Gary Howard Klar (March 24, 1947 – December 31, 2020) was an American actor known for his role as Pvt. Steel in

George A. Romero George Andrew Romero (; February 4, 1940 – July 16, 2017) was an American-Canadian filmmaker, writer, editor and actor. His ''Night of the Living Dead'' series of films about an imagined zombie apocalypse began with the 1968 film of the ...

's cult classic

zombie film A zombie film is a film genre. Zombies are fictional creatures usually portrayed as reanimated corpses or virally infected human beings. They are commonly portrayed as cannibalistic in nature. While zombie films generally fall into the horror g ...

Day of the Dead The Day of the Dead ( es, Día de Muertos or ''Día de los Muertos'') is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. It is widely obser ...

''. He also appeared in ''

Married to the Mob ''Married to the Mob'' is a 1988 American crime comedy film directed by Jonathan Demme, and starring Michelle Pfeiffer, Matthew Modine, Dean Stockwell, Mercedes Ruehl, and Alec Baldwin. Pfeiffer plays Angela de Marco, a gangster's widow from B ...

'' (1988), ''

Big Big or BIG may refer to: * Big, of great size or degree Film and television * ''Big'' (film), a 1988 fantasy-comedy film starring Tom Hanks * ''Big!'', a Discovery Channel television show * ''Richard Hammond's Big'', a television show present ...

'' (1988), and ''

Hackers A hacker is a person skilled in information technology who uses their technical knowledge to achieve a goal or overcome an obstacle, within a computerized system by non-standard means. Though the term ''hacker'' has become associated in popu ...

'' (1995).

Biography

Klar was born on March 24, 1947 in

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the List of cities by population in New England, fifth-most populous ...

, and was raised by adoptive parents. He had 12 siblings all of whom were adopted too. He was not aware of his adoption until many years later. He played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

in college and briefly played professionally but his career unfortunately ended after an injury. He later set out to become an actor. His first film was in 1980's ''

Hero at Large ''Hero at Large'' is a 1980 American superhero comedy film starring John Ritter and Anne Archer. The film was written by AJ Carothers and directed by Martin Davidson. The original music score was composed by Patrick Williams. Plot Steve Nich ...

'' in a small role as a camera man. His biggest role was that of Pvt. Steel in the 1985

zombie A zombie (Haitian French: , ht, zonbi) is a mythological undead corporeal revenant created through the reanimation of a corpse. Zombies are most commonly found in horror and fantasy genre works. The term comes from Haitian folklore, in whic ...

horror film ''

''. He continued to play minor roles in films such as ''

Three Men and a Baby ''Three Men and a Baby'' is a 1987 American comedy film directed by Leonard Nimoy. It stars Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg, and Ted Danson as three bachelors as they attempt to adapt their lives to de facto fatherhood with the arrival of the love ...

'' and ''

''. On December 30, 1998, he received an unannounced phone call from a Connecticut state official informing him of his adoption for the first time. He was also told that his friend Steve, who he had known since they were young, was his biological brother and a woman he dated in youth was his biological sister. His story was showcased on many television shows including

Dateline NBC ''Dateline NBC'' is a weekly American television news magazine/reality legal show that is broadcast on NBC. It was previously the network's flagship general interest news magazine, but now focuses mainly on true crime stories with only occasion ...

and

Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'' (often abbreviated as ''GMA'') is an American morning television program that is broadcast on ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends with the debut of a Sunday edition on January 3, 1993. Th ...

. Klar's last public appearance was on April 11, 2015 when he appeared at the ''Cinema Wasteland'' convention in

Strongsville, Ohio Strongsville is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, and a suburb of Cleveland. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 44,750. The city's nickname 'Crossroads of the Nation,' originated from the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O ...

with fellow ''Day of the Dead'' cast and crew members Lori Cardille, Joe Pilato,

John Amplas John Amplas (born June 23, 1949) is an American actor known primarily for his work with director George A. Romero, particularly his appearances in the title role of ''Martin'' (1978), as well as '' Dawn of the Dead'' (1978) and ''Creepshow'' (1 ...

, Anthony Dileo Jr.,

Jarlath Conroy Jarlath Conroy (born 30 September 1944) is an Irish theatre, film and television actor. Since 1971, he has become a successful actor appearing in film and television, including ''NYPD Blue'', ''Law & Order'', and '' Law & Order: Criminal Inten ...

, Terry Alexander,

Sherman Howard Sherman Howard (born June 11, 1949) is an American actor. He is best known for his performance as the zombie Bub in George A. Romero's ''Day of the Dead'' (1985) and Lex Luthor on ''Superboy'' (1990–92). He also voiced Derek Powers (a.k.a. Bli ...

Tom Savini Thomas Vincent Savini (born November 3, 1946) is an American prosthetic makeup artist, actor, stunt performer and film director. He is known for his makeup and special effects work on many films directed by George A. Romero, including ''Martin'' ...

, Phil Kellams and Taso Stavrakis at a panel to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the film's release.

Personal life

Klar resided in

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

with his wife and children. It was confirmed on January 1, 2021, by the George A. Romero Foundation that Klar had died on December 31, 2020.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Klar, Gary Howard 1947 births 2020 deaths Male actors from Bridgeport, Connecticut American male film actors