Who is Mark Margolis?
American actor Mark Margolis was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA, on 26 November 1939, meaning that Sagittarius is his zodiac sign. He’s had roles in over 160 movies and TV series, but is perhaps known best for playing Hector Salamanca in eight episodes (2009-2011) of what’s widely rated one of the best series of all time – the crime thriller “Breaking Bad”. It starred Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston, was created by Vince Gilligan, and follows a chemistry teacher who’s been diagnosed with lung cancer, and has now begun manufacturing methamphetamine; the series aired from 2008 through 2013, and won 155 of its 402 award nominations.
Education and early life
Mark was raised in Philadelphia by his parents Isidore Margolis and Fanya (nee Fried); he hasn’t shared many details about his mother and father, because he’s respective of their privacy, except that they were Polish-Jewish and Russian-Jewish immigrants respectively.
Mark fell in love with acting while attending a local high school in Philadelphia, and upon matriculating in 1958, enrolled at Temple University, but attended for only a year, as he dropped out and moved to New York City to study acting, at the Actors Studio under the late American actress and acting teacher Stella Adler, and was then trained by both Lee Strasberg and Barbara Loden.
From 1962 through 1976, prior to launching his career on TV, Mark appeared in a number of theatre plays, most of which of which off-Broadway, but the names of these plays haven’t been disclosed.
Roles in movies
Mark’s debut film role was playing Unhappy Guy on Plane in the 1976 pornographic comedy “The Opening of Misty Beethoven”, while he was then cast to appear in the 1977 drama “Short Eyes”, the 1979 crime comedy “Going in Style”, and the 1980 crime mystery “Dressed to Kill”.
In 1983, he played Shadow in the evergreen crime drama “Scarface”, which starred Michelle Pfeiffer and Al Pacino, and was directed by Brian De Palma. Set in Miami, Florida in 1980, the film follows a Cuban immigrant set on taking over a drug cartel, and the film was nominated for eight awards. Some of Mark’s notable performances in the remainder of the ‘80s were in the 1984 crime musical “The Cotton Club”, the 1987 crime mystery thriller “The Bedroom Window”, and the 1989 biographical historical drama “Glory”.
In 1994, Mark played Shickadance in the hit comedy “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective”, which starred Courteney Cox and Jim Carrey, and was directed by Tom Shadyac. The film follows a pet detective as he’s searching for the missing mascot of the Miami Dolphins, and it won five of its 11 award nominations. Mark could then have been seen appearing in the 1994 biographical adventure “Squanto: A Warrior’s Tale”, the 1996 biographical drama “I Shot Andy Warhol” and the 1998 mystery horror “Pi”.
He played Mr. Rabinowitz in the evergreen 2000 drama “Requiem for a Dream”, and the year 2003 saw him play Fallon in the crime action “Daredevil”, written and directed by Mark Steven Johnson, and which starred Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner and Colin Farrell. It follows a man who’s been blinded by toxic waste, but which has enhanced his other senses, and the film won five of its 22 award nominations. Some of the most popular movies in which Mark appeared in the remainder of the decade were perhaps the 2004 comedy “House of D”, the 2006 romantic mystery “The Fountain”, and the 2008 historical action “Defiance”.
He voiced Magog in the 2014 action adventure “Noah”, which starred Anthony Hopkins, Jennifer Connelly and Russell Crowe, and was written and directed by Darren Aronofsky. It follows Noah who’s been chosen by God to take on a mission before an apocalyptic event ‘cleanses the world’; the film won one of its 20 award nominations.
Mark’s three most recent film roles have been in the 2019 comedy “Abe”, the 2020 drama “Minyan”, and the 2022 thriller “Broken Soldier”.
Roles in TV series
Mark’s debut TV series role was playing First Gunman in the 1977 episode “Monkey on a String” of the crime action “Kojak”.
The ‘80s saw him appear in an episode of a couple of series, and what marked the decade for him was perhaps portraying Jimmy in 16 episodes of the crime action “The Equalizer”, which starred Keith Szarabajka and Edward Woodward, and was created by Richard Lindheim. It follows the life of a private detective, the series aired from 1985 through 1989, and won two of its 13 award nominations.
Some of Mark’s TV series roles in the ‘90s were in the drama “The Antagonists”, the drama “P. S. I. Luv U” and the crime drama “New York Undercover”, appearing in an episode of all three.
In 2006, he played Sal Trovotelli in the drama “Waterfront”, which starred Bruce MacVittie and Joe Pantoliano, and follows the life of mayor of Providence, Rhode Island.
@rock_golf No I did not. Always wondered if there was a missing twin pic.twitter.com/vlQdG2IeQ8
— mark margolis (@markmargolis1) September 21, 2014
From 2016 through 2022, Mark reprised his role as Hector Salamanca in 22 episodes of the hit crime drama “Better Call Saul”, which starred Rhea Seehorn and Bob Odenkirk, and was created by Vince Gilligan. It follows the life of criminal attorney Jimmy McGill, and the series won 60 of its 342 award nominations; the website IMDb.com ranks the series ‘#32 – Best of All Time.’
Most recently, in 2023, Mark portrayed Carmine Conti in five episodes of the crime thriller “Your Honor”.
Other credits
Mark received special thanks for the 2020 drama “All Together Now”.
Two of his talk-show appearances have been in “Talking Bad” and “Celebrity Page”.
Awards and nominations
Mark’s been nominated for five awards, including a 2012 Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series, for his performance in “Breaking Bad”.
He was also nominated for a 2012 Online Film & Television Association Award for Best Guest Actor in a Drama Series, a 2012 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films Saturn Award for Best Guest Performance in a Television Series and two Gold Derby Awards in 2012 and 2019, all for his performance in “Breaking Bad”.
Love life and marriage
Mark prefers not to share the details of his love life with the public, but it’s known that he’s today a married man, as well as a father. He and American actress Jacqueline nee Pelcove exchanged vows on 3 June 1962, in a small and private ceremony; she’s only four days older than Mark, as she was born on 22 November 1939. Jacqueline gave birth to their son Morgan H. Margolis in 1966, and he’s today an actor and producer; Morgan’s had roles in 32 movies and TV series, but is perhaps still known best for playing Policeman A in the 2001 action crime comedy movie “3000 Miles to Graceland”, which was nominated for 13 awards.
Mark’s yet to mention other women whom he’s dated, he’s married to Jacqueline Margolis as of May 2023, and they have a son together.
Interesting facts and hobbies
Mark and famous American/Swiss singer and actress Tina Turner were born on the exact same day.
Mark’s revealed that shooting for the series “Breaking Bad” was the best experience of his life, as he worked with great actors and the writing crew.
He’s today living in New York City, but also likes Los Angeles, California, and New Mexico.
Mark prefers to stay away from social media networks and isn’t active on Instagram, but over 3,000 pictures and videos featuring him have been posted onto the network by other users.
Amongst his favorite actors is Danny DeVito, and some of Mark’s favorite movies include “Batman Returns”, “Twins” and “Romancing the Stone”.
Height, eyes and wealth
Mark’s age is 83. He has brown eyes and grey hair, is 5ft 11ins (1.8m) tall and weighs around 165lbs (75kgs).
His net worth’s been estimated at over $2.5 million, as of May 2023.
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