Rod Steiger
Rodney Stephen Steiger (
April 14,
1925 -
July 9,
2002) was an
American actor who was most famous for his
Academy Award-winning role (playing against
Sidney Poitier) as Sheriff Bill Gillespie in the
1967 film
In the Heat of the Night.
He appeared in over 100 films, including Academy Award-nominated roles in
On the Waterfront (
1954),
The Pawnbroker (
1965) and
The Hurricane (
1999). He turned down lead roles in
Patton and
The Godfather.
He was born in Westhampton, New York and saw service during World War II, running away from home aged sixteen to join the US Navy.
After the war, he returned to New Jersey and joined a drama group before studying drama full-time under Lee Strasberg and Elia Kazan at the Actors School.
Rod Steiger is the most linkable actor in the Internet Movie Database. The average Steiger number of a film actor is 2.660 (compared to Bacon's 2.943).
See also:
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