Maximilian Schell

Though he spent a great part of his career playing a variety of roles, actor Maximilian Schell made his name in a number of World War II-themed film and television projects. After taking his first Hollywood bow with a turn as a Nazi officer in "The Young Lions" (1958), Schell won an Academy Award for his portrayal of a dogged defense attorney in the courtroom classic "Judgment at Nuremberg" (1961). Not content with being strictly an actor, he also developed a second career as an award-winning director, starting with "First Love" (1970), which earned a foreign picture nomination at the Academy Awards. Over the next few decades, Schell amassed an impressive array of screen credits that included a compelling performance in the title role of "Peter the Great" (NBC, 1986). He earned several awards, including a Golden Globe, for portraying another prominent Russian leader in "Stalin" (HBO, 1992). By that time in his career, Schell was doing his most prominent work on the small screen, while occasionally appearing in niche features and independents. At his death at the age of 83, Schell was long remembered for being perhaps the most famous and accomplished actor to emerge from his native Austria.