AP
LOS ANGELES (Nov. 10) - Jack Palance, the craggy-faced menace in "Shane," "Sudden Fear" and other films who turned to comedy at 70 with his Oscar-winning self-parody in "City Slickers," died Friday.
Palance died of natural causes at his home in Montecito, Calif., surrounded by family, said spokesman Dick Guttman. He was 85, according to Associated Press records, but his family gave his age as 87.
When Palance accepted his Oscar for best supporting actor he delighted viewers of the 1992 Academy Awards by dropping to the stage and performing one-armed push-ups to demonstrate his physical prowess.
"That's nothing, really," he said slyly. "As far as two-handed push-ups, you can do that all night, and it doesn't make a difference whether she's there or not."
Did You Know?
Palance was born Volodymyr Palanyuk on Feb. 18, 1919, in Hazle Township, PA.
Movie audiences, though, were electrified by the actor's chiseled face, hulking presence and the calm, low voice that made his screen presence all the more intimidating.
His film debut came in 1950, playing a murderer named Blackie in "Panic in the Streets."
After a war picture, "Halls of Montezuma," he portrayed the ardent lover who stalks the terrified Joan Crawford in 1952's "Sudden Fear." The role earned him his first Academy Award nomination for supporting actor.
The following year brought his second nomination when he portrayed Jack Wilson, the swaggering gunslinger who bullies peace-loving Alan Ladd into a barroom duel in the Western classic "Shane."
That role cemented Palance's reputation as Hollywood's favorite menace, and he went on to appear in such films as "Arrowhead" (as a renegade Apache), "Man in the Attic" (as Jack the Ripper), "Sign of the Pagan" (as Attila the Hun) and "The Silver Chalice" (as a fictional challenger to Jesus).
Other prominent films included "Kiss of Fire," "The Big Knife," "I Died a Thousand Deaths," "Attack!" "The Lonely Man" and "House of Numbers."
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2006-11-10 17:18:13
Birth name
Vladimir Palaniuk
Height
6' 3"
Mini biography
Few people know that veteran movie actor Jack Palance was a professional heavyweight boxer in the early 1940s. Fighting under the name Jack Brazzo, Palance a product of Lattimer Mines, Pennsylvania, won his first 15 fights, 12 by knockout before losing a 4th round decision to future heavyweight contender Joe Baksi on Dec. 17, 1940. With the outbreak of World War II, Jack Palance's boxing career ended and his military career began. Wounded in combat, he received the purple heart, good conduct medal, and the World War II Victory Medal. After the war he began his long and famous motion picture career.
According to a website honoring movie celebrities that flew in B-24s, Palance burned his face severely while bailing out of a B-24 which was on fire during a training flight in Tucson in 1942 (that would probably have been the Davis-Monthan Army Air Corps base at that time) and after several surgeries was discharged in 1944. He is described as a "pilot in training".
He replaced Marlon Brando as Stanley Kowalski in the Broadway production of "A Streetcar Named Desire".
Speaks six languages: Ukrainian, Russian, Italian, Spanish, French and English.
Once fell asleep in his square during a taping of "The Hollywood Squares" (1966).
His star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is in front of the display window of Fredericks of Hollywood, a seller of intimate apparel.
Inducted into the Hall of Great Western Performers of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in 1992.
Graduate of Stanford University in 1949 with an AB in Drama.
During the early phases of pre-production for The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), 20th Century-Fox studio chief Darryl F. Zanuck suggested Palance for the role of the robot Gort. The role was eventually filled by a much taller non-actor.
During his struggling days, he worked as a short order cook, waiter, soda jerk, lifeguard at Jones Beach, and a photographer's model.
While an understudy to Marlon Brando in the Broadway production of "A Streetcar Named Desire," Brando, who was into athletics, rigged up a punching bag in the theater's boiler room and invited Jack to work out with him. One night, Jack threw a hard punch that missed the bag and landed square on Brando's nose. The star had to be hospitalized and understudy Palance created his own big break by going on for Brando. Jack's reviews as Stanley Kowalski helped get him a 20th Century-Fox contract.
Son of a coal miner.
Was forced to decline the role of Gen. Chang in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991) due to scheduling conflicts over his work on City Slickers (1991). He went on to win the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for "City Slickers". Christopher Plummer was eventually cast as Chang.
Was infamous in Hollywood for his Method-style acting, in a time when Marlon Brando was one of its few practitioners. Once, while filming a fight scene with Burt Lancaster, Palance actually punched the unsuspecting Lancaster in the face. Tough guy Lancaster responded by socking Palance in the gut, causing him to vomit.
Despite all of his film work, Palance will forever be remembered for turning an Oscar acceptance speech into an uproarious display of his physical agility. While accepting his Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for City Slickers (1991) at the 64th Annual Academy Awards (1992) he stumbled through a half-hearted acceptance speech and then, at a loss for anything else to say, flopped down on the floor and began doing a series of one-handed push-ups. Afterwards when he was asked about the stunt he simply said, "I didn't know what the hell else to do". A year later when he provided the voice of Rothbart in the The Swan Princess (1994), his character is featured doing one-handed push-ups.
Is an avid painter and poet
Personal quotes
"The only two things you can truly depend upon are gravity and greed."
"I'm amazed people read this crap about us - about me most of all."
"One of the most important reasons for living is to do something - live outside of yourself and put together an idea, an idea that you want to explore and then complete... Awaken your creative sensitivities!"
No, I don't think Jack was in Liberty Valance. He would have had to beat out another one of Hollywood's best heavies, as well as the guy who played his best friend and the lead in Monte Walsh. The man who played Liberty Valance is Lee Marvin. He and Jack would have had a tough time outdoing one another had they put them side by side as bad guys.
He was always one of the best bad guys. Yeah Mule he was
in Liberty Valance.
I remember him doing his one-armed pushups at the Academy Awards. I never watch award shows, but for some
reason I caught this one. He was so funny and I thought
he was great with Billy Crystal in City SLickers.