Joseph Ruskin

Joesph Ruskin was an actor who was a familar face in dozens of films and television series over the course of a career the spanned half a century. He was also active in the Screen Actors Guild, and served on the organization's board and as the First National Vice President.

The Massachusetts native serve in the Navy during World War II and studied drama at Carnegie Tech (which later became Carnegie-Mellon University). He began his career in the theater and earned his first television credit with a 1955 episode of The Honeymooners.

In the years that followed, he was seen in such programs as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Naked City, Peter Gunn, 77 Sunset Strip, Route 66, Twilight Zone, The Untouchables, Mr. Ed, Get Smart, Gunsmoke, The Wild Wild West, Mod Squad, Mission: Impossible, McCloud, The Six Million Dollar Man, Police Woman, Quincy, M.E., Charlie's Angels, Hill Street Blues, St. Elsewhere, Murder, She Wrote, L.A. Law, ER, Alias, Bones and many, many others. Ruskin also had roles in the original Star Trek and each of its spinoffs.

His feature films included The Magnificent Seven, Prizzi’s Honor, Indecent Proposal and Smokin’ Aces.

For his lengthy service to SAG, the guild honored him with its Ralph Morgan Award in 2011. He was also honored by Actors Equity Association, which he served as the first Western Regional Vice President, with its Lucy Jordan Award and Patrick Quinn Award.

Ruskin died December 28, 2013, in Santa Monica, California. He was 89.