William Hickey
American actor
Who was William Hickey?
William Edward Hickey (September 19, 1927 – June 29, 1997) was an American actor and acting teacher. Hickey was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Edward and Nora Hickey, both of Irish descent. He had an older sister, Dorothy Finn. He grew up in Flatbush, Brooklyn, and Richmond Hill, Queens. Hickey began acting on the radio in 1938. Hickey had a long, distinguished career in film, television, and on stage. He began his career as a child actor on the variety stage and made his Broadway debut as a walk-on in the 1951 production of George Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan, starring Uta Hagen. He performed often during the golden age of television, including appearances on Studio One and the Philco Playhouse. His most important contribution to the arts, however, remains his teaching career at the HB Studio in Greenwich Village, founded by Herbert Berghof.
Historical significance
He is best known for his Academy Award-nominated role as Don Corrado Prizzi in the John Huston film Prizzi's Honor (1985), as well as Uncle Lewis in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989) and the voice of Dr. Finkelstein in Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993).