Entertainment
‘Scarface’ Actor Passes Away At 87
Harris Yulin, the actor behind some of the supporting roles in blockbuster movies like “Scarface” and “Ghostbusters,” has died at 87.
The stage and studio actor died of a heart attack on Tuesday in New York City, his family and manager Sue Leibman confirmed.
“Yulin was part of the vanguard of a generation who cared passionately about the craft of acting,” a statement read. “This deep, lifelong dedication led to extraordinary, resonant performances that were a gift to audiences, the actors he worked with, and the art of acting itself.”
Born Nov. 5, 1937, in Los Angeles, Yulin debuted in New York’s 1963 play “Next Time I’ll Sing to You” and later jumped to Broadway with a part in the 1980 revival of “Watch on the Rhine.”
Other stage performances by Yulin included parts in “The Price,” “The Visit,” “The Diary of Anne Frank,” “Hedda Gabler,” and more.
Later in his career, Yulin served as director for projects of his own, including performances of “The Glass Menagerie,” “The Trip to Bountiful,” and ” The Man Who Came to Dinner.”
It wasn’t until 1970 that Yulin came to Hollywood, taking a part in the 1970 black comedy “End of the Road” starring James Earl Jones and Stacy Keach.
Over the years, he took additional roles in “Scarface” (1983), “Ghostbusters II” (1989), “Clear and Present Danger” (1994), “Bean” (1997), “Rush Hour 2” (2001), “Training Day” (2001), “The Place Beyond the Pines” (2012) and more, the NY Post reports.
He was nominated for an Emmy Award for his role in the 1996 season of “Frasier.”
He joined a number of television and streaming service projects during the final decades of his career, including holding story arcs in the hit shows “Ozark,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “24,” “Veep,” “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” and “Billions.”
Speaking with the Irish Times in 2020, Yulin described himself as “not that high-profile.”
“I just do the next thing that comes along,” he said of his career. “Whatever comes along that I want to do or that I feel I need to do. Oftentimes the things one does you don’t think of doing or you have no idea that you’re going to do.”
Famed director Michael Hoffman collaborated with Yulin on a number of projects, such as the 2005 film “Game 6″ and the MGM+ series “American Classic” co-starring Kevin Kline, Laura Linney, and Jon Tenney, before his death.
“Harris Yulin was very simply one of the greatest artists I have ever encountered,” Hoffman said in a statement. “His marriage of immense technique with an always fresh sense of discovery, gave his work an immediacy and vitality and purity I’ve experienced nowhere else.”
“And what he was as an actor, he was as a man, the grace, the humility, the generosity,” the director continued. “All of us at ‘American Classic’ have been blessed by our experience with him. He will always remain the beating heart of our show.”
Yulin was married to Gwen Welles from 1973 until her death in 1993.
He was predeceased by his daughter, actress Claire Lucidio, and is survived by his second wife, actress Kristen Lowman, son-in-law Ted Mineo, nephew Martin Crane, and godchildren Marco and Lara Greenberg.
