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IMDbPro

Robert Stack(1919-2003)

  • Actor
  • Producer
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Robert Stack
Butt-Ugly Martians: Best Of The Bad Guys
Play trailer0:49
Butt-Ugly Martians (2001)
25 Videos
99+ Photos
"Straight Shooting" -- whether skeet shooting, or portraying Eliot Ness -- Robert Stack always told it like it was, and shot straight. Born in Los Angeles, California, the younger son of James Langford Stack (1860-1928), the owner of an advertising agency, and Mary Elizabeth Modini Wood (1891-1975), he was originally named Charles Langford Modini Stack at birth by his mother but his father soon changed the name to Robert Langford Stack. (The name Robert reportedly referred to no one in particular.) His elder brother and only sibling was James Langford Stack (1916-2006).

His parents had divorced when he was one-year-old, and his mother took him to Europe when he was three. He did not learn to speak English until he was six years old. His brother, James Langford Stack Jr., stayed in the United States with their father. Young Robert spoke fluent Italian and French, but had to learn English when they returned to Los Angeles. His mother and father remarried in 1928. Robert took drama courses at USC. He was not interested in team sports, so he took up skeet shooting. In 1935, he came in second in the National Skeet Shooting Championship (held in Cleveland) and, in 1936, his 5-man team broke the standing record at the National Skeet Championships (held in St. Louis).

Stack arrived at Universal City Studios in 1939, when the movie studio (once riding high on the successes of movies such as Dracula (1931) and Frankenstein (1931)) was in financial trouble, and looking for a superstar. That superstar was Deanna Durbin (acquired from MGM), and Stack made his screen debut as her lover in First Love (1939). At first, he did not want to listen to the makeup man who had told him, "no blond has ever made it as a leading man", and insisted on dyeing his hair black and uncurling it. That makeup man was genius and Oscar winner, Jack P. Pierce (who had done all the monsters for Universal), and Stack became a matinee idol, overnight. After two more movies, he was teamed with Durbin again, in Nice Girl? (1941). he was now a bona-fide star, but Universal was still only paying him $150 a week. For the next 10 years, Stack did Westerns, war movies and romantic comedies.

Stack had fond memories for Bullfighter and the Lady (1951), a movie produced by his friend, John Wayne, which meant 12 weeks filming in sunny Mexico. The movie had a great script; unfortunately, two bullfighters were gored while filming. There were several weeks of delays, they could not get a crew or a sound stage, until they realized that, in Mexico, it is necessary to bribe the local union; some money was passed and filming started, immediately. There were wild times, and lots of tequila. Robert became a local legend; when some Mexicans asked him what he did in the War, Robert said: "I taught machine gun." The rumor spread: "Roberto teaches chingas!" (that's Spanish for "hookers"). In 1952, he made movie history (much like Al Jolson had done in 1927, being in the first "talkie") -- he starred in Bwana Devil (1952), the first 3-D movie. This gave startling effects to the story, which was based on real-life lion attacks in Africa.

Stack attended the premiere, and recalled people's reactions to the 3-D lion scenes: "People in the audience jumped out of their seats, some even fainted." The movie broke box office records, and immediately started the demand to film more movies in 3-D (such as House of Wax (1953)). Around 1955, Robert (Hollywood's most eligible bachelor) was introduced to Rosemarie Bowe, by mutual agent Bill Shiffrin. Rosemarie had been under contract to MGM and Columbia, making such movies as Million Dollar Mermaid (1952) and The Golden Mistress (1954). The couple wed two years later and had two children: Elizabeth Stack and Charles Stack. The former perennial bachelor found out he liked being married and being a father. His onscreen fame had grown and, for Written on the Wind (1956), he received an Academy Award nomination. Unfortunately, this did not sit well with 20th-Century Fox, which had him under contract, and had lent him to Universal for this picture. His contract with Fox came to an end. Stack made the transition to the new medium that was sweeping the country: television. He delivered breakout performances in his signature role as T-man (Treasury agent) Eliot Ness on The Untouchables (1959) which, after the pilot, ran for four seasons (118 episodes). And there was also the television movie, The Scarface Mob (1959).

There were some funny behind-the-scenes anecdotes, such as this one: there is no scene which stood out more as the most potentially evil, and risky in terms of audience acceptance, as the "bacio di morte" ("kiss of death"), the Sicilian gesture whenever a Capo (Neville Brand) kissed a Mafia soldier (Frank DeKova) to send him out as an executioner. The two actors were nervous enough about this scene (two guys had never kissed on television before), but then some crewman decided to be a prankster and told each star, in private, just before filming, "look out -- your co-star likes kissing guys" (a complete deception, of course). There were some unfortunate anecdotes: Joseph Wiseman was a fine actor, but trained to work on the New York stage with props; he was not accustomed to real Hollywood sets. In a 1960 episode of "The Untouchables", Stack was supposed to take an axe and smash up a brewery. He hit a real pipe, the axe ricocheted off the metal, and cut through his Achilles tendon. "I never felt so sorry for anyone in my life", Stack commented. They wrote a role for Wiseman as a crippled, renegade chemist a few weeks later in "The Antidote", which Stack noted, "was one of our half-dozen top shows". Stack went on to do television series, such as The Name of the Game (1968) alternating lead with Gene Barry and Anthony Franciosa, then later Most Wanted (1976), and he pleasantly surprised everyone with his flair for comedies in movies like 1941 (1979) and Airplane! (1980).

Stack hosted Unsolved Mysteries (1987) and did more zany humor in Caddyshack II (1988), Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996) and BASEketball (1998). He also provided the voice of the character Ultra Magnus in The Transformers: The Movie (1986). He portrayed the no-nonsense G-man Ness again in The Return of Eliot Ness (1991). Stack was being treated for prostate cancer when he died at age 84 on May 14, 2003 at his home in Bel Air, Los Angeles, after suffering a heart attack.
BornJanuary 13, 1919
DiedMay 14, 2003(84)
BornJanuary 13, 1919
DiedMay 14, 2003(84)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Nominated for 1 Oscar
    • 5 wins & 4 nominations total

Photos149

Robert Stack in LAPD Celebrity Golf Tournament (1990)
Bibi Andersson and Robert Stack in Story of a Woman (1970)
Robert Stack in The Iron Glove (1954)
Dorothy Malone and Robert Stack in The Tarnished Angels (1957)
Rock Hudson and Robert Stack in The Tarnished Angels (1957)
Robert Stack in The Tarnished Angels (1957)
Dorothy Malone and Robert Stack in The Tarnished Angels (1957)
Jack Carson and Robert Stack in The Tarnished Angels (1957)
Robert Stack in The Tarnished Angels (1957)
Robert Stack in The Tarnished Angels (1957)
Robert Stack in The Tarnished Angels (1957)
Jack Carson, Dorothy Malone, and Robert Stack in The Tarnished Angels (1957)

Known for

Jack Benny and Carole Lombard in To Be or Not to Be (1942)
To Be or Not to Be
8.2
  • Lieutenant Stanislav Sobinski
  • 1942
Airplane! (1980)
Airplane!
7.7
  • Captain Rex Kramer
  • 1980
Written on the Wind (1956)
Written on the Wind
7.4
  • Kyle Hadley
  • 1956
1941 (1979)
1941
5.8
  • Maj. Gen. Joseph W. Stilwell
  • 1979

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actor

  • Teamo Supremo (2002)
    Teamo Supremo
    • Gordon
    • The Silver Shield (voice)
    • TV Series
    • 2002
  • Kathy Najimy, Breckin Meyer, Brittany Murphy, Ashley Gardner, Beth Grant, Johnny Hardwick, Toby Huss, Jonathan Joss, Mike Judge, Stephen Root, Pamela Adlon, and Lauren Tom in King of the Hill (1997)
    King of the Hill
    • Reynolds Penland (voice, uncredited)
    • TV Series
    • 2001
  • Killer Bud (2001)
    Killer Bud
    • The Gooch
    • 2001
  • Butt-Ugly Martians (2001)
    Butt-Ugly Martians
    • Stoat Muldoon (voice)
    • TV Series
    • 2001
  • Rickey D'Shon Collins, Jason Davis, Ashley Johnson, Andrew Lawrence, Courtland Mead, and Pamela Adlon in Recess: School's Out (2001)
    Recess: School's Out
    • Superintendent (voice)
    • 2001
  • H.U.D. (2000)
    H.U.D.
    • Deep Throat Man
    • TV Movie
    • 2000
  • Nick Bakay and Richard Steven Horvitz in The Angry Beavers (1997)
    The Angry Beavers
    • Narrator (voice)
    • TV Series
    • 2000
  • Sealed with a Kiss (1999)
    Sealed with a Kiss
    • Sumner Ethridge
    • TV Movie
    • 1999
  • Rickey D'Shon Collins, Jason Davis, Ashley Johnson, Andrew Lawrence, Courtland Mead, and Pamela Adlon in Recess (1997)
    Recess
    • General (voice)
    • TV Series
    • 1999
  • Ted Danson, David Paymer, Martin Short, Elisabeth Moss, Alfre Woodard, Hope Davis, Zooey Deschanel, and Pruitt Taylor Vince in Mumford (1999)
    Mumford
    • Robert Stack
    • 1999
  • Hercules: Zero to Hero (1999)
    Hercules: Zero to Hero
    • Narrator (voice)
    • Video
    • 1999
  • Hercules (1998)
    Hercules
    • Bob the Narrator
    • Bob
    • Bobby the Narrator (voice)
    • TV Series
    • 1998–1999
  • Matt Stone and Trey Parker in BASEketball (1998)
    BASEketball
    • Robert Stack - Unsolved Mysteries Host
    • 1998
  • Dick Van Dyke and Barry Van Dyke in Diagnosis Murder (1993)
    Diagnosis Murder
    • Peter McReynolds
    • TV Series
    • 1997
  • Brooke Shields, Judd Nelson, Eric Idle, Nestor Carbonell, Kathy Griffin, Barbara Barrie, Currie Graham, and Sherri Shepherd in Suddenly Susan (1996)
    Suddenly Susan
    • Robert Stack
    • TV Series
    • 1997

Producer

  • Gangsta King: Raymond Lee Washington (2003)
    Gangsta King: Raymond Lee Washington
    • executive producer
    • Video
    • 2003
  • Lords of the Mafia (2000)
    Lords of the Mafia
    • executive producer
    • TV Movie
    • 2000

Soundtrack

  • Hercules (1998)
    Hercules
    • performer: "Pericles of Athens" (uncredited)
    • TV Series
    • 1998
  • That's Entertainment! (1974)
    That's Entertainment!
    • performer: "It's A Most Unusual Day" (1948) (uncredited)
    • 1974
  • A Date with Judy (1948)
    A Date with Judy
    • performer: "It's A Most Unusual Day (Finale)"
    • 1948

Videos25

Transformers: The Movie: 30th Anniversary Edition
Clip 1:23
Transformers: The Movie: 30th Anniversary Edition
Transformers: The Movie: 30th Anniversary Edition
Clip 2:02
Transformers: The Movie: 30th Anniversary Edition
Trailer
Trailer 3:37
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 2:38
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:50
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:06
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:31
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:16
Official Trailer
H&I Promo Trailer
Trailer 0:31
H&I Promo Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:46
Official Trailer
Bande-annonce [OV]
Trailer 3:41
Bande-annonce [OV]
Unsolved Mysteries: Home Video
Trailer 1:14
Unsolved Mysteries: Home Video

Personal details

Edit
  • Height
    • 6′ (1.83 m)
  • Born
    • January 13, 1919
    • Los Angeles, California, USA
  • Died
    • May 14, 2003
    • Bel Air, Los Angeles, California, USA(heart attack (while being treated for prostate cancer))
  • Spouse
    • Rosemarie StackJanuary 23, 1956 - May 14, 2003 (his death, 2 children)
  • Children
      Elizabeth Stack
  • Parents
      James Langford Stack
  • Relatives
    • Taran Killam(Niece or Nephew)
  • Other works
    TV commercial: WebTV
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Biographical Movie
    • 1 Print Biography
    • 5 Articles
    • 1 Magazine Cover Photo

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    As a child, his mother introduced him to movie stars like Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy so they could act as surrogate father figures to him. They often took him hunting and fishing.
  • Quotes
    If you're a star, you go through the front door carrying the roses, instead of through the back door carrying the garbage.
  • Trademarks
      Trench coat (as seen on Unsolved Mysteries)
  • Nickname
    • Bob

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