SLO County actor known for roles in ‘Yentl,’ ‘The Twilight Zone’ dies at age 102
When Nehemiah “Nicky” Persoff died in a San Luis Obispo acute-care facility Tuesday at the age of 102, the world lost a noted character actor acclaimed for his gravelly voice, distinctive face, often menacing air and five decades worth of stage, screen and TV credits.
Reflecting the depth of Persoff’s status in the industry, his death was immediately announced in lengthy obituaries in The New York Times, Variety and The Hollywood Reporter, among other news outlets.
Persoff’s credits range from “Some Like it Hot” and “The Untouchables,” to “On the Waterfront,” “Twilight Zone” and “Yentl.” After serving in the military in World War II, he became a charter member of the Actors Studio.
He also created a successful one-man show, “Sholem Aleichem,” based on the author’s stories. For his performance, Persoff won the Los Angeles Drama Critics and Bay Area Theatre Critics award.
After Persoff’s lengthy acting career, he and jewelry-designer wife Thia Persoff retired to Cambria in 1999, so he could paint and they could enjoy a more laid-back lifestyle.
She died in February 2021 after they’d shared nearly 70 years of marriage, and she didn’t get to share the release of the autobiography he wrote during the pandemic at the age of 102, “The Many Faces of Nehemiah.”
The book is semi-chronological, filled with snippets about his life and 50-year acting career.
His tales are sometimes humorous, occasionally philosophical, poignant or sad, and offer backstage glimpses of how the theatrical, film and TV worlds really work.
The volume also captures some of Persoff’s often pixie sense of humor and whimsy.
“Let’s be honest. What chance did a boy born in Jerusalem have to break into this very exclusive club of actors, reserved mainly for handsome Anglos who spoke the King’s English from birth?” he wrote of his youthful dreams of acting.
An immigrant, Persoff arrived at Ellis Island in 1929, and performed frequently for his family. He abandoned his planned engineering career and worked for a time as an electrician for the New York City subway system.
After his Actors Studio stint with Lee Strasberg and Elia Kazan, he created many memorable characters and moods during his decades on the big screen, television and in 11 Broadway plays.
Actor’s career spanned decades, hundreds of credits
One could say, literally, that Persoff wore many hats throughout his life and his career.
His cranial costuming included Stetsons, fedoras, a pith helmet, miner’s cap, yarmulke, captain’s cap, biblical- and Revolutionary-era headgear, sombreros and a cab-driver’s cap, just to name a few. And one mustn’t forget Captain Hook’s musketeer-style hat and a Tiny-Tim-like hairdo.
Persoff’s roles were diverse, often requiring precise dialects.
He was the cab driver in the famous “I coulda been a contender” scene with Marlon Brando and Rod Steiger in the classic On the Waterfront film (1954).
His roles spanned a circus owner on a trapeze in “The Big Show,” a mob boss in “Al Capone,” Papa Mousekewitz in “An American Tail” and Barbra Streisand’s father in “Yentl.”
His television credits include the titles of 73 shows over four decades (between 1955 and 1995), most of them highly recognizable hits. They included “Wagon Train,” “Gilligan’s Island, “Mission Impossible,” “Hawaii Five-O,” “Quincy M.E.,” “Little House on the Prairie,” “Fantasy Island,” L.A. Law,” “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” “Law and Order” and so many more.
Friend mourns loss of ‘wonderful man’
Following his death, those in Cambria and in theatrical and art circles on the Central Coast and elsewhere have lost a friend and mentor.
“Nick was just a wonderful man,” fellow artist, actor and Persoff neighbor Art Van Rhyn said of his friend Wednesday. “He was unbelievable, to be that long in life and that positive in life.”
Van Rhyn said when Persoff began painting at the artist’s plein air Wednesday Irregulars group he was “so enthusiastic.”
“I’ll always remember those early days, going out to paint, and he’d tell stories on the way,” Van Rhyn said. “He had a heck of a run. I applaud him all the way.”
Persoff is survived by his children, Jeff Persoff, Dan Persoff, Perry Persoff, Dahlia Reano, and their grandchildren, Stacey Persoff, Joey Persoff, Michelle Persoff, Jacqueline Reano and Bridget Reano.
This story was originally published April 7, 2022 at 1:53 PM.
