Edward G. Robinson

Biography

Edward G. Robinson (born Emanuel Goldenberg; December 12, 1893 – January 26, 1973) was a Romanian-born American actor and political activist. Although he played a wide range of characters, he is best remembered for his roles as a gangster, most notably in his star-making film Little Caesar (1931). Robinson's career saw a decline during the 1950s Red Scare when he was threatened with blacklisting. Experiencing underemployment, he turned towards minor roles in B movies until he eventually returned to the mainstream by playing one of Moses' adversaries Dathan in Cecil B. DeMille's religious epic The Ten Commandments (1956). He was ranked number 24 in the American Film Institute's list of the 25 greatest male stars of Classic American cinema. Never having been nominated for an Academy Award during his 60-year career, he became a posthumous recipient of an Honorary Oscar in 1973, two months after his death.

Robinson was Jewish and a staunch critic of fascist and Nazi ideologies that were on the rise in the 1930s. He donating more than $250,000 to 850 political and charitable organizations between 1939 and 1949, hosted a gathering at his home to sign a declaration calling for a boycott of all German-made products, frequently appeared at Soviet and American war relief rallies, delivered radio addresses in over six languages to Nazi-occupied European countries, and traveled to Normandy to entertain the troops, becoming the first movie star to go there for the USO. Robin was also an outspoken supporter of the civil rights movement, and regularly campaigned to overcome segregation.