Joe Turkel

Joe Turkel

Birth : 1927-07-15, Brooklyn, New York, USA

Death : 2022-06-27

History

Joseph Turkel was a prolific American character actor. He was noted for his craggy Bronx looks and distinctive, penetrating voice. Turkel worked steadily from 1949 - 1998 in both films and television. He retired in 1998. He still made the occasional appearance at fan conventions even at the age of 90+.

Profile

Joe Turkel
Joe Turkel
Joe Turkel

Movies

Dangerous Days: Making 'Blade Runner'
Self
The definitive 3½-hour documentary about the troubled creation and enduring legacy of the science fiction classic 'Blade Runner', culled from 80 interviews and hours of never-before-seen outtakes and lost footage.
Fashion Forward: Wardrobe and Styling
Self
A look back to the 2019 fashions, costumes and make-up as seen in Ridley Scott's Blade Runner.
On the Edge of 'Blade Runner'
Self
This is the rare UK Channel 4 documentary about Blade Runner, giving insights into it's history with interviews of Ridley Scott, the writers and nearly all the cast. Interviews with production staff, including Ridley, give details into the creative process and turmoil during preproduction. Stories from Paul M. Sammon and Fancher provide insight into Philip K. Dick and the origins of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Interweaved are cast interviews with the notable exceptions of Harrison Ford and Sean Young. Through these interviews we get a sense of how difficult and frustrating the film was to make as a result of an exacting director without allies and hot, wet, smoggy conditions; which added to the high pressure atmosphere everyone increasingly felt as the film went over budget. There is also a tour of some locations, most notably the Bradbury Building and the Warner Brothers backlot that was the LA 2019 streets, which look very different from Ridley's dark version.
The Dark Side of the Moon
Paxton Warner
It is the year 2022. A mysterious systems failure causes the crew of a spaceship to be stranded on the dark side of the moon, while rapidly running out of fuel and oxygen. They are surprised to discover a NASA space shuttle floating in space, and board it in the hope of salvaging some supplies. One by one, the crew is possessed and killed, and it is up to Paxton Warner to find the links between the dark side of the moon, the Bermuda Triangle, and the Devil himself.
Reel Horror
Harry (archive footage)
Evil spirits that emerge from cans of old movie film terrorize a neighborhood.
Blade Runner
Dr. Eldon Tyrell
In the smog-choked dystopian Los Angeles of 2019, blade runner Rick Deckard is called out of retirement to terminate a quartet of replicants who have escaped to Earth seeking their creator for a way to extend their short life spans.
The Shining
Lloyd the Bartender
Jack Torrance accepts a caretaker job at the Overlook Hotel, where he, along with his wife Wendy and their son Danny, must live isolated from the rest of the world for the winter. But they aren't prepared for the madness that lurks within.
Which Way Is Up?
Harry Boatwright
Richard Pryor plays three roles - a beleaguered, sex-starved farm worker named Leroy Jones; the farm worker's randy old father Rufus; and the hypocritical town preacher Rev. Lenox Thomas - and Pryor has never been so outrageously funny. The lives and love lives of these three men cross and crisscross as Leroy tries to get his life back on track.
The Commitment
Jules
A salesman's marriage is at stake due to his increasing gambling debts.
The Hindenburg
Detective Moore
In this highly speculative historical thriller, Colonel Franz Ritter (George C. Scott), a former hero pilot now working for military intelligence, is assigned to the great Hindenburg airship as its chief of security. As he races against the clock to uncover a possible saboteur aboard the doomed zeppelin he finds that any of the passengers and crew could be the culprit.
The Prisoner of Second Avenue
Man Upstairs (voice) (uncredited)
Mel Edison has just lost his job after many years and now has to cope with being unemployed at middle age during an intense NYC heat wave.
The Sex Symbol
Director
A thinly-disguised version of the life of Marilyn Monroe, detailing her ups and downs in life and how her erratic behavior contributed to her deteriorating career.
Savage Abduction
Harry
A serial killer murders a businessman's wife, then blackmails the man into procuring young girls for him to murder. The businessman hires a gang of renegade motor-cyclists to kidnap girls for him.
Six Hundred and Sixty-Six
Col. Ferguson
A group of people inside an underground complex which possesses high tech computers which tracks world events consider all options as nuclear war is at hand, air supplies may last only eight days and Biblical prophesy unfolds.
Wild in the Sky
Corazza
Three anti-war activists hijack a B-52 bomber.
The Animals
Peyote
A woman tracks down the three men who raped her, helped by an Apache. Traveling through the Old West to her new home, young schoolteacher Alice McAndrew is abducted by five outlaws headed by robber Pudge Elliott. The thugs rape Alice before leaving her for dead, but she is rescued by Chatto, an Apache chief. He restores her health and aids her in her bloodthirsty quest for revenge. With her sanity wavering, will Alice be able to find the men who tortured her?
Scream Free!
A man flees with his girlfriend from a love-in and motorcycles to Mexico with drug smugglers.
The Devil's Eight
Sam
The Devil's 8 is a 1969 film from American International Pictures. It is about a Federal agent (Christopher George) who recruits six convicts to bust a moonshine ring.
The St. Valentine's Day Massacre
Jake 'Greasy Thumb' Guzik
Chicago February 14th 1929. Al Capone finally establishes himself as the city's boss of organised crime. In a north-side garage his hoods, dressed as policemen, surprise and mow down with machine-guns the key members of Bugs Moran's rival gang. The film traces the history of the incident, and the lives affected and in some cases ended by it.
The Sand Pebbles
Bronson
Engineer Jake Holman arrives aboard the gunboat USS San Pablo, assigned to patrol a tributary of the Yangtze in the middle of exploited and revolution-torn 1926 China. His iconoclasm and cynical nature soon clash with the 'rice-bowl' system which runs the ship and the uneasy symbiosis between Chinese and foreigner on the river. Hostility towards the gunboat's presence reaches a climax when the boat must crash through a river-boom and rescue missionaries upriver at China Light Mission.
King Rat
Dino
When Singapore surrendered to the Japanese in 1942, the Allied POWs, mostly British but including a few Americans, were incarcerated in Changi prison. Among the American prisoners is Cpl. King, a wheeler-dealer who has managed to establish a pretty good life for himself in the camp. King soon forms a friendship with an upper-class British officer who is fascinated with King's enthusiastic approach to life.
Village of the Giants
Sheriff
"Genius" accidentally invents "goo" which causes living things to rapidly grow to an enormous size. Seeing an opportunity to get rich, some delinquent teenagers steal the "goo" and, as a result of a sophomoric dare, consume it themselves and become thirty feet tall. They then take over control of the town by kidnapping the sheriff's daughter and dancing suggestively.
Johnny Cool
Hoodlum
A deported gangster trains an Italian convict to take over his operations in the U.S.
The Yellow Canary
Policeman
Andy is an arrogant pop singer about to be divorced by his wife who treats his staff badly. On the same night he starts a job at a theater in Los Angeles his infant son is kidnapped. Despite requests from the lead police officer on the case, Lieutenant Bonner, Paxton plays along with the kidnappers as they string him along even though they are willing to kill.
Portrait of a Mobster
Joe Noe
A vicious hood rises to the top of the rackets in Depression-era New York in this account of the life of Dutch Schultz.
Tormented
Nick
A jazz pianist is haunted by his dead ex-lover's crawling hand and floating head.
The Boy and the Pirates
Abu the Genie
Jimmy desires to be a pirate when one day he discovers a magic bottle on the beach. He makes a wish and suddenly finds himself aboard Blackbeard's ship. Soon he realizes that being a pirate isn't what he expected.
The Purple Gang
Eddie Olsen
The story of the infamous Purple Gang - a ring of bootleggers, hijackers and killers in 1920's Detroit.
Here Come the Jets
Henley
The rehabilitation of a Korean War veteran coincides with the advent of passenger jets.
Warlock
Chet Haggin (uncredited)
A band of murderous cowboys has imposed a reign of terror on the town of Warlock. With the sheriff humiliatingly run out of town, the residents hire the services of Clay Blaisedell as de facto town marshal. He arrives along with his friend, Tom Morgan, and sets about restoring law and order on his own terms whilst also overseeing the establishment of a gambling house and saloon.
Verboten!
Infantryman
A young American serviceman stationed in Germany after the fall of the Third Reich, jeopardises his future after falling in love with a German woman.
The Case Against Brooklyn
Henchman Monte
A rookie cop takes on criminals who have the local government in their pocket.
The Bonnie Parker Story
Chuck Darrow
In the 1930s, amoral blonde tommy-gun girl Bonnie Parker cut a swath of bodies across the South-West. Starting out on gas stations and bars with side-kick Guy Darrow she graduated to bank hold-ups with Darrow's brother and, after bloodily springing him, her jailed husband. But there was never any doubt who was in charge.
The Beast of Budapest
Martin
Archival footage combined with new footage re-creates the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. It is also a love story between a devout communist woman and the liberal son of a prominent professor. Because of their political differences, the two can never be together.
Paths of Glory
Pvt. Pierre Arnaud
A commanding officer defends three scapegoats on trial for a failed offensive that occurred within the French Army in 1916.
House of Numbers
Bradville - Convict
Story of twin brothers - one trying to help another escape from prison.
Jeanne Eagels
Eddie, Reporter (uncredited)
Biographical film based loosely on the life of 1920's stage star Jeanne Eagels.
The Midnight Story
Lothario at Dance
Beloved priest Father Thomasino is murdered in a San Francisco alley, and the police have few clues. But traffic cop Joe Martini becomes obsessed with finding the killer; he suspects Sylvio Malatesta. Ordered off the case, Joe turns in his badge and investigates alone. Soon he is a close friend of the Malatesta family, all delightful people, especially lovely cousin Anna. Uncertain whether Sylvio is guilty or innocent, Joe is now torn between old and new loyalties.
Hellcats of the Navy
Chick (as Joseph Turkel)
Future "first couple" Ronald Reagan and Nancy Davis made their only joint film appearance in Hellcats of the Navy. Ronnie plays Casey Abbott, commander of a WW2 submarine, while Nancy portrays navy nurse Helen Blair, Abbott's off-and-on girlfriend. During a delicate mission in which his sub is ordered to retrieve a revolutionary new Japanese mine, Abbott is forced to leave frogman Wes Barton (Harry Lauter) behind to save the rest of his crew. But Abbott's second-in-command Don Landon (Eduard Franz) is convincing that Abbott's sacrifice of Barton was due to the fact that the dead man had been amorously pursuing Helen.
The Shadow on the Window
Lounger (uncredited)
Three delinquents murder a prosperous farmer at an isolated farm house. One witness to the crime - the dead man's secretary - is then taken hostage. The other witness - her young son - is thrown into state of shock. Can he recover soon enough to help the police - and his father - rescue his mother before it's too late?
Friendly Persuasion
Poor Loser (uncredited)
The story of a family of Quakers in Indiana in 1862. Their religious sect is strongly opposed to violence and war. It's not easy for them to meet the rules of their religion in everyday life but when Southern troops pass the area they are in real trouble. Should they fight, despite their peaceful attitude?
The Killing
Tiny
Career criminal Johnny Clay recruits a sharpshooter, a crooked police officer, a bartender and a betting teller named George, among others, for one last job before he goes straight and gets married. But when George tells his restless wife about the scheme to steal millions from the racetrack where he works, she hatches a plot of her own.
Inside Detroit
Pete Link (as Joseph Turkel)
Gus Linden, former racketeer head of a Detroit local of the United Automobile Workers of America, A.F.L, attempts to destroy his successor, Blair Vicker, so he can put his old rackets back into the auto factories. Vickers fights him off, ultimately winning help from Linden's attractive daughter Barbara and from Joni Calvin, Vickers' moll.
The Naked Street
Shimmy
To make an honest woman of his pregnant sister, Rosalie, callous New York mobster Phil Regal intimidates witnesses and bribes a store clerk to get Rosalie’s condemned boyfriend, Nicky Bradna, out of prison. But Regal’s meddling deeds soon backfire.
Mad at the World
Pete Johnson (as Joseph Turkel)
A neighborhood is terrorized by group of young juvenile delinquents called The WolfPack. When a young father's infant child is seriously injured because of the WolfPack, he decides that the police aren't working fast enough to catch the ones who hurt his baby and sets out to infiltrate the gang himself and mete out the punishment they deserve.
Cell 2455 Death Row
Curly
A Death Row inmate uses his prison law studies to fight for his life. Based on a true story.
The Human Jungle
Delinquent Hood
Danforth is assigned to take over the police department in a section of a large city saddled with juvenile delinquency, petty crimes, graft and also a recent unsolved murder of a strip-tease dancer. Recognizing the laxity of the department he implements many changes and soon finds himself under fire by the newspapers, the attorney of a racket leader and the denizens of this human jungle.
Return from the Sea
Sailor
A hardened career navel officer must come to terms with adapting to civilian life with the help of a waitress that can see through his tough veneer.
The Bamboo Prison
P.O.W.
A communist POW sides with his North Korean guards against his fellow prisoners.
Gypsy Colt
Chuck (uncredited)
In this trans-species remake of Lassie, Come Home, a faithful horse undertakes a perilous journey to return to the family it loves.
Duffy of San Quentin
Frank Roberts
San Quentin's new warden crusades for reform and for a framed inmate who loves a nurse.
Man Crazy
Ray
Three women come to Hollywood to break into the movies.
A Slight Case of Larceny
Holdup Man
Two nitwits decide to open a gas station.
The Glass Wall
Freddie Zakoyla (as Joseph Turkel)
Peter Kuban, a Hungarian refugee, is about to be deported after jumping ship in New York harbor. He needs to find an ex-G.I. named Tom whom he helped during the war, as Tom can prove Peter's right to legal entry into the United States. If he can't find Tom within 24 hours and prove his case, he will be branded a fugitive and will be permanently disqualified for U.S. citizenship.
Down Among the Sheltering Palms
Pvt. Harris
War-weary Captain Willoby and his men are the occupation force on an island of lovely women...and are forbidden to fraternize.
Starlift
Litter Case (uncredited)
To impress a movie star, a U.S. Air Force crewman pretends he is soon to see combat. When his lie gets out, chaos ensues.
Fixed Bayonets!
Soldier (uncredited)
The story of a platoon during the Korean War. One by one, Corporal Denno's superiors are killed until it comes to the point where he must try to take command responsibility.
Halls of Montezuma
Marine
Richard Widmark leads an all star cast of marine leathernecks including Jack Palance, Robert Wagner, Karl Malden, Richard Boone and Jack Webb into battle on a heavily fortified island. This action-packed story follows the squad as they pick their way through enemy-infested jungles on a time sensitive mission to find the source of the enemy rockets. As the mission progresses, the squad and leader overcome many challenges as they are transformed into an effective and efficient fighting unit.
Southside 1-1000
Frankie
The U.S. Secret Service goes after a counterfeiting ring by placing one of its agents in a criminal mob.
Triple Trouble
Benny the Blood (as Joseph Turkel)
Slip and Sach take the rap for a robbery they did not commit in order to uncover the real robbers, whom they suspect are led by a convict who gives orders to his gang outside via a short-wave radio stashed somewhere in the prison.
Federal Man
Jack 'Sneeze' Norton
A government agent travels from the United States to Mexico to nab drug dealers.
Lucky Losers
Johnny Angelo
Slip and Sach's boss, David J. Thurston, has allegedly committed suicide. Slip finds a book of matches with the name of a local nightclub on his boss' desk and finds out from Gabe that a gambling casino is being run out of it. Slip comes to the conclusion that the club had something to do with his boss' death and sets out to find his murderer. The boys get jobs at the club and Louie poses as a rich cattlemen as they gather the information to convict the murderers.
Angels in Disguise
Henchman Johnny Martin
Slip and the gang stray from newspaper work to detective work.
Sword in the Desert
Haganah Soldier (uncredited)
First American film about the conflict between Jewish nationalists and the British in the creation of the state of Israel.
City Across the River
Shimmy Stockton
Brooklyn youth Frank Cusack, good son and brother by day, is a gang member by night. The Dukes, seemingly likable dead-end-kids, are dangerously involved with racketeer Gaggsy Steens. Despite the efforts of Franks's parents, he and pal Benny get involved in a serious crime. Can Stan Albert, head of the community center, prevent them from becoming full-time crooks?