Robert Blake (actor)

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Robert Blake (born September 18, 1933 in Nutley , New Jersey ; born Michael James Vijencio Gubitosi ) is an American actor .

Life and accomplishments

Born as Michael James Vijencio Gubitosi , the actor comes from an Italian-American family. His father Giacomo Gubitosi came to the United States as a child in 1907 and his mother was born in New Jersey. The family moved to Los Angeles in 1938 , where three of the family's children appeared in films.

Blake made his debut under the maiden name in the film Bridal Suite from 1939. He played as a regular member of the Little Rascals in their unsuccessful late phase at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer , overall he shot over 40 with the Little Rascals by the end of the series in 1944 Short films. In 1944 he also played a supporting role in the Laurel-and-Hardy comedy The Big Bang . In 1942 he took on the stage name Bobby Blake , which he was supposed to drop again in adulthood. In 1995 he received the Young Artist Award for his life's work as a former child star . In the 1950s and 1960s, Blake continued his acting career in adulthood with television appearances, but without initially achieving major success.

Blake achieved his breakthrough in 1967 with the portrayal of the murderer Perry Smith , who was sentenced to death, in the film In Cold Blood , which based on Truman Capote 's novel of the same name reported a true murder case. Blake was nominated for a Golden Laurel in 1968 as a New Male Actor ( Male New Face ) . From then on, Blake usually played hardened and rough characters, but at the same time they could also exude sympathy. In the film drama Bloody Trace (1969) Blake took on the lead role of an Indian who is being chased by a deputy sheriff. The role in Harley Davidson 344 (original title: Electra Glide in Blue ) earned him a nomination for the Golden Globe Award in 1974 . From 1975 to 1978 he played the title role of a lonely and sometimes brutal police detective in the television series Baretta . For this he won the Emmy Award in 1975 and the Golden Globe Award in 1976; in 1976 he was nominated for an Emmy. He was also in 1975 as Male Star of the Year ( Male Star of the Year ) for the Golden Apple Award nomination.

The role in the comedy From Coast to Coast (1980) brought Blake a nomination for the negative award Golden Raspberry for Worst Actor in 1981 . For his portrayal of the murdered union leader Jimmy Hoffa in the television drama Pursued to the Death (1983), he was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1983 and the Golden Globe in the following year. Blake won another Emmy nomination in 1993 for the lead role in the drama The Last Judgment - John List's Story . Blake played his last role to date in 1997 in David Lynch's Lost Highway , in which he played the prominent supporting role of "Mystery Man".

Blake was married to actress Sondra Blake from 1961 to 1983, with whom he has two children. He has a daughter with his second wife, Bonnie Lee Bakley, whom he married in 2000. The marriage soon began to run into trouble, however, as Bakley had stalked several actors in the past and Blake had apparently only married because of his fame. On May 4, 2001, Bakley was found shot dead in Robert Blake's car. In April 2002, Blake was charged with her murder and arrested on the basis of the testimony of two stunt men who allegedly tried to persuade Blake to commit murder of his wife shortly before Bakley's death. However, the two main witnesses did not present themselves completely credible in court, and there was hardly any physical or forensic evidence and no eyewitness reports. On March 16, 2005, Blake was acquitted by the jury. In the subsequent civil lawsuit, which brought Bakley's three children, Blake was sentenced to pay $ 30 million in damages to the bereaved, which was later reduced to $ 15 million. Then Blake declared his bankruptcy .

In 2017, Blake, now over 80, married his long-time friend Pamela Hudak, but he filed for divorce the following year.

Filmography (selection)

Web links

Commons : Robert Blake  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Charles Montaldo Charles Montaldo is a writer, Former Licensed Private Detective Who Worked with Law Enforcement, Insurance Firms Investigating Crime, fraud .: Who Was Bonny Lee Bakley, the Murdered Wife of Actor Robert Blake? Retrieved April 17, 2019 .
  2. ↑ COURTTV.COM- TOP NEWS. September 29, 2007. Retrieved April 17, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Blake's Hollywood Ending. Retrieved April 17, 2019 (American English).
  4. ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7369978.stm
personal data
SURNAME Blake, Robert
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Gubitosi, Michael James Vijencio (maiden name); Blake, Bobby
BRIEF DESCRIPTION US-American actor
DATE OF BIRTH September 18, 1933
PLACE OF BIRTH Nutley , New Jersey, United States