Trivia: American actor Robert Conrad was a graduate of Northwestern University, spending his first few years out of school supporting himself and his family by driving a milk truck and singing in a Chicago cabaret. Conrad befriended up-and-coming actor Nick Adams during this period, and it was Adams who helped Conrad get his first Hollywood work in 1957. A few movie bit parts later, Conrad was signed for a comparative pittance by Warner Bros. studios, and in 1959 was cast as detective Tom Lopaka on the weekly adventure series Hawaiian Eye. Upon the 1963 cancellation of this series, Conrad made a handful of Spanish and American films and toured with a nightclub act in Australia and Mexico City. Cast as frontier secret agent James West in The Wild Wild West in 1965, Conrad brought home $5000 a week during the series' first season and enjoyed increasing remunerations as West remained on the air until 1969. There are those who insist that Wild Wild West would have been colorless without the co-starring presence of Ross Martin, an opinion with which Conrad has always agreed. The actor's bid to star in a 1970 series based on the venerable Nick Carter pulp stories got no further than a pilot episode, while the Jack Webb-produced 1971 Robert Conrad series The D.A. was cancelled after 13 episodes. When Roy Scheider pulled out of the 1972 adventure weekly Assignment: Vienna, Conrad stepped in--and was out, along with the rest of Assignment: Vienna, by June of 1973. Conrad had better luck with 1976's Baa Baa Black Sheep, aka Black Sheep Squadron, a popular series based on the World War II exploits of Major "Pappy" Boyington. Cast as a nurse on this series was Conrad's daughter Nancy, setting a precedent for nepotism that the actor practiced as late as his tenth TV series, 1989's Jesse Hawkes, wherein Conrad co-starred with his sons Christian and Shane. Though few of his series have survived past season one, Conrad has enjoyed success as a commercial spokesman and in the role of G. Gordon Liddy (whom the actor admired) in the 1982 TV movie Will, G. Gordon Liddy. As can be gathered from the Liddy assignment, Conrad's politics veered towards conservatism; in 1981, he and Charlton Heston were instrumental in toppling Ed Asner and his liberal contingent from power in the Screen Actors Guild. As virile and athletic as ever in the 1990s, Robert Conrad has continued to appear in action roles both on TV and in films; he has also maintained strong ties with his hometown of Chicago, and can be counted upon to show up at a moment's notice as a guest on the various all-night programs of Chicago radio personality Eddie Schwartz.

Trivia: Born in Grodek, Poland, the erudite actor received an M.A. in psychometrics and a law degree before he turned to performing as half of a comedy team known as Ross & West. On film, he was notable and frightening in Experiment in Terror (1962). Following an undistinguished but busy TV career in the '50s, Martin became one of television's most brilliant chararacter actors. As a regular on the charades-like game shows The Ad-Libbers (1951), Pantomime Quiz (1950-1963), and Stump the Stars (1962-63), he had the chance to show off his lightning mind and acting facility. After playing a supporting role on The Sheriff of Cochise (1956-1960), he costarred as Andamo on Mr. Lucky (1959-60). Martin finally found his niche as TV's "man of a thousand faces" -- Secret Service agent Artemus Gordon -- on the humorous cult spy spoof/western/science fiction series The Wild, Wild West (1965-1969) with Robert Conrad as James West. The show gave him an opportunity to display his acting virtuosity, as he used multiple disguises and accents in almost every episode. Sidelined by a major heart attack near the end of the series and replaced by look-alike Charles Aidman, Martin did mostly guest shots and cartoon voiceovers thereafter. His directing credits include Here's Lucy (1968-74).

Trivia: Actor Edward Binns possessed two qualities that many of his contemporaries lacked: he was always reliable, and always believable. On Broadway, he was shown to good advantage in such hit productions as Command Decision, The Lark, A View From the Bridge, and Caligula. In films from 1951's Teresa, Binns' roles ranged from the vacillating Juror #6 in 12 Angry Men (1957) to the authoritative Major General Walter Bedell Smith in Patton (1970). On television, Binns played the title role in the 1959 cop drama Brenner, Dr. Anson Kiley in The Nurses (1962-1964), and secret-service contact man Wallie Powers in It Takes a Thief (1969-1970 season). Edward Binns died suddenly at the age of 74, while traveling from New York to his home in Connecticut.

Trivia: Chiselled-featured leading man Henry Wilcoxon was born in the West Indies to British parents. He cut his theatrical teeth with the prestigious Birmingham Repertory Theater, then went on to play several leads in London. While starring in the stage play Eight Bells, Wilcoxon was selected to play Marc Antony in Cecil B. DeMille's Cleopatra (1934). Thus began a 25-year association with DeMille, during which time Wilcoxon functioned as actor, casting director, associate producer, producer, and close friend. When asked by interviewer Leonard Maltin about his experiences with C.B., Wilcoxon replied genially, "Does your tape last about ten hours?" Outside of the DeMille orbit, Henry Wilcoxon played leading and character parts in such films as The Last of the Mohicans (1936), If I Were King (1938), Tarzan Finds a Son (1939), Mrs. Miniver (1942) (as the jingoistic minister), A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1949), The War Lord (1965), and FIST (1978); he also worked extensively in television, guest starring on such programs as I Spy and Marcus Welby, M.D..

Trivia: Tough-talking American character actor Perry Lopez played "ethnic" roles from the time of his his stage debut in the early 1950s. Signed to a Warner Bros. contract in 1955, Lopez lent support to such studio projects as Mister Roberts (1955), The McConnell Story (1956) and The Violent Road (1958). He is best remembered as police officer Lou Escobar in Roman Polanski's Chinatown (1974). Perry Lopez reprised this uniformed character (now promoted to captain) in the 1990 Chinatown sequel The Two Jakes. Lopez died of lung cancer in February 2008.