Lee J. Cobb Overview:

Legendary actor, Lee J. Cobb, was born Leo Jacoby on Dec 8, 1911 in New York City, NY. Cobb died at the age of 64 on Feb 11, 1976 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles and was laid to rest in Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, CA.

MINI BIO:

Thick-set, mean-looking American actor in tough, growly roles, mostly as bosses, gangsters, and men who rode roughshod over the law. Always looked older than his years and so enjoyed a fine run of middle-aged aggressors, topped by his union racketeer in On the Waterfront. His thick, crinkly hair hid the reality of a bald head. Died of a heart attack. Oscar-nominated for On the Waterfront and The Brothers Karamazov.

(Source: available at Amazon Quinlan's Film Stars).

HONORS and AWARDS:

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Although Cobb was nominated for two Oscars, he never won a competitive Academy Award.

Academy Awards

YearAwardFilm nameRoleResult
1954Best Supporting ActorOn the Waterfront (1954)Johnny FriendlyNominated
1958Best Supporting ActorThe Brothers Karamazov (1958)Fyodor KaramazovNominated
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Lee J. Cobb Quotes:

Harry Smith: I sure thought you were a goner.
Col. Feroud: Buying my freedom was your idea, I suppose.
Harry Smith: Yes, it was.
Col. Feroud: Why did you do it? I should think you'd want to see me out of the way.
Harry Smith: I made a little money on the deal.
Col. Feroud: I see.
Harry Smith: I saved your life and you seem to resent it.
Col. Feroud: I do.
Harry Smith: Maybe you should have had me shot after all.
Col. Feroud: I agree.


Dr. Andrew Collins: Perhaps the memory that causes your dream has something to do with your family, your mother maybe.
Al Walker: We've been all through that, haven't we? We finished with her!
Dr. Andrew Collins: No, you're not! You'll never be!
Al Walker: But she's dead. She meant nothing to me when she was alive!
Dr. Andrew Collins: She's the only woman you ever really loved. Allthe other women in your life are substitutes for her!


Dock Tobin: There'a more money in that Lassoo bank than any one of you could think.


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Lee J. Cobb Facts
William Link and Richard Levinson, creators of TV's "Columbo", initially wanted Cobb to portray Lt. Columbo, but he was unavailable.

Was a good friend with screenwriter Alvah Bessie, a Communist Party member who was one of the Hollywood 10, until Cobb refused to lend him $500 in the late 1940s. Bessie had been ruined financially by legal fees connected to his appeals of his contempt citation issued by the House Un-American Activities Commission (HUAC). Bessie and other members of the Hollywood 10 braved the Committee's inquisition into communists and fellow-travelers in the film industry by refusing to cooperate. When Cobb told him that $500 wouldn't solve his problems, their friendship was over. Cobb later turned out with hundreds of sympathizers of the Hollywood 10 to show their support for the members who were flying to Washington, D.C. for their trials on charges of contempt of Congress levied by HUAC. Later, Cobb would be a friendly witness before HUAC, naming names of fellow former communists and leftists from his Group Theater days in New York in the 1930s.

Arthur Miller offered him the lead role of Eddie Carbone in his Broadway play "A View from the Bridge." While an outsider might think that the politically progressive Miller would be hostile to the actor due to Cobb's friendly testimony before the infamous House Un-American Activities Committee, during which he "named names," Miller thought Cobb would be ideal for the role. Himself a target of the witch hunt for alleged Communists undertaken by the government, Miller believed that Cobb would bring real intensity to Carbone, who informs on his relatives to the immigration service, as he himself had been an informer. Cobb turned down the role, as he believed that to accept it would open him up to retaliation from the reactionary right and jeopardize his career.

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