Some people know Martin Landau as the debonair master of disguise in TV history — from his role on “Mission Impossible.” Some remember him best as the groundbreaking, sexually ambiguous henchman in “North By Northwest.” However, most people remember him fondly as Bella Lugosi in “Ed Wood” — a role that garnered him an Academy Award.
But the magic of Martin Landau is that, to a certain extent, many of us don’t remember him at all. Rather, we remember the characters he plays – each with his own unique desires, language, and history. Landau virtually disappears into each one.
So far, Landau has appeared in over 125 feature films, and worked alongside a Who’s Who of Hollywood’s greatest names - from Cary Grant, Gregory Peck and Barbara Stanwyck, to Robert DeNiro, Edward Norton and Johnny Depp.
Landau’s newest film, “Lovely, Still,” opened this past weekend. We talk with him about what it was like acting alongside fellow-Oscar winner Ellen Burstyn in the film, love stories, and what other roles he's been disappearing into lately.