Robert Blake (actor)

Robert Blake (born Michael James Vincenzo Gubitosi; September 18, 1933 – March 9, 2023), was an American actor. In 1975, he won an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award.

Early life
Robert Blake was born Michael James Gubitosi in Nutley, New Jersey, on September 18, 1933. His family were entertainers. His family moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1938 to focus on their career.

Blake had an unhappy childhood in which he was abused by his alcoholic father. He said that he was physically and sexually abused by both of his parents while growing up. At age 14, he ran away from home.

 Career 
Robert Blake began his acting career as a child in dozens short films as Joy Scouts (1939), Captain Spanky's Show Boat (1939), The Big Premiere (1940), Good Bad Boys (1940), and the Oscar-winning short film Main Street on the March! (1941). As an adult, Blake he began to play small roles in films like The Black Rose (1950) with Tyrone Power and  directed by Henry Hathaway, The Veils of Bagdad (1953) with Victor Mature, Three Violent People (1956) with Charlton Heston, Pork Chop Hill (1959) with Gregory Peck. He also had a role in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), playing the role of Simon the Zealot. Robert Blake shot to fame when playing Perry in the film In Cold Blood (1967) based on the book by Truman Capote, and directed by Richard Brooks. Another performance was playing a deranged police officer motorized in Electra Glide in Blue (1973) for this film Blake was nominated for a Golden Globe.

 Television 
Robert Blake has had a long and successful career in television. His great works include Baretta as Det. Tony Baretta. Robert Blake played for 82 episodes broadcast between 1975 and 1978. Blake won a prestigious Emmy Award in 1975 and was nominated again in 1977 and also won Golden Globe in 1975 for Baretta.

Another of his works on television was his portrayal of James Riddle 'Jimmy' Hoffa in Blood Feud (1983) directed by Mike Newell, for which he was nominated for an Emmy and Golden Globe in 1983. One of his last television appearances was in Judgment Day: The John List Story (1993) directed by Bobby Roth, he plays the true story of a religious fanatic who kills his family. This role was one of his best performances and earned him a nomination for an Emmy in 1993.

Murder trial
In March 2005, Blake was tried and acquitted of the 2001 murder of his second wife, Bonnie Lee Bakley. In November 2005, he was found liable in a California civil court for her wrongful death.

 References 

More readings
LIFE 12 January 1968 
Stephen J. Cannell Television Productions: A History of All Series and Pilots by Jon Abbott

 Other websites 

Category:1933 births
Category:2023 deaths
Category:American movie actors
Category:American television actors
Category:actors from New Jersey
Category:American child actors
Category:American stage actors
Category:People acquitted of murder
Category:American Emmy Award winning actors
Category:Golden Globe Award winning actors
Category:Actors from Los Angeles