor
name = Howard Da Silva
birthname = Howard Silverblatt
birthdate = birth date|1909|05|4
birthplace = Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
deathdate = death date and age|1986|02|16|1909|05|4 (lymphoma)
deathplace = Ossining, New York, U.S.
occupation = Actor

Howard Da Silva (May 4, 1909 – February 16, 1986) was an American actor.

Life

He was born Howard Silverblatt in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Benjamin and Bertha Silverblatt. His parents were both Yiddish speaking Jews born in Russia. He had a job as a steelworker before beginning his acting career on the stage. He changed his surname to the Portuguese Da Silva, despite not having any relationship with Portugal.

Career

Da Silva appeared in a number of Broadway musicals, including the role of "Larry Foreman" in the legendary first production of Marc Blitzstein's musical, "The Cradle Will Rock" (1937). Later, he costarred in the original 1943 stage production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Oklahoma!", playing the role of the psychopathic "Jud Fry". In 1969 he originated the role of Benjamin Franklin in the musical "1776" and played him in the 1972 film version as well.

Da Silva appeared in over 60 motion pictures, some of his memorable roles include playing Ray Milland's bartender in "The Lost Weekend" (1945) and the half-blind criminal "Chicamaw 'One-Eye' Mobley" in "They Live by Night" (1949).

In the 1950s, after being blacklisted as a result of the investigations into alleged communist influence in the movie industry by the House Committee on Un-American Activities and unable to find movie or TV work, Da Silva returned to the stage. He was nominated for the 1960 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his role as "Ben Marino" in "Fiorello!" (1959).

Da Silva was nominated for the British BAFTA Film Award for Best Foreign Actor for his performance as "Dr. Swinford" in "David and Lisa" (1962). He was the narrator for the U.S. released versions of the British TV program "Doctor Who". Da Silva portrayed Soviet Premier Khrushchev in the 1974 television docudrama "The Missiles of October." He won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama Special for his role as Eddie in "" (1978) with Sissy Spacek.

Da Silva's TV guest appearances, after the era in which blacklisting was strongest, include such programs as "The Outer Limits", "Ben Casey", "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.", "The Fugitive", "Gentle Ben", "Mannix", "Love, American Style", "Kung Fu", and "Archie Bunker's Place".

Da Silva also played Meyer Wolfsheim in "The Great Gatsby" (1974), Franklin D. Roosevelt in "The Private Files of J. Edgar Hoover" (1983), Louis B. Mayer in "Mommie Dearest" (1981), "Angelo Dokakis" in "Garbo Talks" (1984), and Benjamin Franklin in "1776" (1972), as well as a documentary depicting the life of Ben Franklin shown at Benjamin Franklin's house in Philadelphia.

Da Silva also appeared as a voice actor in 26 episodes of an 1970s old-time radio revival show called The CBS Radio Mystery Theater between July 1974 and February 1977. [cite web| url=http://cbsrmt.mousetrap.net/RMTdb/sp.php?id=hdasilva| title= CBS Radio Mystery Theater Database| accessdate=2008-05-10]

Howard Da Silva died of lymphoma at the age of 76 in Ossining, New York.

Notes

External links

*
*
*
*

Persondata
NAME= Silva, Howard Da
ALTERNATIVE NAMES= Silverblatt, Howard
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Actor
DATE OF BIRTH= 1909-05-4
PLACE OF BIRTH= Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
DATE OF DEATH= 1986-02-16 (lymphoma)
PLACE OF DEATH= Ossining, New York, U.S.