Mike Kellin

Early life

Kellin was born Myron Kellin in Hartford, Connecticut, the son of Sophia and Samuel Kellin, Russian Jewish immigrants. His younger sister, Shirley Ann Kellin (born August 14, 1927), died in the 1944 Hartford circus fire. He was educated at Boston University and Trinity College in Hartford. He served with the Navy as a Lieutenant Commander during World War II and after the war studied acting and playwriting at the Yale School of Drama.

Career

Kellin's coarse-featured face, tired eyes and flat, monotone voice suggested that he had lived hard and fast. He was most often cast as tough guys, both good and evil. His portrayals were memorable. He made his Broadway debut in 1949 in At War with the Army and repeated his role in the film version with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. He worked in some 50 plays and won an Obie Award for his work in American Buffalo and earned a Tony nomination in 1956 for his acting in the Musical Pipe Dream.

Kellin appeared in both the film version of The Wackiest Ship in the Army and the television series based on the film, in the same role.

Kellin appeared in an episode on Lost in Space, "The Deadly Games Of Gamma 6," as Myko.

Personal life and death

Kellin was married to actress Sally Moffat, daughter of actress Sylvia Field, who is probably best known for her role as Martha Wilson on Dennis the Menace. He was also active in the Fortune Society, a prisoner's rights group. He died on August 26, 1983 from lung cancer in Nyack, New York, at the age of sixty-one. His interment was at Emanuel Synagogue Cemetery in Wethersfield, Connecticut.

Play credits (partial)

He guest starred on the following:

Discography