Vic Tayback
Acting
Born January 6, 1930, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Victor Tayback (January 6, 1930 – May 25, 1990) was an American actor. He is best known for his role as diner owner Mel Sharples in the comedy-drama film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) and the television sitcom Alice (1976–1985), for which he won two consecutive Golden Globes. Early life Tayback was born on January 6, 1930 in Brooklyn, New York, to Syrian Catholic immigrant parents Helen (née Hanood; Arabic: هيلين هنود تايباك) and Najeeb James Tayback (Arabic: نجيب جيمس طيبك) . Both of his parents had emigrated to the United States from Aleppo. He moved with his family to Burbank, California during his teenage years and attended Burbank High School, from which he graduated in 1948. He also attended Glendale Community College and the Frederick A. Speare School of Radio and TV Broadcasting. Career Tayback served in the United States Navy before beginning his acting career at the age of 25. A lifetime member of the Actors Studio, he was a familiar face on television in the 1960s and 1970s, appearing on numerous series, including The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Star Trek, Bonanza, Here Come the Brides, That Girl, Gunsmoke, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Partridge Family, All in the Family, Fantasy Island, Columbo, Bewitched and The Love Boat. He also appeared in many films such as Bullitt (1968), Papillon (1973), The Gambler (1974), The Cheap Detective (1978), and All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989), as well as more than 25 stage productions, including Twelve Angry Men, The Diary of Anne Frank, Death of a Salesman, and Brighton Beach Memoirs. He was the co-founder of the theatre troupe Company of Angels. He also appeared in television commercials, notably in 1968 with Richard Dreyfuss for the AMC Javelin. Tayback's most famous role was as diner owner Mel Sharples in both the film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) and the television series Alice (1976–1985). He was the only actor in the original film to reprise his role for the rest of the series. For the role, he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in 1978 and won two consecutive Golden Globe Awards in 1980 and 1981. In 1971, he made a guest appearance as Dirks in season 16, episode 19 of the long-running CBS Western series Gunsmoke. Personal life Tayback was married to Sheila Maureen Barnard (1932–2001) from March 16, 1963, until his death on May 25, 1990. They had one son. Death Tayback died of a heart attack at age 60 on May 25, 1990. Tayback was pronounced dead at 1:56 a.m. at Glendale Adventist Medical Center, where he was taken after his wife called paramedics. She said he had climbed out of bed, taken a few steps and collapsed. Tayback was a lifelong smoker and had a history of heart problems. He underwent a triple bypass in 1983. He is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills). CLR
Filmography
- 1990Horseplayer — George Samsa
- 1989All Dogs Go to Heaven — Carface (voice)
- 1989Beverly Hills Bodysnatchers — Lou
- 1989Criminal Act — The Exterminator (Greengrass)
- 1989Loverboy — Harry Bruckner
- 1988The Underachievers — Coach
- 1987The Three Kings — Harold
- 1986George Carlin: Playin' with Your Head — The Bad Guys
- 1986Treasure Island — Silver
- 1986Weekend Warriors — Sgt. Burdge
- MacGyver — George Henderson
- 1985Reel Horror — Smedke (archive footage)
- Crazy like a Fox — Mo Scmidt
- Finder of Lost Loves — Thomas Velasco
- Murder, She Wrote — Sal Domino
- Tales from the Darkside — Tippy Ryan, Alan Coombs
- 1984The Jesse Owens Story — Abe Saperstein
- Hotel — Wallace Egan
- Matt Houston
- 1982Mysterious Two — Ted Randall
- T. J. Hooker — Pete Benedict
- 1981Through the Magic Pyramid — Horembeb
- 1980Gridlock — Floyd 'Snake' Kraslowski
- 1980Rage! — Tommy
- 1980The Night the City Screamed — Morris Brustein
- 1980This Year's Blonde — Harry Cohn
- $weepstake$ — Sir Yarbrough
- 1979Portrait of a Stripper — Harry Parkins
- Supertrain — Frank Tuttle
- Time Express
- 1978Getting Married — Burt Carboni
- 1978The Case of the Baltimore Girls — Capt. Barney Marcus
- 1978The Cheap Detective — Lieutenant DiMaggio
- The Eddie Capra Mysteries
- Vega$
- CHiPs — Vic Tayback (uncredited)
- 1977Little Ladies of the Night — Finch
- 1977The Choirboys — Zoony
- The Love Boat — Harry Stewart, Harry Beluski
- Alice — Mel Sharples
- 1976Dark Victory — Archie
- 1976Mansion of the Doomed — Detective Simon
- 1976No Deposit, No Return — Big Joe Adamo
- 1976Special Delivery — Wyatt
- 1976The Big Bus — Goldie
- The Practice
- 1976The Shaggy D.A. — Eddie Roschak
- Barney Miller — Mr. Stavochek
- Bronk
- Khan! — Lt. Gubbins
- 1975Lepke — Charles 'Lucky' Luciano
- On the Rocks
- 1975Report to the Commissioner — Lt. Seidensticker
- Switch — Ralph Kabelka
- 1975The Black Bird — Warren Finley, Police Lieutenant
- 1974Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore — Mel
- 1974The Gambler — One
- 1974Thunderbolt and Lightfoot — Mario Pinski
- 1973Emperor of the North — Yardman
- Griff
- 1973Honor Thy Father — Don A. Tirello
- 1973Maxie — Smedke
- 1973Papillon — Sergeant
- 1973Partners in Crime
- Police Story
- 1973The Alpha Caper — Policeman
- 1973The Blue Knight — Neil Grogan
- The Blue Knight — Neil Grogan
- 1973The Don Is Dead — Ralph Negri
- 1972Death Follows a Psycho
- Emergency! — Driver
- The Rookies
- The Streets of San Francisco
- All in the Family — Joe Tucker
- 1971Blood and Lace — Calvin Carruthers
- Cannon
- Columbo — Sam Franklin
- 1971They Call It Murder — Jeff Poland
- McCloud
- The Mary Tyler Moore Show
- The Partridge Family — Ingram, Rocco, Harlan Laws
- The Silent Force — Capt. Al Grant
- Hawaii Five-O — Parmel, Martin Lynch
- Medical Center
- My World and Welcome to It
- The Bill Cosby Show — Calvin
- The Courtship of Eddie's Father — Bernie
- 1968Bullitt — Pete Ross
- Lancer — Durham
- Land of the Giants — Hood
- The Mod Squad
- The Outsider — Faber
- Captain Nice
- Cimarron Strip
- Ironside
- Mannix
- 1966Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round — Detective Merchant (uncredited)
- Family Affair
- Felony Squad
- 1966Gambit — Plainclothes Officer at TWA Counter (uncredited)
- Love on a Rooftop
- Mission: Impossible — Egan's Goon, Sgt. Gorte
- Occasional Wife
- Star Trek — Jojo Krako
- That Girl
- The Monkees — George, Rocco, Chuche
- F Troop
- Get Smart — Jamal, Popov
- I Dream of Jeannie — Turhan
- The F.B.I. — Ed Larch, Neil Parks
- Bewitched — Mayor's Chauffeur
- Daniel Boone — American Soldier, Hongas Hongas - Huron Indian Chief
- The Man from U.N.C.L.E. — Sergeant
- 1963Love with the Proper Stranger — Cye (uncredited)
- The Lieutenant — Cpl. Peter Garth
- 1962Five Weeks in a Balloon — European Agent (uncredited)
- 1962Surftide 77 — Arms Cooper
- 1961Five Minutes to Live — Fred Dorella
- 1959Gangster Story — Norm (uncredited)
- Rawhide — Monte
- 1959T-Bird Gang — Policeman
- 1958The Power of the Resurrection — Simon the Canaanite
- Alfred Hitchcock Presents — Man Talking to Cab Driver
- Gunsmoke — Gaines, Rawlins, Dirks, Bill Hankins
Appearances as themselves (1)
- The Mike Douglas Show — Self