Telly Savalas

Telly Savalas

Date of Birth: 21 Jan 1922

Country: USA

Biography: Son of Greek immigrants. Soldier during World War II. Studied psychology. Worked as journalist for ABC News. The bald-headed actor played character roles, often as sadistic or psychotic types. He became a TV favorite in the 1970s when his role as Det. Theo Kojak in the TV movie The Marcus-Nelson Murders was expanded into the gritty Kojak TV series, lasting from 1973-78.

Total Credits at Criticker: 74 (Actor), 1 (Director), 1 (Writer)

Biography last updated by Dunstan-xxx, and picture by Zoltan

Find more information about Telly Savalas at The Internet Movie Database

Titles you haven't rated - Actor (74) | Director (1) | Writer (1)

    The Dirty Dozen
    A US Army Major is assigned a dozen convicted murderers to train and lead them into a mass assassination mission of German officers in World War II. (imdb)
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    On Her Majesty\
    Bond is approached by a crime boss to marry his daughter and in return both father and daughter help 007 hunt for his archenemy, Ernst Stavro Blofeld. (imdb)
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    Horror Express
    An English anthropologist (Christopher Lee) has discovered a frozen monster in the frozen wastes of Manchuria which he believes may be the Missing Link. (imdb)
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    Kelly\
    A group of U.S. soldiers sneaks across enemy lines to get their hands on a secret stash of Nazi treasure. (imdb)
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    Birdman of Alcatraz
    A surly convicted murderer held in permanent isolation redeems himself when he becomes a renowned bird expert. (imdb)
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    Cape Fear
    A lawyer's family is stalked by a man he once helped put in jail. (imdb)
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    Alice in Wonderland
    T.V. movie based on the classic story by Lewis Carroll. (imdb)
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    The Greatest Story Ever Told
    The life of Jesus Christ. (imdb)
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    Lisa and the Devil
    Lisa is a tourist in an ancient city. When she gets lost, she finds an old mansion in which to shelter. Soon she is sucked into a vortex of deception, debauchery and evil presided over by housekeeper Leandre. (imdb)
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    Capricorn One
    Classic conspiracy tale about the first manned mission to Mars. All appears to be going well until the astronauts are pulled off the ship just before launch by shadowy government types and whisked off to a film studio in the desert. It transpires that the space vehicle has a major defect which NASA just daren't admit. (imdb)
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    Cannonball Run II
    The original characters from the first Cannonball movie race across the country once more in various cars and trucks. (imdb)
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    Beyond the Poseidon Adventure
    After "The Poseidon Adventure", in which the ship got flipped over by a tidal wave, the ship drifts bottom-up in the sea. While the passengers are still on board waiting to be rescued, two rivaling salvage parties enter the ship on search for money, gold and a small amount of plutonium. (imdb)
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    Escape to Athena
    During the World War II, the prisoners of a German camp in a greek island are trying to escape. They don't want only their freedom, but they also seek for an ineffable treasure hidden in a monastery at the top of the island's mountain. (imdb)
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    Battle of the Bulge
    In the winter of 1944, the Allied Armies stand ready to invade Germany at the coming of a New Year. To prevent this occurrence, Hitler orders an all out offensive to re-take French territory and capture the major port city of Antwerp. "The Battle of the Bulge" shows this conflict from the perspective of an American intelligence officer as well as from a German Panzer Commander. (imdb)
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    The Slender Thread
    Alan is a Seattle college student volunteering at a crisis center. One night when at the clinic alone, a woman calls up the number and tells Alan that she needs to talk to someone. She informs Alan she took a load of pills, and he secretly tries to get help. During this time, he learns more about the woman, her family life, and why she wants to die. Can Alan get the cavalry to save her in time before it's too late? (imdb)
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    Mackenna\
    The gangster Colorado kidnaps Marshal McKenna. He believes that McKenna has seen a map which leads to a rich vein of gold in the mountains and forces him to show him the way. But they're not the only ones who're after the gold; soon they meet a group of "honorable" citizens and the cavalry crosses their way too - and that is even before they enter Indian territory. (imdb)
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    The Scalphunters
    Trapper Joe is on his way to the town with all of his gain of hides of the last winter. However a group of Indians stops him and takes all of his hides, leaving him the escaped slave Joseph instead. But Joe has no use for Joseph and is determined to get his property back and follows them... (imdb)
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    The Assassination Bureau
    The Assassination Bureau has existed for decades (perhaps centuries) until Diana Rigg begins to investigate it. The high moral standing of the Bureau (only killing those who deserve it) is called into question by her. She puts out a contract for the Bureau to assassinate its leader on the eve of World War I. (imdb)
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    Backfire!
    Just as Jeremy Jackson attempts to become the first male firewoman in New York, fires begin mysteriously erupting from toilets all over the City and Fire Marshal Marc Marshall is called in to investigate. From the start, Jeremy is heckled and sexually harassed by his tough as nails female cohorts including his instructor, the hard-boiled Lt. Shithouse. Jessica Luvintryst, Jeremy's old flame and the Mayor's very personal assistant, rekindles the fire in his eyes and between his thighs.(imdb)
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    Sonny and Jed
    A determined sheriff pursues a robber and his girlfriend, and lets nothing stop in his way of catching them. (imdb)
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    Violent City
    After a bloody double-cross leaves him for dead, professional hit man Jeff (Charles Bronson) tracks the shooter and his beautiful mistress (Jill Ireland) to New Orleans. But when Jeff takes both revenge and the woman, he finds himself blackmailed by a powerful crime boss (Telly Savalas) who wants the fiercely independent gunman to join his organization. Jeff refuses, and is hunted through an unforgiving city where love is like a loaded gun and debts of vengeance are paid in bullets. (imdb)
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    The Young Savages
    A district attorney investigates the racially charged case of three Italian teenagers accused of the murder of a blind Puerto Rican boy. He begins to discover that the facts are the case aren't exactly as they seem to be. (imdb)
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    Genghis Khan
    Temujin raises a Mongol army and revenges himself on his old enemy Jamuga. (variety)
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    Fake-Out
    Bobbie Warren (Zadora) is a Las Vegas nightclub singer with ties to the mob which land her in jail until she agrees to testify. She buys her way out by saying she'll squeal and is remanded to the custody of two cops (Arnaz Jr. and Savalas). They keep her in a casino hotel while she waits to see the D.A. She falls in love with one while still holding out hope of escaping them and returning to her boyfriend. Too bad he's already plotting to have her rubbed out. Ostensibly a comedy/thriller. (imdb)
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    Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell
    Carla Campbell receives maintenance payment by three former GIs who all believe to be the father of her daughter Gia. (imdb)
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    Mind Twister
    Two former exotic dancers devise a plot to expose a physciatrist as the murderer of their friend. (imdb)
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    Faceless
    The demented Dr. Flamand (Helmut Berger) and his beautiful but deadly assistant Nathalie (Brigitte Lahaie) lure unsuspecting victims in this horror feature. The doctor uses the young skins of his victims to perform plastic surgery on his disfigured sister. Telly Savalas is Hallen, the New York businessman who hires private detective Sam Morgan (Chris Mitchum) to find his missing fashion model daughter Barbara (Caroline Munro). (allmovie)
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    Killer Force
    A heist force attempts to rob the diamond mine facility. (imdb)
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    Scenes from a Murder
    A woman whose husband was murdered five years previously, is stalked by his killer, who wants to eliminate her as a potential witness. What he doesn't know is that the shock of his murder caused her to have amnesia, and she doesn't remember anything. (imdb)
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    Johnny Cool
    A deported gangster trains an Italian convict to take over his operations in the U.S. (imdb)
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    Pretty Maids All in a Row
    Female students are being killed at a California high school as a smooth-talking coach attempts to guide an awkward virgin in the ways of seduction
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    A Reason to Live, a Reason to Die
    A dishonored army officer saves the lives of some hardened criminals on condition that they help him regain his honor. Will they live up to his expectations? (IMDd)
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    Beyond Reason
    A seemingly succesful psychiatrist begins to lose his grip on reality, and embarks on an affair with a patient. (imdb)
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    A Town Called Hell
    A group of Mexican revolutionaries murders a town priest and a number of his christian followers. Ten years later, a widow arrives in town intent to take revenge from her husband's killers. (imdb)
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    Inside Out
    Telly Savalas, James Mason and Robert Culp join together to discover a hidden cache of $6 million in Nazi gold in this action caper. (All Movie Guide)
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    Pancho Villa
    Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa is double-crossed in an arms deal planned by his comrade Scotty. Villa and Scotty plot a raid on a U.S. cavalry fort in retaliation. (imdb)
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    Dirty Dozen: The Deadly Mission
    Telly Savalas assumes the role of the leader of the Dirty Dozen from Lee Marvin. In this movie he and the Dozen are suppose to destroy a nerve gas manufacturing plant before the Germans can make enough to use against the Allies. (imdb)
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    The Dirty Dozen: The Fatal Mission
    A team of renegade soldiers of World War II try to avoid the constitution of the IV Reich. (imdb)
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    Clay Pigeon
    An ex-soldier is recruited by the FBI to go undercover in L.A. and find other ex-soldiers who are part of a drug-dealing gang. (imdb)
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    Love Is a Ball
    Etienne makes a good living out of marrying off poor but titled young men to rich but untitled young ladies. Millicent is now in his sights on the Riviera, and Grand Duke Gaspar is the bait. But what if Millicent starts to fancy planted chauffeur John instead, and Gaspar takes a shine to Etienne's secretary Janine? (imdb)
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    Crime Boss
    A cocky young hoodlum may have gotten in over his head as he reaches for the top in this crime drama. Antonio Mancuso (Antonio Sabato) comes from a small town in Sicily where there are few opportunities for a young man to build a career. Eager to make something of himself, Antonio travels to Italy on the recommendation of a local mobster, and becomes a low-level Mafioso working with his cousin Nicola (Giuliano Persico), an underworld jack-of-all-trades who moonlights as a pimp. (allmovie.com)
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    Border Cop
    The story of one border guard's desire to put an end to the practice of hauling truck loads of illegal Mexican workers across the border and into California where they are forced to work for a mere pittance. Mexico provided the background for the outdoor shots.
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    Redneck
    A redneck lunatic from Memphis named Memphis (Telly Savalas) and his mindless partner Mosquito (Franco Nero), along with their female escape driver/boy toy, are on the run in Italy after knocking off a jewelry store and shooting the owner dead. In their botched escape attempts the three galoots steal a car, inadvertently kidnapping a young boy (Mark Lester) hidden in the backseat... (picmovs.blogspot.com)
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    Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story
    Somewhat fact-based story of the lives and attempted 1962 escape of several inmates in the famous correctional facility. Young inmate Clarence Carnes masterminds a grand escape involving several inmates who have nothing to lose, serving life sentences. (imdb)
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    Beau Geste
    Michael "Beau" Geste leaves England in disgrace and joins the infamous French Foreign Legion. He is reunited with his two brothers in North Africa, where they face greater danger from their own sadistic commander than from the rebellious Arabs. (imdb)
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    Land Raiders
    An outlaw committing a string of robberies and murders manages to blame the crimes on Apaches, bringing about an Indian war. (imdb)
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    The Interns
    During their first year of internship at New North Hospital, a group of aspiring doctors undergo both personal and professional upheavals. John Paul Otis destroys his medical career when he falls in love with celebrated model Lisa Cardigan and tries to steal pills from the hospital in order to abort her pregnancy. His lifelong friend, Lew Worship, feels duty-bound to report the theft, and Otis is expelled. (imdb)
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    The Man from the Diners\
    An employee at Diner's Club issues a credit card to a well-known mobster and has to retrieve it in order to keep his job. (imdb)
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    Mad Dog Coll
    Story of Vincent "Mad Dog" Coll, a notorious gangland killer in the 1930s. (imdb)
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    Cosa Nostra, Arch Enemy of the FBI
    Released theatrically in Europe, Cosa Nostra, Arch Enemy of the FBI originated as "The Executioner", a two-part episode of the weekly TV series The FBI. The series' usual stars Efrem Zimbalist Jr., Philip Abbott and Stephen Brooks are joined on this occasion by guest artists Walter Pidgeon, Celeste Holm, Telly Savalas and Susan Strasberg-and, way down on the cast list, Robert Duvall. The story concerns double-crosses within the inner circles of La Cosa Nostra. (allrovi.com)
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    Crooks and Coronets
    Two crooks are hired to rob an eccentric old lady's estate, but once they get to know her, they can't bring themselves to do it. (imdb)
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    The French Atlantic Affair
    A luxury liner is hijacked by terrorists. (imdb)
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    Hellinger\
    Telly Savalas plays a flamboyant criminal lawyer who takes on the case of a syndicate's accountant (actually a Justice Department agent who has infiltrated the mob) accused of murdering a local TV newscaster. (imdb)
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    The Karate Killers
    U.N.C.L.E. agents Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin travel around the globe in an effort to track down a secret formula that was divided into four parts and left by a dying scientist with his four daughters, all of whom live in different countries. Evil THRUSH agent Randolph also wants the formula, and is aided by his karate-chopping henchmen. (imdb)
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    The New Interns
    Playboy Alec Considine returns to New North Hospital for another year's internship after suffering a mental breakdown during his first attempt at internship. Among the new interns he guides around the hospital are the explosive Tony Parelli, a former slum boy who is soon at odds with Dr. Riccio, head of the hospital; and Phil Osterman, who smuggles his bride into the intern's quarters to live.
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    The Cartier Affair
    Curt Taylor is a convict and owes Phil Drexler the number 1 convict in the prison. Now to settle his debt Drexler sends Curt to be the secretary for Cartier Rand so that he can steal her jewels. But he falls in love with her, which complicates things. (imdb)
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    Kojak: Ariana
    One of Kojak's old enemies uses Ariana, a young Greek girl, as bait to trap the legendary New York detective. Meanwhile, Kojak finds himself a brash young associate. (imdb)
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    Kojak: Fatal Flaw
    Investigating the murder of a writer responsible for a Mob exposé, Kojak discovers that the dead man's wife is an old flame. (imdb)
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    Kojak: Flowers for Matty
    Kojak charms his way into high society to investigate art thefts that are tied to munitions smuggling and murder. (imdb)
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    Kojak: It\
    After discovering the connection between a corrupt city commissioner and Colombian killers, Kojak is framed for the murder of a call girl and is prosecuted by former police detective Crocker, now an assistant D.A. (imdb)
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    Kojak: None So Blind
    After a flighty young woman accidentally witnesses a Mob hit in an Italian restaurant, New York Police Inspector Theo Kojak must both protect her from an unscrupulous Dutch hitman, and bring Mob kingpin Tony Salducci to justice. (imdb)
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    Kojak: The Belarus File
    Lieutenant Theo Kojak teams up with Dana Sutton, a comely federal agent, to uncover a conspiracy reaching back to the Nazi occupation of the Soviet Union. (imdb)
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    Kojak: The Price of Justice
    The bald detective in a fedora finds himself attracted to a foxy, enigmatic woman who is suspected in the murders of her two small sons. (imdb)
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    Mongo\
    Professional killer is hired by his brother, a gang boss, to wipe out a rival gangster. (imdb)
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    GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords
    The Go-Bots fight to rescue the Rock People. (imdb)
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    Kojak
    Kojak (1973) - TV Series
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    Sol Madrid
    Government agent Sol Madrid travels to Mexico with hooker Stacey to bring mobster Villanova and drug kingpin Dietrich to justice. (imdb)
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    She Cried Murder
    A model, while riding in the front car of a subway train, witnesses a woman being pushed in front of the train. But when the police come to interview her, she recognizes one of them as the man who did the pushing. (imdb)
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    The House of Exorcism
    In this re-edit of Lisa and the Devil (1973), a troubled priest attempts to exorcise the soul of an American tourist who has been possessed by the Devil after witnessing supernatural events at a Spanish villa. (imdb)
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    The Marcus-Nelson Murders
    Lt. Theo Kojak believes that a black youth who confessed to the murder of two white girls was beaten and coerced by his police interrogators and is innocent of the crime. (Kojak Wiki)
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    Combat!
    Combat! (1962) - TV Series
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    The Twilight Zone
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    The Fugitive
    The Fugitive (1963) - TV Series
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    Tales of the Unexpected
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