Veteran actor Earl Holliman has died at age 96.
Holliman passed away Monday in hospice care at his home in Studio City, Calif., his partner, Craig Curtis, confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter Tuesday.
The late star made his acting debut with one line of dialogue in the 1953 Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis comedy “Scared Stiff.”
Three years later, he starred in the western romance “The Rainmaker” alongside Burt Lancaster and Katharine Hepburn. He beat out Elvis Presley for the role and won a Golden Globe Award for his performance.
Holliman’s other notable films include “Broken Lance,” “Forbidden Planet,” “Giant,” “Hot Spell,” “Sharky’s Machine,” and “Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge.”
On television, Holliman appeared in the very first episode of “The Twilight Zone” in October 1959. He played a man with amnesia in a deserted town.
In the ’70s, Holliman had a recurring role as Lt. Bill Crowley in the police drama “Police Woman.” Angie Dickinson was his co-star.
“She’d get into trouble and I’d run in and save her,” Holliman said about a typical storyline on the show in a 2003 interview, per THR. “I would make some smart remark and she would come back at me in some sexy kind of way, and a lot of that was ad-libbed. We had a tacit kind of permission to do that.”
The NBC series also had major guest stars like Mark Harmon, Joan Collins, Sam Elliott, William Shatner, Adam West, Barry Williams, Smokey Robinson, Kim and Kyle Richards, and Sandra Dee.
Holliman made appearances in the shows “Hotel de Paree,” “Gunsmoke,” and “Murder, She Wrote,” as well.
He was nominated for a second Golden Globe for his performance in the 1992 sitcom “Delta.”
Holliman received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1977.
Before becoming an actor, Holliman was raised in Oil City, Louisiana. He had a brief stint in the U.S. Navy during World War II where he spent time with famous stars at the Hollywood Canteen.
He later studied acting at the Pasadena Playhouse. He was working at the North American Aviation when he snuck into the Paramount lot and became friendly with a studio executive, who gave him his part in “Scared Stiff.”
Holliman also enjoyed a brief career as a singer thanks to a record deal he had with Capitol Records.
In addition, Holliman was an animal rights activist and served as president of Actors and Others for Animals for 34 years. He was also an honorary chairman for Toys for Tots.
