Steven Keats

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Steven Keats
Keats in trailer for The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973)
Born
Steven Paul Keitz

(1945-02-06)February 6, 1945
The Bronx, New York, U.S.
DiedMay 8, 1994(1994-05-08) (aged 49)
Manhattan, New York, U.S.
OccupationActor
Years active1970–1994
Children2

Steven Keats (born Steven Paul Keitz; February 6, 1945 – May 8, 1994) was an American actor who appeared in such films as Death Wish (as Charles Bronson's character's son-in-law), Black Sunday, Hester Street and the Chuck Norris thriller Silent Rage.

Early life and education[edit]

Keats was born in the Bronx to Francis (née Rebold) and Daniel David Keitz. His father was born in Copenhagen, Denmark to Polish Jewish parents from Warsaw. His mother was born in New York, also to a Polish Jewish family.[1][2] As a small child his father was the proprietor of a camera store and the family lived on Bryant Avenue in the South Bronx.[3]

He grew up in Canarsie, Brooklyn, New York. At the time of his graduation from Thomas Jefferson High School in 1962 he was living in Bay View Houses, a public housing project.[4] After serving a tour of duty in Vietnam with the United States Air Force from 1965 to 1966, Keats attended the Yale School of Drama in 1969–1970. He is the father of photographer and actor Thatcher Keats and of Shane Keats.[2]

Career[edit]

Keats debuted on Broadway in the second cast of Oh! Calcutta! and appeared in over 80 films and TV shows. He was nominated for an Emmy in 1977 for his role as the ruthless, Great Depression-era entrepreneur Jay Blackman, who clawed his way to the top of the "rag trade", or clothing business, in the 1977 miniseries Seventh Avenue. He also portrayed Thomas Edison on the brink of inventing the electric light bulb in the science fiction TV series Voyagers!.

His film career included roles in The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973), Death Wish (1974), The Gambler (1974), The Gumball Rally (1976), The Last Dinosaur (1977), Black Sunday (1977), The Ivory Ape (1980), Hangar 18 (1980), Silent Rage (1982), Turk 182 (1985), Badge of the Assassin (1985), and the 1982 TV movie of the Norman Mailer book The Executioner's Song.[5]

Keats appeared in the 1975 film Hester Street. Set on New York City's Lower East Side of the 1890s, Keats played Jake Podkovnik (late of Russia), an assimilated "Amerikaner". He played a deranged bomber in the 1974 Kojak episode "Therapy in Dynamite", and guest-starred on an episode of The A-Team, "Harder Than It Looks". He played Ed McClain on Another World and guest-starred as Alf Gresham on All My Children.[5] In 1983 he appeared in the first episode of Automan as Collins. In 1987, in the final season of Hill Street Blues, he played Detective Penzickis. Additional roles included one in Miami Vice in 1987 with "Contempt in Court". He also played TV reporter Jake Baron on the April 6, 1990 episode of MacGyver, titled "Rush to Judgement".

Death[edit]

On May 8, 1994, Keats was found dead in his apartment in Manhattan. His son said that he committed suicide.[2]

Filmography[edit]

Year Title Role Notes
1973 The Friends of Eddie Coyle Jackie Brown
1974 Death Wish Jack Toby
1974 The Gambler Howie
1975 Hester Street Jake
1975 The Dream Makers Barry
1976 Sky Riders Rudy
1976 The Gumball Rally Kandinsky - Dodge Team
1977 The Last Dinosaur Chuck Wade
1977 Black Sunday Robert Moshevsky
1980 The American Success Company Rick Duprez
1980 Hangar 18 Paul Bannister
1982 Silent Rage Dr. Philip Spires
1985 Turk 182 Jockamo
1985 Badge of the Assassin Harold Skelton, Defense Attorney
1989 The Spring Mark
1990 Eternity Tax Collector / Harold
1991 Shadows and Fog Hacker's Vigilante #3 (uncredited)

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Steven Keats". Ladies' Home Journal. Vol. 94. Family Media, Incorporated. July 1977. pp. 33–35. Retrieved 15 October 2017 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ a b c "Steven Keats, 48, Film and TV Actor". The New York Times. 18 May 1994. p. B8. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
  3. ^ United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: New York, Bronx, New York; Roll: 2198; Sheet Number: 14; Enumeration District: 3-696, Ancestry.com
  4. ^ Ancestry.com. U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-2016 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.
  5. ^ a b Steven Keats at IMDb

External links[edit]