Vince Edwards (July 9, 1928 – March 11, 1996) was an American actor, director, and singer. He was best known for his TV role as Dr. Ben Casey and as Major Cliff Bricker in the 1968 war film The Devil's Brigade.
Edwards was born Vincent Edward Zoine in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn, New York City, New York, to Julia and Vincento Zoine, an Italian-American bricklayer. He and his twin brother, Anthony, were the youngest of seven children. He studied aviation mechanics at East New York Vocational High School, graduating in June 1944 at the age of 15. Being an excellent swimmer, he worked as a lifeguard at Coney Island and swam for the Flatbush Boys Club.
He studied at Ohio State University on an athletic scholarship. He was part of the university's swim team that won the United States National Championships. He also played in baseball and track teams. After two years at Ohio State, he transferred to the University of Hawaii where he spent much time training as a swimmer for the Olympics, but an appendicitis operation cut short his swimming career. While in college he was involved in theater productions. Edwards studied acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts; his classmates included Anne Bancroft, John Cassavetes, and Grace Kelly.
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| Vince with Jerry Lewis & Dean Martin 1952 |
In 1950, he was signed to a contract by Paramount Pictures, making his film debut as Vincent Edwards in 1951's Mister Universe. The following year he played the lead role in Hiawatha. Although he had major roles in several films, including film noirs The Killing (1956) and Murder by Contract (1958), it was not until he was featured as the title character in the highly successful Ben Casey television series that he achieved stardom. The medical drama, which he occasionally directed, ran from 1961 to 1966. As a result of the show's success and his own popularity, Edwards released several music albums and appeared in the all-star war film The Victors in 1963. He was represented by one of Hollywood's first "super agents", Abby Greshler of Diamond Artists in Hollywood.
During his acting career Edwards ventured occasionally into the recording studios and there were a number of singles released in his name. The most important one was never issued, and in 1959 Ray Peterson was credited with the first version of "The Wonder of You" which became an international hit for him and for Elvis Presley - however, the very first recording was made by Vince Edwards. During his singing career hHe recorded six record albums, and performed in sold-out shows in New York, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles.
When the Ben Casey television series ended, Edwards returned to acting in motion pictures with a major role in the 1968 war drama The Devil's Brigade, together with films such as Hammerhead (1968), The Desperados (1969), and The Mad Bomber (1973). In 1970, Edwards starred in another TV series, the short-lived Matt Lincoln. In 1983, he played the main protagonist, Hawk, in the sci-fi film Space Raiders. He continued to act in film as well as in guest spots on television, including roles in The Rhinemann Exchange (1977), Evening in Byzantium (1978), and the pilot episode of Knight Rider, "Knight of the Phoenix", in 1982.
He directed a number of episodes in a variety of television series including the original Battlestar Galactica. He was also the voice of Jake Rockwell in the 1986 animated series Centurions. Twenty-two years after the series ended, Edwards returned to television as Dr. Ben Casey in a 1988 TV movie, The Return of Ben Casey. He made his last film, The Fear, in 1995. After the filming he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Edwards died of pancreatic cancer in Los Angeles, California, on March 11, 1996 at the UCLA Medical Center after being hospitalized for 11 days. He was buried at the Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.
(Edited from Wikipedia & IMDb)