Simon Oakland
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- Aug 28, 1915
- Died
- Aug 29, 1983 (aged 68)
- Place of birth
- New York City, New York, USA
- Credits
- 116
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Simon Oakland (August 28, 1915 – August 29, 1983) was an American actor of stage, screen, and television.
During his career, Oakland performed primarily on television, appearing in over 130 series and made-for-television movies between 1951 and 1983. His most notable big-screen roles were in Psycho (1960), West Side Story (1961), The Sand Pebbles (1966), Bullitt (1968), The Hunting Party (1971), and Chato's Land (1972). On television, he was a regular on the cult classic horror series Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974-1975), and the military drama Baa Baa Black Sheep (1976-1978).
Early life and career
Oakland was born in Brooklyn, New York, the eldest of the three sons of immigrant Jewish parents, Jacob Weiss and Ethel Oaklander, born in Romania and the Russian Empire respectively. His father was a plasterer and builder. While he later claimed in media interviews to have been born in 1922 (a date repeated in his New York Times obituary), Social Security and vital records indicate he was born Simon Weiss in 1915; his stage name was derived from his mother's maiden name, Oaklander.
Film and television
In 1955, Oakland made his film debut, albeit uncredited, as an Indiana state trooper in The Desperate Hours. He appeared in two films released in 1958: as Mavrayek in The Brothers Karamazov and as journalist Edward Montgomery in I Want to Live!
Oakland's notable performance in I Want to Live! led to his playing a long series of tough-guys, either as authority figures or villains or a mix of both. He appeared in Psycho as the psychiatrist who, at the end of the film, explains Norman Bates's multiple personality disorder. He appeared in the films West Side Story, The Sand Pebbles, and Bullitt.
He made two guest appearances as murder victims on CBS's Perry Mason. He appeared in the syndicated crime drama, Decoy, starring Beverly Garland. Oakland appeared once on the CBS Western Dundee and the Culhane and once on the series Sheriff of Cochise. He was also a regular, in a comedic supporting role, as General Thomas Moore, on NBC's Baa Baa Black Sheep, starring Robert Conrad. He appeared in two episodes of the original The Twilight Zone TV series (“The Rip Van Winkle Caper” and “The Thirty-Fathom Grave”) and in The Outer Limits as the alien birdman in "Second Chance". In 1974 and 1975, he was a series regular on Kolchak: The Night Stalker, playing newspaper editor Tony Vincenzo. (He had previously played the same character in two made-for-television movies.
Personal life
Oakland was married to Lois Lorraine Porta. The couple had one daughter, Barbara.
Death
Oakland continued working up to the year of his death. His last credited acting appearance was in the episode "Living and Presumed Dead" on the CBS television series Tucker's Witch. That episode aired three months before Oakland's death from colon cancer in Cathedral City, California, on August 29, 1983, the day after his 68th birthday. CLR
Known for
Psycho
1960Movie
Fred Richman
West Side Story
1961Movie
Schrank
Bullitt
1968Movie
Captain Sam Bennett
The Twilight Zone
1959TV
De Cruz, Captain Beecham
Bonanza
1959TV
Frank Scott / Mel Barnes, William Poole, Judge Seth Tabor
Get Smart
1965TV
Cowboy
Filmography
Tucker's Witch
1982TV
David Cassidy: Man Under Cover
1978TV
Sgt. Abrams
Vega$
1978TV
Evening in Byzantium
1978TV
Walter Klein
Lou Grant
1977TV
Young Joe, the Forgotten Kennedy
1977Movie
Delaney
CHiPs
1977TV
Bruno
The Hardy Boys / Nancy Drew Mysteries
1977TV
Quincy, M.E.
1976TV
Senator Reeves
Charlie's Angels
1976TV
Sgt. Cates
The Flying Misfits
1976Movie
Brig. Gen. Thomas Moore
Baa Baa Black Sheep
1976TV
Thomas Moore
Crackle of Death
1976Movie
Tony Vincenzo
Demon and the Mummy
1976Movie
Tony Vincenzo
Ellery Queen
1975TV
Switch
1975TV
Sam
Please Call It Murder
1975Movie
Mickey Costigan
Kolchak: The Night Stalker
1974TV
Tony Vincenzo
The Rockford Files
1974TV
Vern St. Cloud, Beppy Conigliaro
Key West
1973Movie
Gen. Tom Luker
Kojak
1973TV
Tom Donnelly
Toma
1973TV
Inspector Spooner
The Starlost
1973TV
Dr. Asgard
Happy Mother's Day, Love George
1973Movie
Sheriff Roy
Emperor of the North
1973Movie
Policeman
Toma
1973Movie
Lieutenant Spooner
Police Story
1973TV
The Night Strangler
1973Movie
Tony Vincenzo
Chato's Land
1972Movie
Jubal Hooker
The Night Stalker
1972Movie
Tony Vincenzo
Crosscurrent
1971Movie
Capt. E. J. Goodlad
Young Dr. Kildare
1971TV
Attorney
The Hunting Party
1971Movie
Matthew Gunn
Scandalous John
1971Movie
Barton Whittaker
The Young Lawyers
1970TV
On a Clear Day You Can See Forever
1970Movie
Dr. Conrad Fuller
Medical Center
1969TV
Hawaii Five-O
1969TV
Benny Kalua, Shako, Frank Epstein, Marty Mauritany, Mendoza
Bullitt
1968Movie
Captain Sam Bennett
The Mod Squad
1968TV
The Name of the Game
1968TV
Luis Fierro
The Outsider
1968TV
Chubasco
1968Movie
Laurindo
Alexander The Great
1968Movie
Attalos
Tony Rome
1967Movie
Rudy Kosterman
Judd, for the Defense
1967TV
Cimarron Strip
1967TV
Good Morning World
1967TV
Harry Lewis
Ironside
1967TV
Ted Berringer, Sr., Elton Ferris
Captain Nice
1967TV
The Sand Pebbles
1966Movie
Stawski
Mission: Impossible
1966TV
Jack Wellman
Felony Squad
1966TV
Tarzan
1966TV
The Plainsman
1966Movie
Chief Black Kettle
The F.B.I.
1965TV
Nikos Kapralos
Get Smart
1965TV
Cowboy
The Wild Wild West
1965TV
Diamond Dave Desmond
The Big Valley
1965TV
Adam Howard
The Satan Bug
1965Movie
Tasserly
Profiles in Courage
1964TV
Captain Bogart, Perry Fuller
Ready for the People
1964Movie
Murray Brock
Daniel Boone
1964TV
Dull Knife, General James Wilkerson, Bickford
The Rogues
1964TV
Absalom MacBride
The Raiders
1963Movie
Sgt. Austin Tremaine
Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre
1963TV
Frederic Sterne
My Favorite Martian
1963TV
Lt. Murphy
Mr. Novak
1963TV
Carl Green
The Bill Dana Show
1963TV
The Outer Limits
1963TV
Empyrian
Wall of Noise
1963Movie
Johnny Papadakis
Combat!
1962TV
Sgt. Tom Akers, Pvt. Clawson
Stoney Burke
1962TV
The Virginian
1962TV
Bob Coulter, Charles Sanders
Saints and Sinners
1962TV
Alberto Bianco
Hemingway’s Adventures of a Young Man
1962Movie
Joe Boulton
Third of a Man
1962Movie
Doon
Follow That Dream
1962Movie
Nick
West Side Story
1961Movie
Schrank
The New Breed
1961TV
Felix Pascal
Ben Casey
1961TV
Bus Stop
1961TV
Cain's Hundred
1961TV
Walter Hayes
The Defenders
1961TV
District Attorney Gardella, District Attorney, Assistant District Attorney Murphy
Special for Women
1960TV
The Father
Route 66
1960TV
Outlaws
1960TV
Murder, Inc.
1960Movie
William Tobin
Psycho
1960Movie
Fred Richman
Who Was That Lady?
1960Movie
Belka
The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond
1960Movie
Lt. Moody
The Detectives
1959TV
The Untouchables
1959TV
Russ Bogan
Adventures in Paradise
1959TV
Martin Quirk, John Briggs, McGraw, Red Mulligan
The Alaskans
1959TV
The Twilight Zone
1959TV
De Cruz, Captain Beecham
Men Into Space
1959TV
Deadline
1959TV
Lyons
Bonanza
1959TV
Frank Scott / Mel Barnes, William Poole, Judge Seth Tabor
Tightrope
1959TV
Black Saddle
1959TV
Grat Mowery
Rawhide
1959TV
Bolivar Jagger, Sheriff Blaine
I Want to Live!
1958Movie
Edward S. 'Ed' Montgomery
77 Sunset Strip
1958TV
Naked City
1958TV
Duke
Bronco
1958TV
The Brothers Karamazov
1958Movie
Mavrayek
Decoy
1957TV
Lieutenant, Sgt. Steve Necclo
Perry Mason
1957TV
Howard Walters, Capt. Mike Caldwell
Have Gun, Will Travel
1957TV
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
1956TV
Corporal Townsend, Jesse Harp
The Desperate Hours
1955Movie
State Trooper (uncredited)
Gunsmoke
1955TV
Enoch Mills, Jim Nation, Miguel, Carl Mandee
General Electric Theater
1953TV
Director
Red Light
1949Movie
Hotel Desk Clerk (uncredited)
Suspense
1949TV