Zero Mostel
Samuel Joel "Zero" Mostel (February 28, 1915 – September 8, 1977) was an American actor, comedian, and singer. Mostel received several accolades including three Tony Awards and a Drama Desk Award as well as nominations for a British Academy Film Award and a Golden Globe Award. He is also a member of the American Theater Hall of Fame, inducted posthumously in 1979.
He is best known for his portrayal of comic characters including Tevye on stage in Fiddler on the Roof, Pseudolus on stage and on screen in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and Max Bialystock in the original film version of Mel Brooks' The Producers (1967). Mostel was a student of Don Richardson and he used an acting technique based on muscle memory.
Mostel was blacklisted during the 1950s; his testimony before the House Un-American Activities Committee was well publicized. Mostel later starred in the Hollywood Blacklist drama film The Front (1976) alongside Woody Allen, for which Mostel was nominated for the British Academy Film Award for Best Supporting Actor. His final roles included as a guest star on The Muppet Show and as a voice in Watership Down (1978).
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