Mike Mazurki

Mike Mazurki, born Markiian Yulianovych Mazurkevych on December 25, 1907, in the village of Kupchyntsi in the Galicia region of Austria-Hungary, was a Ukrainian-American actor and professional wrestler who appeared in more than 142 films before his death on December 9, 1990. Standing 6 feet 5 inches tall, with a craggy face and a croaking voice, he was frequently cast as thugs, gangsters, and brainless athletes throughout his career.

Mazurki attended the LaSalle Institute in Troy, New York, and upon graduating changed his given name to Mike. He went on to play football and basketball at Manhattan College, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1930. He subsequently graduated from Fordham Law School and practiced as an attorney, though he later abandoned the profession for professional wrestling, citing earnings roughly ten times greater than what law had provided. He also competed professionally in football and basketball during this period.

His transition into acting came after he served as a bodyguard for Mae West. Director Josef von Sternberg discovered him and cast him in a small role in The Shanghai Gesture in 1941, launching a long career in film and television. Among his most recognized screen performances was the role of Moose Malloy, a slow-witted but dangerously fixated thug, in the 1944 film noir Murder, My Sweet, adapted from Raymond Chandler's novel Farewell, My Lovely. The following year he portrayed the knife-wielding killer Splitface in Dick Tracy, a role he revisited in a cameo in the 1990 Warren Beatty remake of the same property. Additional notable film credits included Yusuf in Sinbad the Sailor in 1947, a knuckle-cracking henchman in Abandoned in 1949, and the bone-crushing wrestler known as The Strangler in Night and the City in 1950. He appeared in Some Like It Hot in 1959, playing a henchman in the manner of a George Raft character in the Billy Wilder comedy. Following the death of Victor McLaglen, Mazurki appeared in several productions directed by John Ford. His only starring film role came in 1972, when he played Trapper in Challenge to Be Free. His final screen credit was the role of Don Taglianeti in the low-budget comedy Mob Boss, released two months before his death.

Mazurki continued wrestling throughout his acting career, and a wrestling injury to his Adam's apple was reported as the cause of his characteristic slurred speech. In 1984 he appeared in Rod Stewart's music video for Infatuation, playing a bodyguard opposite Kay Lenz, a role Mazurki later said brought him more recognition than any of his feature films or television work.

His television appearances spanned decades and included guest roles on My Friend Flicka, The Untouchables, Bachelor Father, Daniel Boone, Gilligan's Island, The Munsters, I Dream of Jeannie, Bonanza, and Gunsmoke, among others. In 1963 he played Arthur Jacks in the Perry Mason episode The Case of the Deadly Verdict, and in 1964 he appeared as yacht hand Cully Barstow in The Case of the Missing Button, another Perry Mason installment. From 1966 to 1967 he played the caveman Clon in the television series It's About Time, and he was a regular cast member on the short-lived sitcom The Chicago Teddy Bears.

In addition to his screen work, Mazurki appeared on Broadway in 1950 in Guys and Dolls. He was also the founder and first president of the Cauliflower Alley Club.