Efrem Zimbalist, Jr.
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Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. | |||||||
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Born | November 30, 1918 New York City, New York |
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Spouse(s) | Emily McNair (1945-1950) Stephanie Spaulding (1956-2007) |
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Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. (born November 30, 1918) is an American actor known for his starring roles in the television series 77 Sunset Strip and The F.B.I.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
[edit] Personal life
Zimbalist was born in New York, New York, the son of violinist Efrem Zimbalist, Sr. (1889-1985) and operatic soprano Alma Gluck (1884-1938). His wife was Stephanie Spaulding Zimbalist, who died of lung cancer on February 4, 2007. She was 73 years old.[1] Zimbalist is the father of actress Stephanie Zimbalist (with Stephanie Spaulding) and of Efrem Zimbalist III and Nancy Zimbalist (with Emily McNair). He had a recurring role on his daughter's 1980s mystery series, Remington Steele.
Born Jewish, Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. has had a close association with evangelical Christianity, having appeared on some Christian radio and television shows including "The 700 Club", Pat Boone's radio show[citation needed] and TBN. Zimbalist was an early practitioner and proponent of Transcendental Meditation, as taught by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, prior to his conversion to Christianity.
[edit] Career
A 1940 graduate of Yale University, Zimbalist had a stage career as both actor and producer. He also appeared in leading and supporting roles in several feature films, including Harlow, A Fever in the Blood, Wait Until Dark, and Airport 1975.
In 1989, Zimbalist played the father of Zorro in the (then Christian Broadcasting Network's- aka CBN) Family Channel's remake "The New Zorro". Zimbalist relinquished the role after the program's first season, due to time being spent on location. Zimbalist had a small recurring role in the 1990s science fiction TV series Babylon 5 as William Edgars.
Zimbalist also provided the voice of the German-accented Dr. Octopus on the 1990s Spider-Man: The Animated Series and Alfred Pennyworth in Batman: The Animated Series. He has appeared on the Trinity Broadcasting Network.[2]
Zimbalist has written an autobiography My Dinner of Herbs, published by Limelight Editions, New York.