Roger Corman, ‘Star Trek’ Actor Was 97
The Hollywood Reporter • • entertainment
Key Points:
- Michael Forest, a veteran actor known for roles in Roger Corman B-movies and iconic TV shows like The Twilight Zone, The Dick Van Dyke Show, and Star Trek, has died at age 97 in Sparks, Nevada.
- Forest appeared in over 20 European films and was a prolific voice actor fluent in Italian, dubbing more than 500 movies during his decade living in Rome from 1968 to 1978.
- His notable roles include the barbarian Zarko in The Saga of the Viking Women (1957), Gil Jackson in Beast From Haunted Cave (1959), and Apollo in Star Trek’s “Who Mourns for Adonais?” (1967), a character he reprised in a 2013 fan series.
- Born Gerald Michael Charlebois in North Dakota, Forest pursued acting over boxing after college, working extensively in television westerns and dramas throughout the 1950s and 1960s, as well as performing Shakespeare on stage.
- Forest was married to actress Diana Hale for 52 years until her death in 2022 and reflected on his career with pride despite its ups and downs, valuing the diverse roles he played over six decades.
