Frank Gorshin Date of Birth April 5, 1933, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Frank Gorshin was born on April 5, 1933, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of Roman Catholic parents Frances, a seamstress, and Frank Gorshin, Sr., a railroad worker. He was of Croatian ancestry. While in high school, at the age of 15, Frank worked as an usher at the Sheridan Square Theatre and began doing impressions of some of his screen idols: Al Jolson, James Cagney, Cary Grant and Edward G. Robinson. At 17 he won a local talent contest. The prize was a one-week engagement at Jackie Heller's Carousel night club, where Alan King was headlining. It was Frank's first paid job as an entertainer and launched his show biz career. After graduation from Peabody High School, Gorshin attended the Carnegie Tech School of Drama (now known as Carnegie Mellon University) in Pittsburgh. When not studying, he worked in local plays and nightclubs. In 1953, Gorshin was drafted into the United States Army and was posted in Germany. He served for a year and a half as an entertainer attached to Special Services. In the army, Frank met Maurice Bergman, who would introduce Frank to a Hollywood agent when his hitch with Uncle Sam was up. Frank quickly landed a role in The Proud and Profane (1956) and other roles in TV dramas followed. Frank appeared in a number of lovable B-movies for American-International Pictures: Hot Rod Girl (1956) and Dragstrip Girl (1957), and everybody's favorite, Invasion of the Saucer Men (1957). Frank finally got a substantial role in the A-movie Bells Are Ringing (1960) with Dean Martin and Judy Holliday. He did a thinly-disguised Marlon Brando impression. Frank also appeared in Hollywood nightclubs including the Purple Onion. He also did Las Vegas engagements, opening for Bobby Darin at The Flamingo. On TV, Frank appeared on "The Steve Allen Plymouth Show" (1956) and had a dozen guest shots on "The Ed Sullivan Show". In 1966, Frank gave his breakout performance, performing what has become his best-known role: The Riddler on "Batman" (1966) for which he received an Emmy nomination. He also played The Riddler in the movie Batman (1966) based on the television series. "I could feel the impact overnight", Frank recalled later. Because of his nationwide recognition, he was given headliner status in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand, Sahara and Aladdin Hotels. He received more good reviews for his thought-provoking performance as Commissioner Bele in the 1969 "Star Trek" (1966) episode "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield", for which he received another Emmy nomination. Gorshin's last television appearance was in "Grave Danger", an episode of the CBS series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation which aired two days after his death; the episode, which was directed by Quentin Tarantino, was dedicated to his memory. While he was known for his impressions, his role on CSI was as himself. Mr. Gorshin died of cancer on May 17, 2005, Burbank, California, USA He is buried in Roman Catholic Calvary Cemetery in the Hazelwood section of Pittsburgh, in the family plot.

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