Biography
Buck Kartalian (1922–2016) was an American character actor. Born Vahe Kartalian in Detroit, Michigan, to Armenian immigrant parents, he moved to New York City as a child, served in the US Navy during the Second World War, and later worked as a bodybuilder and professional wrestler before entering acting.
He appeared on Broadway, including as Sampson opposite Olivia de Havilland in a 1951 production of Romeo and Juliet. Kartalian moved to Los Angeles and built a career in film and television spanning more than fifty years. He is best known for playing the gorilla Julius in Planet of the Apes (1968) and the gorilla Frank in Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972). Other notable film roles include Dynamite in Cool Hand Luke (1967), a shopkeeper in The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) and a reverend in The Rock (1996). He also guest-starred in numerous television series, including Friends, ER, Curb Your Enthusiasm and How I Met Your Mother.
