Steven Hill
Encyclopedia
Steven Hill is an American film
and television
actor
. His two better-known roles are District Attorney
Adam Schiff
on the NBC TV drama series Law & Order
, whom he portrayed for ten seasons (1990–2000), and Dan Briggs, the original team leader of the Impossible Missions Force on CBS
's television series Mission: Impossible
, whom he portrayed only in the initial season of the show (1966–1967).
. After serving four years in the Naval Reserve, Hill made his first New York stage appearance in Ben Hecht
's A Flag Is Born
in 1946, which also featured a young Marlon Brando
. Hill says his big break came when he landed a small part in the hit Broadway
show Mister Roberts
. "The director, Joshua Logan
, thought I had some ability, and he let me create one of the scenes," says Hill. "So, I improvised dialog and it went in the show. That was my first endorsement. It gave me tremendous encouragement to stay in the business." Hill said this was a thrilling time in his life when, fresh out of the service, he played the hapless sailor Stefanowski. "You could almost smell it from the very first reading that took place; this is going to be an overwhelming hit," said Hill. "We all felt it and experienced it and were convinced of it, and we were riding the crest of a wave from the very first day of rehearsals."
In 1947, Hill became a founding member of Lee Strasberg
's Actors Studio
alongside such other actors as Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift
, and Julie Harris
.
Hill made his film debut in 1950 in Lady Without a Passport
. He then re-enlisted in the Navy in 1952 for two years and, when he completed his service, resumed his acting in earnest. Strasberg later said, "Steven Hill is considered one of the finest actors America has ever produced". When he was starting out as an actor, Hill sought out roles that had a social purpose. "Later, I learned that show business is about entertaining," he says. "So, I've had to reconcile my idealistic feelings with reality".
Hill was particularly busy in the so-called "Golden Age
" of live TV drama, appearing in such prestigious video offerings as The Trial of Sacco and Vanzetti
in 1960 earning him an Emmy nomination for his portrayal of Bartolomeo Vanzetti. "When I first became an actor, there were two young actors in New York: Marlon Brando and Steven Hill," said Martin Landau. "A lot of people said that Steven would have been the one, not Marlon. He was legendary. Nuts, volatile, mad, and his work was exciting".
In 1961, Hill had an unusual experience when he appeared as Sigmund Freud
on Broadway
in Henry Denker
's A Far Country
, portraying Freud at the age of 35. On April 12, 1961, Hill was stricken with a virus the night of a sold-out performance for the Masters Children's Center of Dobbs Ferry. As a result, the producers decided to cancel the performance just as the curtain was about to go up. Among the notables in the audience were Joseph P. Kennedy
, Jack Benny
, and Richard Rodgers
. The audience was invited to exchange its ticket stubs for other performances. The understudy was not ready to replace Hill, so Alfred Ryder
, the play's director, stepped into the role of Freud for one performance.. Hill guested in the original Robert Stack series 'The Untouchables' episode: 'Jack 'Legs' Diamond' as the title gangster character giving a compelling cold evil performance, and a similar sinister role as a confined to bed (following an accident) ruthless manipulative millionaire in 'The White Knight' a 1966 black & white third season episode of The Fugitive
Starring David Janssen.
Hill's early screen credits include The Goddess and A Child Is Waiting
.
beginning in 1966. The phrase "Good morning, Mr. Briggs..." was a fixture early in each episode as it began a tape recording he retrieved which detailed the task he must accomplish, however he left the show in 1967 after the end of the first season. As one of the few Orthodox Jewish
actors working in Hollywood, he made it clear in advance of production that he was not able to work on the Sabbath
(i.e., sundown Friday to dusk Saturday), and that he would be leaving the set every Friday before sundown. However, despite Hill's advance warnings, the show's producers were unprepared for his rigid adherence to the Sabbath, and on at least one occasion Hill left the set while an episode was still in the midst of filming. The producers used a number of ways of reducing the role of Hill's character Dan Briggs whereby his character would only obtain & hand out the mission details at the start of certain episodes being unable to take further part as he was 'known' to people they would encounter (used at least three times), or Briggs would need to don a disguise & another actor would then play his role incognito until the conclusion of the mission (& episode) when Briggs peeled off a face mask, on other occasions Briggs would be waiting to pick up the team at the end, usually Martin Landau's character 'Rollin Hand' would take over as the team leader for mission's in Briggs' absence (Martin Landau being initally a 'special guest star' for the first season not even included in the show's original opening credits).
According to Desilu executive Herb Solow, once William Shatner
burst into his office, claiming "Steve asked me how many Jews worked on Star Trek. He was recruiting a prayer group of ten guys to worship together on top of the studio's highest building and only had six Jews as far from Mission. He asked if I would come and bring Nimoy
and Justman and you."
Hill was briefly suspended from the show near the end of the season, during the production of episode no. 23 (entitled Action!- where for the only time Barbara Bain's character 'Cinnamon Carter' obtained the mission via the taped instructions, tho' Landau's 'Rollin Hand' then led the team). The suspension was imposed after he refused to climb the rafters via a soundstage staircase, as was called for in the script. (This incident was unrelated to any religious observances of Hill's.) Consequently, Hill was written out of that episode, and when he returned to Mission: Impossible for the five remaining episodes of the season, his role was severely reduced. Hill was not asked to return for season 2, and was replaced as the show's star by Peter Graves
. No onscreen explanation was ever given re Dan Briggs later absence from the series. Steven Hill was however featured prominently as Dan Briggs in around 17 or so of the first season episodes.
where he worked in writing and real estate. Patrick J. White, in The Complete "Mission: Impossible" Dossier, quoted Hill as having said later, "I don't think an actor should act every single day. I don't think it's good for the so-called creative process. You must have periods when you leave the land fallow, let it revitalize itself." After ten years, he was ready to begin acting again. "They say you can't quit show business," he said in 1977. "It took ten years, but I couldn't get it out of my system. So I called an agent and put him to work."
Hill returned to work in the 1980s and 1990s, playing parental and authority-figure roles in such films as Yentl
(1983
), Garbo Talks
(1984), Neil Simon
's Brighton Beach Memoirs
, Heartburn
(1986
), and Billy Bathgate
(1991
). Hill also appeared as a mob kingpin in Raw Deal
(1986), an action vehicle for Arnold Schwarzenegger
.
in the NBC
TV drama series Law & Order
, a part that he played for ten seasons (1990–2000). Hill's character is loosely modeled after the real former district attorney of New York, Robert Morgenthau and it is reported that Morgenthau was a fan of the character. Hill says playing Adam Schiff is the hardest role he's ever had because of all the legal jargon he has to learn. "It's like acting in a second language," says Hill. Hill adds that he agrees with the show's philosophy. "There's a certain positive statement in this show," Hill says. "So much is negative today. The positive must be stated to rescue us from pandemonium. To me it lies in that principle: law and order." Hill earned another Emmy nomination for Best Supporting Actor In a Dramatic Series in 1997. At the time of his departure, Hill was the longest-serving cast member. Along with Law & Order castmate Sam Waterston
, Hill has also appeared in commercials for T.D. Waterhouse, an investment brokerage.
Appearing in the play A Far Country in 1961 had a profound effect on Hill's later life. In one scene, a patient screams at Freud, "You are a Jew!" This caused Hill to think about his religion. "In the pause that followed I would think, 'What about this?' I slowly became aware that there was something more profound going on in the world than just plays and movies and TV shows. I was provoked to explore my religion." He was inspired by Rabbi Yakov Yosef Twersky (1900–1968), the late Skverrer
Rebbe
, to adhere to strict Orthodox Judaism
, observing a kosher diet, praying three times a day, wearing a four-cornered fringed
garment beneath his clothes, and strictly observing Shabbat
. This made Hill unavailable for Friday night or Saturday matinee performances, effectively ending his stage career and closing many roles to him in the movies, most notably The Sand Pebbles
.
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
. His two better-known roles are District Attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
Adam Schiff
Adam Schiff (Law & Order)
Adam Schiff is a fictional character on the TV drama series Law & Order. He was played by Steven Hill from 1990 to 2000. Schiff was one of the main characters of the series and appeared in every episode of the first ten seasons except for Everybody's Favorite Bagman, which was produced before Hill...
on the NBC TV drama series Law & Order
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
, whom he portrayed for ten seasons (1990–2000), and Dan Briggs, the original team leader of the Impossible Missions Force on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
's television series Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible is an American television series which was created and initially produced by Bruce Geller. It chronicled the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force . The leader of the team was Jim Phelps, played by Peter Graves, except in...
, whom he portrayed only in the initial season of the show (1966–1967).
Early life and career
Hill was born Solomon Krakovsky in Seattle, WashingtonSeattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
. After serving four years in the Naval Reserve, Hill made his first New York stage appearance in Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht was an American screenwriter, director, producer, playwright, and novelist. Called "the Shakespeare of Hollywood", he received screen credits, alone or in collaboration, for the stories or screenplays of some 70 films and as a prolific storyteller, authored 35 books and created some of...
's A Flag Is Born
A Flag is Born
A Flag Is Born was a play promoting the creation of a Jewish State in the ancient land of Israel. It opened on Broadway on September 4, 1946. The cast included Paul Muni, Celia Adler and Marlon Brando. Hollywood’s most successful screenwriter, Ben Hecht, was the playwright; it was directed by...
in 1946, which also featured a young Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
. Hill says his big break came when he landed a small part in the hit Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
show Mister Roberts
Mister Roberts (play)
Mister Roberts is a 1948 play based on the 1946 Thomas Heggen novel of the same name.The novel began as a collection of short stories about Heggen's experiences aboard the USS Virgo in the South Pacific during World War II...
. "The director, Joshua Logan
Joshua Logan
Joshua Lockwood Logan III was an American stage and film director and writer.-Early years:Logan was born in Texarkana, Texas, the son of Susan and Joshua Lockwood Logan. When he was three years old his father committed suicide...
, thought I had some ability, and he let me create one of the scenes," says Hill. "So, I improvised dialog and it went in the show. That was my first endorsement. It gave me tremendous encouragement to stay in the business." Hill said this was a thrilling time in his life when, fresh out of the service, he played the hapless sailor Stefanowski. "You could almost smell it from the very first reading that took place; this is going to be an overwhelming hit," said Hill. "We all felt it and experienced it and were convinced of it, and we were riding the crest of a wave from the very first day of rehearsals."
In 1947, Hill became a founding member of Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg was an American actor, director and acting teacher. He cofounded, with directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931, which was hailed as "America's first true theatrical collective"...
's Actors Studio
Actors Studio
The Actors Studio is a membership organization for professional actors, theatre directors and playwrights at 432 West 44th Street in the Clinton neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded October 5, 1947, by Elia Kazan, Cheryl Crawford, Robert Lewis and Anna Sokolow who provided...
alongside such other actors as Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift
Montgomery Clift
Edward Montgomery Clift was an American film and stage actor. The New York Times’ obituary noted his portrayal of "moody, sensitive young men"....
, and Julie Harris
Julie Harris
Julia Ann "Julie" Harris is an American stage, screen, and television actress. She has won five Tony Awards, three Emmy Awards and a Grammy Award, and was nominated for an Academy Award. In 1994, she was awarded the National Medal of Arts. She is a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame...
.
Hill made his film debut in 1950 in Lady Without a Passport
A Lady Without Passport
A Lady Without Passport is a suspense film directed by Joseph H. Lewis. Shot in semidocumentary style, it is considered film noir.-Plot:...
. He then re-enlisted in the Navy in 1952 for two years and, when he completed his service, resumed his acting in earnest. Strasberg later said, "Steven Hill is considered one of the finest actors America has ever produced". When he was starting out as an actor, Hill sought out roles that had a social purpose. "Later, I learned that show business is about entertaining," he says. "So, I've had to reconcile my idealistic feelings with reality".
Hill was particularly busy in the so-called "Golden Age
Golden Age of Television
The Golden Age of Television in the United States began sometime in the late 1940s and extended to the late 1950s or early 1960s.-Evolutions of drama on television:...
" of live TV drama, appearing in such prestigious video offerings as The Trial of Sacco and Vanzetti
Sacco and Vanzetti
Ferdinando Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were anarchists who were convicted of murdering two men during a 1920 armed robbery in South Braintree, Massachusetts, United States...
in 1960 earning him an Emmy nomination for his portrayal of Bartolomeo Vanzetti. "When I first became an actor, there were two young actors in New York: Marlon Brando and Steven Hill," said Martin Landau. "A lot of people said that Steven would have been the one, not Marlon. He was legendary. Nuts, volatile, mad, and his work was exciting".
In 1961, Hill had an unusual experience when he appeared as Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in Henry Denker
Henry Denker
Henry Denker is an American novelist and playwright.Denker was admitted to the New York Bar in 1935, at the height of the Depression, and he soon left law practice to earn his living by writing. His legal training is reflected in many of his works...
's A Far Country
A Far Country
A Far Country is a play by Henry Denker. The work premiered on Broadway at the Music Box Theatre on April 4, 1961 where it closed on November 25, 1961 after 271 performances. Produced by Roger L. Stevens and Joel Schenker, the production was directed by Alfred Ryder and used sets by Donald...
, portraying Freud at the age of 35. On April 12, 1961, Hill was stricken with a virus the night of a sold-out performance for the Masters Children's Center of Dobbs Ferry. As a result, the producers decided to cancel the performance just as the curtain was about to go up. Among the notables in the audience were Joseph P. Kennedy
Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr.
Joseph Patrick "Joe" Kennedy, Sr. was a prominent American businessman, investor, and government official....
, Jack Benny
Jack Benny
Jack Benny was an American comedian, vaudevillian, and actor for radio, television, and film...
, and Richard Rodgers
Richard Rodgers
Richard Charles Rodgers was an American composer of music for more than 900 songs and for 43 Broadway musicals. He also composed music for films and television. He is best known for his songwriting partnerships with the lyricists Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein II...
. The audience was invited to exchange its ticket stubs for other performances. The understudy was not ready to replace Hill, so Alfred Ryder
Alfred Ryder
Alfred Ryder was an American film, radio and television actor. Ryder may best be remembered for appearing in over one hundred television shows, including the 1959 starring role as a British criminal who could not be killed in Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond episode 'The Devil's Laughter'...
, the play's director, stepped into the role of Freud for one performance.. Hill guested in the original Robert Stack series 'The Untouchables' episode: 'Jack 'Legs' Diamond' as the title gangster character giving a compelling cold evil performance, and a similar sinister role as a confined to bed (following an accident) ruthless manipulative millionaire in 'The White Knight' a 1966 black & white third season episode of The Fugitive
The Fugitive (TV series)
The Fugitive is an American drama series produced by QM Productions and United Artists Television that aired on ABC from 1963 to 1967. David Janssen stars as Richard Kimble, a doctor from the fictional town of Stafford, Indiana, who is falsely convicted of his wife's murder and given the death...
Starring David Janssen.
Hill's early screen credits include The Goddess and A Child Is Waiting
A Child Is Waiting
A Child Is Waiting is a 1963 American drama film written by Abby Mann and directed by John Cassavetes. Burt Lancaster portrays the director of a state institution for mentally handicapped and emotionally disturbed children, and Judy Garland is a new teacher who challenges his methods.-Plot:Jean...
.
Mission: Impossible
Hill was the original leader of the Impossible Missions Force, Dan Briggs in the series Mission: ImpossibleMission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible is an American television series which was created and initially produced by Bruce Geller. It chronicled the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force . The leader of the team was Jim Phelps, played by Peter Graves, except in...
beginning in 1966. The phrase "Good morning, Mr. Briggs..." was a fixture early in each episode as it began a tape recording he retrieved which detailed the task he must accomplish, however he left the show in 1967 after the end of the first season. As one of the few Orthodox Jewish
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
actors working in Hollywood, he made it clear in advance of production that he was not able to work on the Sabbath
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
(i.e., sundown Friday to dusk Saturday), and that he would be leaving the set every Friday before sundown. However, despite Hill's advance warnings, the show's producers were unprepared for his rigid adherence to the Sabbath, and on at least one occasion Hill left the set while an episode was still in the midst of filming. The producers used a number of ways of reducing the role of Hill's character Dan Briggs whereby his character would only obtain & hand out the mission details at the start of certain episodes being unable to take further part as he was 'known' to people they would encounter (used at least three times), or Briggs would need to don a disguise & another actor would then play his role incognito until the conclusion of the mission (& episode) when Briggs peeled off a face mask, on other occasions Briggs would be waiting to pick up the team at the end, usually Martin Landau's character 'Rollin Hand' would take over as the team leader for mission's in Briggs' absence (Martin Landau being initally a 'special guest star' for the first season not even included in the show's original opening credits).
According to Desilu executive Herb Solow, once William Shatner
William Shatner
William Alan Shatner is a Canadian actor, musician, recording artist, and author. He gained worldwide fame and became a cultural icon for his portrayal of James T...
burst into his office, claiming "Steve asked me how many Jews worked on Star Trek. He was recruiting a prayer group of ten guys to worship together on top of the studio's highest building and only had six Jews as far from Mission. He asked if I would come and bring Nimoy
Leonard Nimoy
Leonard Simon Nimoy is an American actor, film director, poet, musician and photographer. Nimoy's most famous role is that of Spock in the original Star Trek series , multiple films, television and video game sequels....
and Justman and you."
Hill was briefly suspended from the show near the end of the season, during the production of episode no. 23 (entitled Action!- where for the only time Barbara Bain's character 'Cinnamon Carter' obtained the mission via the taped instructions, tho' Landau's 'Rollin Hand' then led the team). The suspension was imposed after he refused to climb the rafters via a soundstage staircase, as was called for in the script. (This incident was unrelated to any religious observances of Hill's.) Consequently, Hill was written out of that episode, and when he returned to Mission: Impossible for the five remaining episodes of the season, his role was severely reduced. Hill was not asked to return for season 2, and was replaced as the show's star by Peter Graves
Peter Graves (actor)
Peter Aurness , known professionally as Peter Graves, was an American film and television actor. He was best known for his starring role in the CBS television series Mission: Impossible from 1967 to 1973...
. No onscreen explanation was ever given re Dan Briggs later absence from the series. Steven Hill was however featured prominently as Dan Briggs in around 17 or so of the first season episodes.
Hiatus and return to acting
After appearing in Mission: Impossible, Hill did no acting work for the following ten years. Hill had what he calls "tremendous periods of unemployment" in his career. "What we have here is a story of profound instability and impermanence," he said of his own career. "This is what you learn at the beginning in show business; then it gets planted in you forever". Hill left acting in 1967 and moved to a Jewish community in Rockland County, New YorkRockland County, New York
Rockland County is a suburban county 15 miles to the northwest of Manhattan and part of the New York City Metropolitan Area, in the U.S. state of New York. It is the southernmost county in New York west of the Hudson River, and the smallest county in New York outside of New York City. The...
where he worked in writing and real estate. Patrick J. White, in The Complete "Mission: Impossible" Dossier, quoted Hill as having said later, "I don't think an actor should act every single day. I don't think it's good for the so-called creative process. You must have periods when you leave the land fallow, let it revitalize itself." After ten years, he was ready to begin acting again. "They say you can't quit show business," he said in 1977. "It took ten years, but I couldn't get it out of my system. So I called an agent and put him to work."
Hill returned to work in the 1980s and 1990s, playing parental and authority-figure roles in such films as Yentl
Yentl (film)
Yentl is a 1983 romantic musical drama film from United Artists, and directed, co-written, co-produced, and starring Barbra Streisand based on the play of the same name by Leah Napolin and Isaac Bashevis Singer, itself based on Singer's short story, "Yentl the Yeshiva Boy".The dramatic story...
(1983
1983 in film
-Events:*February 11 - The Rolling Stones concert film Let's Spend the Night Together opens in New York*May 25 - Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, the final film in the original Star Wars trilogy, is released. Like the previous films, it goes on to become the top grossing picture of...
), Garbo Talks
Garbo Talks
Garbo Talks is a 1984 American comedy-drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Anne Bancroft, Ron Silver, Carrie Fisher, and Betty Comden as Greta Garbo.The movie was written by Larry Grusin and also stars Catherine Hicks and Steven Hill...
(1984), Neil Simon
Neil Simon
Neil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
's Brighton Beach Memoirs
Brighton Beach Memoirs
Brighton Beach Memoirs is a semi-autobiographical play by Neil Simon, the first chapter in what is known as his Eugene trilogy. It precedes Biloxi Blues and Broadway Bound.-Characters:*Eugene Morris Jerome, almost 15...
, Heartburn
Heartburn
Heartburn, also known as pyrosis or acid indigestion is a burning sensation in the chest, just behind the breastbone or in the epigastrium...
(1986
1986 in film
-Events:*April 12 - Actor Morgan Mason marries The Go-Go's Belinda Carlisle.*April 26 - Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger marries television journalist Maria Shriver.*May - Actress Heather Locklear marries Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee....
), and Billy Bathgate
Billy Bathgate (film)
Billy Bathgate is a 1991 American crime film directed by Robert Benton, starring Loren Dean as the titular character and Dustin Hoffman as gangster Dutch Schultz. The film co-stars Nicole Kidman, Steven Hill, Steve Buscemi, and Bruce Willis. It is based on the novel of the same name by E.L....
(1991
1991 in film
The year 1991 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*April 28 - Bonnie Raitt marries actor Michael O'Keefe in New York* Terminator 2: Judgment Day, became one of the landmarks for science fiction action films with its groundbreaking visual effects from Industrial Light & Magic.*November...
). Hill also appeared as a mob kingpin in Raw Deal
Raw Deal (1986 film)
Raw Deal is 1986 action film directed by John Irvin and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. It is the story of an elderly and embittered high-ranking FBI agent who wants to get revenge against a Mafia organization, and sends a former FBI agent played by Schwarzenegger to destroy the organization from...
(1986), an action vehicle for Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
.
Law & Order
Hill is best known as Adam SchiffAdam Schiff (Law & Order)
Adam Schiff is a fictional character on the TV drama series Law & Order. He was played by Steven Hill from 1990 to 2000. Schiff was one of the main characters of the series and appeared in every episode of the first ten seasons except for Everybody's Favorite Bagman, which was produced before Hill...
in the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
TV drama series Law & Order
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
, a part that he played for ten seasons (1990–2000). Hill's character is loosely modeled after the real former district attorney of New York, Robert Morgenthau and it is reported that Morgenthau was a fan of the character. Hill says playing Adam Schiff is the hardest role he's ever had because of all the legal jargon he has to learn. "It's like acting in a second language," says Hill. Hill adds that he agrees with the show's philosophy. "There's a certain positive statement in this show," Hill says. "So much is negative today. The positive must be stated to rescue us from pandemonium. To me it lies in that principle: law and order." Hill earned another Emmy nomination for Best Supporting Actor In a Dramatic Series in 1997. At the time of his departure, Hill was the longest-serving cast member. Along with Law & Order castmate Sam Waterston
Sam Waterston
Samuel Atkinson "Sam" Waterston is an American actor and occasional producer and director. Among other roles, he is noted for his Academy Award-nominated portrayal of Sydney Schanberg in 1984's The Killing Fields, and his Golden Globe- and Screen Actors Guild Award-winning portrayal of Jack McCoy...
, Hill has also appeared in commercials for T.D. Waterhouse, an investment brokerage.
Personal life
Hill and his first wife, Selma Stern, were married in 1951 and had four children before divorcing in 1964. Hill married his second wife, Rachel, in 1967 and they have five children.His Orthodox Judaism
Skver (Hasidic dynasty)
Skver is the name of a Hasidic dynasty founded by Rebbe Yitzchok Twerski in the city of Skver . Followers of the rebbes of Skver are called Skverer hasidim....
Rebbe
Rebbe
Rebbe , which means master, teacher, or mentor, is a Yiddish word derived from the Hebrew word Rabbi. It often refers to the leader of a Hasidic Jewish movement...
, to adhere to strict Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
, observing a kosher diet, praying three times a day, wearing a four-cornered fringed
Tzitzit
The Hebrew noun tzitzit is the name for specially knotted ritual fringes worn by observant Jews. Tzitzit are attached to the four corners of the tallit and tallit katan.-Etymology:The word may derive from the semitic root N-TZ-H...
garment beneath his clothes, and strictly observing Shabbat
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
. This made Hill unavailable for Friday night or Saturday matinee performances, effectively ending his stage career and closing many roles to him in the movies, most notably The Sand Pebbles
The Sand Pebbles (film)
The Sand Pebbles is a 1966 American period war film directed by Robert Wise. It tells the story of an independent, rebellious U.S. Navy Machinist's Mate aboard the fictional gunboat USS San Pablo in 1920s China....
.