Rod Steiger Biography

Rod Steiger

A heavy-set, compelling actor, Steiger began his career on the stage and broke into movies in the 1950s. He was nominated for an Oscar for his role in On the Waterfront (1954) and won the award for playing a redneck sheriff in In the Heat of the Night (1968). He played the starring role in Al Capone (1959) and acted the part of Willy Loman in the TV production of Death of a Salesman (1966). He also has appeared in Mars Attacks! (1996), Shiloh (1997), The Hurricane (1999), Lightmaker (2001) and A Month of Sundays (2001). Steiger was married for a time to actress Claire Bloom.