Frank Langella

Frank Langella's status as one of the most highly regarded actors of the American stage was well-deserved, as his grand presence earned two Tony Awards by the time he was 30 years old. During his career of 75-plus stage plays and three dozen films, Langella, with his penchant for bold, romantic leads and chilly villains, was entrusted with such classic characters as Count Dracula, Sherlock Holmes and Cyrano de Bergerac. He favored period classics during his early years, but middle age found him more at ease in contemporary film drama, where he earned critical notice for "Dave" (1993), "Good Night and Good Luck" (2005), a portrayal of Richard Nixon that migrated from the West End to Broadway to movie screens in "Frost/Nixon" (2008) and a whimsical turn as an aging thief in the science fiction comedy-drama "Robot and Frank" (2012). Even as high profile film roles eventually brought the actor mainstream recognition, Langella maintained his residency in the world of professional thespians rather than being a Hollywood commodity.