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Robert Stack




Robert Stack (January 13, 1919 - May 14, 2003), born Robert Langford Modini,
was an American actor famous for his film acting as well as his role in the
television series The Untouchables and as host of Unsolved Mysteries.

Stack was born in Los Angeles, California but spent his early childhood
growing up in Europe. He became fluent in French and Italian at an early
age, but he did not learn English until returning to Los Angeles.

Stack took drama courses at the University of Southern California. His deep
voice and good looks attracted producers in Hollywood. When Stack visited
the set of Universal Studios at age 20, producer Joe Pasternak offered him
an opportunity to enter the business. Recalled Stack, "He said 'How'd you
like to be in pictures? We'll make a test with Helen Parrish, a little love
scene.' Helen Parrish was a beautiful girl. 'Gee, that sounds keen,' I told
him. I got the part."

In 1957, Stack was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
for Written on the Wind. He starred in more than 40 films, including The
Iron Glove (1954); Good Morning Miss Dove (1955) and Is Paris Burning?
(1966). Known for his steadfast, humorless demeanor, he made fun of his own
persona in comedies such as 1941 (1979), Airplane! (1980), Caddyshack II
(1988), and Baseketball (1998).

Stack depicted the crimefighting Eliot Ness in the television drama The
Untouchables from 1959 to 1963. The show portrayed the ongoing battle
between gangsters and federal agents in a Prohibition-era Chicago. His role
on the show brought Stack a best actor Emmy Award in 1960.

He began hosting Unsolved Mysteries in 1988, where his deep, ominous voice
and expressionless face lent an authentic seriousness to the show's dark
subject matter.

Stack had undergone radiation therapy for prostate cancer in October 2002.
He died of heart failure at his home in Los Angeles in May 2003. He is
interred in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Westwood, California.

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