Michael Ansara (born April 15, 1922) is a Syrian-born American stage, screen, and voice actor best known for his portrayal of Cochise in the American television series Broken Arrow, Kane in the 1979-81 series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Commander Kang on three different Star Trek TV series, and Deputy U.S. Marshal Sam Buckhart on the NBC series, Law of the Plainsman .
Ansara was born in Syria, and his family emigrated to the United States when he was two years old. They resided in Lowell, Massachusetts, for a decade before moving to California. He originally wanted to be a physician but developed a passion for becoming a performer after he began taking acting classes to overcome his shyness.
During the 1950s, Ansara appeared in several episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. It was the popular TV series Broken Arrow (1956), wherein he played the lead role of Cochise, that raised Ansara's profile and made him a household name. While making the series, the 20th Century-Fox publicity department arranged a date between Ansara and actress Barbara Eden. The two later married and Ansara guest-starred on Eden's I Dream of Jeannie series as the Blue Djinn, who had imprisoned Jeannie in
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