Stephen Bekassy (born István Békássy; February 10, 1907 – October 30, 1995) was a Hungarian-born American film actor.

Career

Bekassy's American stage debut came in ''Errand for Berenice'' in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1944. His American film debut was in '' A Song to Remember'' (1945). He appeared in films such as '' Hell and High Water'' and ''

Prisoner of War A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

'' in 1954. On television he made two guest appearances on ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a c ...

''. In 1958 he played art expert Laslo Kovac in "The Case of the Purple Woman," and in 1959 he played murder victim Rick Stassi in "The Case of the Bartered Bikini." In 1958, he guest-starred as Count Razil in the episode "Command Performance" of the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

situation comedy '' Mr. Adams and Eve''.The Classic TV Archive Mr. Adams and Eve (1957-58) Accessed 12 June 2021
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Personal life

Bekassy was born in

Nyíregyháza Nyíregyháza (, sk, Níreďháza) is a city with county rights in northeastern Hungary and the county capital of Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg. With a population of 118,001, it is the seventh-largest city in Hungary and the second largest in ...

, Hungary. He married Teri Fejes in 1931, but divorced in 1933. In 1936 he married Lívia Neufeld, but as well divorced soon in 1938. He emigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and eventually married Beverly Violet Bidwell (1905 - 1971) on October 8, 1941, in

Carson City Carson City is an independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,639, making it the sixth largest city in Nevada. The majority of the city's population lives in Eagle Valley, on the ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

. Beverly Violet Bidwell wrote under the name, Hagar Wilde. They later divorced. In 1969 he married Erika Beregi. He subsequently married

Hanna Hertelendy Hanna Hertelendy (born Taylor Silami; October 5, 1919 – May 15, 2008), also known as Hanna Landy, was a Hungarian-American film and television actress. Early years She was born as Taylor Silami near Miramichi. She married Bryce Hertelendy in ...

(1919–2008), the widow of actor Robert Walker. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Bekassy rescued Jewish escapees. He later worked with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. During the Red Scare, Ronald Reagan accused Stephen of being a Communist because he was Hungarian.

Filmography

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bekassy, Stephen Hungarian male film actors American male film actors Hungarian emigrants to the United States 1907 births 1995 deaths 20th-century American male actors