Steve Ihnat

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Steve Ihnat

Steve Ihnat (August 7, 1934 - May 12, 1972) was a Czechoslovakian born actor and director who immigrated as a child to Canada where, in 1958, he again moved to the United States to pursue a career in acting.

Steve Ihnat (with Yvonne Craig) as Garth of Izar in Star Trek

Ihnat starred in several television series during the 1960s and is best known by Star Trek fans as Garth of Izar from the Star Trek Original Series episode "Whom Gods Destroy". While never achieving major fame for starring in movies or his own television series, Ihnat held over seventy guest star credits in such well known works as Perry Mason, Gunsmoke, The Virginian, and Mission Impossible. He often played villains, using his abilities to subtly turn one-dimensional characters into complex and multi-dimensional antagonists. He memorably portrayed a murderous thug in the 1968 film Madigan, starring Richard Widmark.

Ihnat was a screenwriter and director as well, most notably of "The Honkers" starring James Coburn. As an actor, he first achieved wide notice for his portrayal of a mind-controlled lieutenant in the science fiction TV series "The Outer Limits." His extended speech at the end of that episode ("The Inheritors") is one of the most affecting moments in television. Ihnat eventually became one of the most in-demand A-list guest stars of the 1960s.

Ihnat's most famous role in Mission: Impossible was that of brilliant Soviet investigator Stefan Miklos in the 1969 episode "The Mind of Stefan Miklos", widely praised as one of the most cerebral and intelligent episodes of the entire series. While he played other roles (mostly villains) in the show, his performance in this episode is his most memorable.

Steve Ihnat was married to Sally Carter-Ihnat who had been a Playboy Playmate of the Month in May of 1962. He died at the young age of thirty seven after suffering a heart attack while visiting France. Ed Asner announced his death on the Emmys telecast.

Ihnat is interred in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Sally Carter-Ihnat was married to Hollywood Squares host Peter Marshall from 1977 to 1988.