Telly Savalas

Telly Savalas
Savalas in 1973
Born
Aristotelis Savalas

(1922-01-21)January 21, 1922
Garden City, New York, U.S.
DiedJanuary 22, 1994(1994-01-22) (aged 72)
Universal City, California, U.S.
Resting placeForest Lawn Memorial Park, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)Actor, singer
Years active1950–1994
Spouses
Katherine Nicolaides
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(m. 1948; div. 1957)​
Marilyn Gardner
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​
(m. 1960; div. 1974)​
Julie Hovland
​
​
(m. 1984)​
Children6, including Ariana Savalas
Military career
Service / branchUnited States Army
Further information
Years of service1941–1943
Rank Corporal
Unit 4th Medical Training Regiment
Battles / warsWorld War II
Awards Purple Heart
American Defense Service Medal
American Campaign Medal
European–African–Middle Eastern Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
Websitetellysavalas.com

Aristotelis "Telly" Savalas (January 21, 1922 – January 22, 1994) was a Greek-American actor. Noted for his bald head and deep, resonant voice,[1][2][3][4] he is perhaps best known for portraying Lt. Theo Kojak on the crime drama series Kojak (1973–1978) and James Bond archvillain Ernst Stavro Blofeld, in the film On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969).

Savalas' other films include: Birdman of Alcatraz (1962), The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), Battle of the Bulge (1965), The Dirty Dozen (1967), Kelly's Heroes (1970), Horror Express (1972), Lisa and the Devil (1974), and Escape to Athena (1979). For Birdman of Alcatraz, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor.

As a singer, Savalas released a cover of the Bread song "If", which became a UK number-one single in 1975.[5]

  1. ^ Pompilio, Natalie (October 8, 2015). "Telly Savalas, Who Loves Ya, Baby?". Legacy.com. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  2. ^ "An Evening with Telly Savalas". Cosmos Philly. August 20, 2017. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  3. ^ "On this day in 1994, Telly Savalas passes away". Greek City Times. January 21, 2019. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  4. ^ "Kojak: Telly Savalas". woodmereartmuseum.org. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  5. ^ Garrett, Jamie (March 9, 2015). "What the What? Telly Savalas Had a #1 Hit Song on This Date in 1975". K1017FM.com. Retrieved April 15, 2019.