Nehemiah Persoff

Nehemiah Persoff
Persoff in 1960
Born	(1919-08-02)August 2, 1919 Jerusalem, British Mandate of Palestine
Died	April 5, 2022(2022-04-05) (aged 102) San Luis Obispo, California, United States
Citizenship	Israel United States
Education	Hebrew Technical Institute[1]
Occupations	Actor painter
Years active	1948–2003
Spouse	Thia Persov ​ ​ (m. 1951; died 2021)​
Children	4
Military career
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1942–1945
Battles/wars	World War II
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Nehemiah Persoff (August 2, 1919 – April 5, 2022) was an American actor and painter. He appeared in more than 200 television series, films, and theatre productions, and also performed as a voice artist in a career spanning 55 years.^[1]

His first acting role was as an extra in The Naked City (1948). Persoff is best known for roles as Leo in The Harder They Fall (1956), as Little Bonaparte in Some Like It Hot (1959), as Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik in The Untouchables (1959–1963), as Rebbe Mendel in Yentl (1983), and as the voice of Papa Mousekewitz in the animated film An American Tail (1986) and its sequels. He also made appearances on episodes of The Twilight Zone, Gilligan's Island, Hawaii Five-O, Adam-12, and Law & Order.