Volodymyr Ivanovich Palahniuk, better known as "Jack Palance" (February 18, 1919 – November 10, 2006) was an American actor of Ukrainian descent.
He was nominated for three Academy Awards, all for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, receiving nominations for his roles in Sudden Fear (1952) and Shane (1953), and winning the Oscar almost 40 years later for his role in City Slickers (1991).
Palance made a career out of playing heavies, usually without a heart of a gold. One critic wrote "His face alone, as thin and cruel as a rust-pitted spade, is enough to-frighten a strong man; and to make matters worse, he seems to emit hostile energy, like something left overnight in a plutonium pile."
If you're wondering about the surname, writer Chuck Palahniuk is indeed a (distant) relative.
Selected filmography
- Panic in the Streets (1950) — film debut
- Shane (1953)
- The Silver Chalice (1954)
- Contempt (1963)
- Once a Thief (1965)
- The Professionals (1965)
- Torture Garden (1967)
- Compañeros (1970)
- Dracula (1973)
- God's Gun (1976)
- Angels Revenge (1979)
- The Shape of Things to Come (1979)
- Without Warning (1980)
- Hawk the Slayer (1980)
- Alone in the Dark (1982)
- Gor (1987)
- Young Guns (1988)
- Bagdad Cafe (1988)
- Outlaw of Gor (1988)
- Batman (1989)
- Tango & Cash (1989)
- City Slickers (1991)
- Cyborg 2 (1993)
- City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly's Gold (1994)
- The Swan Princess (1994)
- Ebenezer (1998)
- Treasure Island (1999)
