- Born
- Died
- Birth nameLeonard Jerome Harris
- An aristocratic face and presence and a confident voice granted Leonard Harris - an acquaintance of Martin Scorsese - a significant role in Marty's classic Taxi Driver (1976), playing the potential presidential candidate Senator Charles Palantine, a target Travis Bickle has to eliminate in order to impress the girl he wants to date (and who also happens to work for Palantine's campaign). He only has a few scenes in the film but certainly leaves a mark in all of those, especially his memorable exchange with Travis in the cab.
Harris wasn't actually an actor. Born in New York, he was a journalist who wrote obituaries and book reviews during his first years in journalism, and later on during an extensive time he was a culture critic during the late 1960s and early 1970s with many TV appearances. In between those works he wrote three novels. His other film credit is Hero at Large (1980), which also features Gene Palma, the street drummer who has a minor part in Taxi Driver.
He was married to Mary Ann Wurth for 12 years and they had two children. Harris died of pneumonia in Connecticut, at age 81.
- IMDb mini biography by: Rodrigo Amaro
- SpouseMary Ann Wurth(1961 - 1973) (divorced, 2 children)
- Graduated from NYC's City College then, during the Korean War, served in the Army at Fort Dix, New Jersey. Began his journalism his career writing obituaries and book reviews for The Hartford Courant in 1955. From 1966-1974 1966, he worked as the on-camera culture critic for New York's WCBS-TV.
- Cast by acquaintance director Martin Scorsese as a U.S. Senator in Taxi Driver (1976).
- Wrote three novels: 'The Masada Plan', 'Don't Be No Hero,' and 'The Hamptons.'.
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