Acting · Bucarest, Roumanie · Born December 12, 1893
Edward G. Robinson (born Emanuel Goldenberg; December 12, 1893 – January 26, 1973) was a Romanian-born American actor and political activist. Although he played a wide range of characters, he is best remembered for his roles as a gangster, most notably in his star-making film Little Caesar (1931). Robinson's career saw a decline during the 1950s Red Scare when he was threatened with blacklisting. Experiencing underemployment, he turned towards minor roles in B movies until he eventually returned to the mainstream by playing one of Moses' adversaries Dathan in Cecil B. DeMille's religious epic The Ten Commandments (1956). He was ranked number 24 in the American Film Institute's list of the 25 greatest male stars of Classic American cinema. Never having been nominated for an Academy Award during his 60-year career, he became a posthumous recipient of an Honorary Oscar in 1973, two months after his death. Robinson was Jewish and a staunch critic of fascist and Nazi ideologies that were on the rise in the 1930s. He donating more than $250,000 to 850 political and charitable organizations between 1939 and 1949, hosted a gathering at his home to sign a declaration calling for a boycott of all German-made products, frequently appeared at Soviet and American war relief rallies, delivered radio addresses in over six languages to Nazi-occupied European countries, and traveled to Normandy to entertain the troops, becoming the first movie star to go there for the USO. Robin was also an outspoken supporter of the civil rights movement, and regularly campaigned to overcome segregation.
MovieAway with Words
2026
as Edward G. Robinson
MovieRat Pack
2022
as Self (archive footage)
MovieClassic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored
2013
as Self (archive footage)
Movie1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
2009
as Self (archive footage)
MovieWarner at War
2008
as (archive footage)
MoviePublic Enemies: The Golden Age of the Gangster Film
2008
as Self (archive footage)
MovieYou Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story
2008
as Self (archive footage)
MovieLittle Caesar: End of Rico, Beginning of the Antihero
2005
as Self (archive footage)
Checking Out: Grand Hotel
2004
as Self (archive footage)
Pulp Cinema
2001
as Self (archive footage)
MovieFrank Capra's American Dream
1997
as Self (archive footage)
MovieBarbara Stanwyck: Straight Down the Line
1997
as Self (archive footage)
MovieBogart: The Untold Story
1997
as Self (archive footage)
MovieBarbara Stanwyck: Fire and Desire
1991
as Self (archive footage)
MovieMovie Tough Guys
1991
as Self (archive footage)
MovieHollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
1983
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
MovieBrother, Can You Spare a Dime?
1975
as Self (archive footage)
MovieSoylent Green
1973
as Sol Roth
MovieA Look at the World of 'Soylent Green'
1973
as Self
MovieNeither by Day Nor by Night
1972
as Father
MovieHollywood: The Dream Factory
1972
as Self (archive footage)
MovieMooch Goes to Hollywood
1971
TVNight Gallery
1970
as Abraham Goldman
MovieSong of Norway
1970
as Krogstad
MovieThe Old Man Who Cried Wolf
1970
as Emile Pulska
TVThe Silent Force
1970
TVBracken's World
1969
MovieOperation Heartbeat
1969
as Dr. Lee Forestman
MovieMackenna's Gold
1969
as Old Adams
MovieIt's Your Move
1968
as Sir George McDowell
MovieNever a Dull Moment
1968
as Leo Joseph Smooth
TVRowan & Martin's Laugh-In
1968
as Self
MovieThe Biggest Bundle of Them All
1968
as Professor Samuels
MovieOperation San Pietro
1967
as Joe Ventura
MovieGrand Slam
1967
as Prof. James Anders
MovieThe Blonde from Peking
1967
as CIA Chief Douglas
MoviePlanet of the Apes Test Reel
1966
as Dr. Zaius
TVBatman
1966
as Edward G. Robinson (uncredited)
MovieThe Cincinnati Kid
1965
as Lancey Howard
MovieBorn a Man
1965
as Narrator
MovieCheyenne Autumn
1964
as Secretary of the Interior Carl Schurz
MovieThe Outrage
1964
as Con Man
MovieGood Neighbor Sam
1964
as Simon Nurdlinger
MovieRobin and the 7 Hoods
1964
as Big Jim Stevens (uncredited)
TVThe Hollywood Palace
1964
as Self
MovieThe Prize
1963
as Max Stratman/Walter Stratman
MovieSammy Going South
1963
as Cocky Wainwright
TVThe Lucy Show
1962
as Edward G. Robinson
MovieTwo Weeks in Another Town
1962
as Maurice Kruger
MovieMy Geisha
1962
as Sam Lewis
MoviePepe
1960
as Edward G. Robinson
MovieSeven Thieves
1960
as Theo Wilkins
MovieThe Right Man
1960
as Theodore Roosevelt
MovieIsrael
1959
as Self - Narrator
TVThe Detectives
1959
as 'Big Jim' Riva
NBC Sunday Showcase
1959
as Daniel Webster
MovieA Hole in the Head
1959
as Mario Manetta
MovieThe Ten Commandments
1956
as Dathan
TVDick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
1956
as Victor Bers
MovieNightmare
1956
as Rene Bressard
TVThe Steve Allen Show
1956
as Self
MovieHell on Frisco Bay
1955
as Victor Amato
MovieIllegal
1955
as Victor Scott
MovieA Bullet for Joey
1955
as Raoul Leduc
MovieTight Spot
1955
as Lloyd Hallett
MovieThe Violent Men
1955
as Lee Wilkison
MovieBlack Tuesday
1954
as Vincent Canelli
TVClimax!
1954
as Josef Vadassy
MovieA Star Is Born World Premiere
1954
as Self
MovieThe Glass Web
1953
as Henry Hayes
MovieBig Leaguer
1953
as John B 'Hans' Lobert
MovieVice Squad
1953
as Capt. 'Barnie' Barnaby
TVThe Oscars
1953
as Self
TVGeneral Electric Theater
1953
as Bert Alquist
TVThe Ford Television Theatre
1952
as John Derwent
TVThis Is Your Life
1952
as Self
MovieActors and Sin
1952
as Maurice Tillayou (segment Actor's Blood)
Lux Video Theatre
1950
as Sir Wilfrid Robarts
MovieMy Daughter Joy
1950
as George Constantin
TVWhat's My Line?
1950
as Self
MovieIt's a Great Feeling
1949
as Edward G. Robinson (uncredited)
MovieHouse of Strangers
1949
as Gino Monetti
MovieNight Has a Thousand Eyes
1948
as John Triton
MovieKey Largo
1948
as Johnny Rocco
TVThe Ed Sullivan Show
1948
as Self
MovieAll My Sons
1948
as Joe Keller
MovieBlow-Ups of 1947
1947
as Self
MovieThe Red House
1947
as Pete Morgan
MovieOkay for Sound
1946
MovieThe Stranger
1946
as Federal Agent Wilson
MovieScarlet Street
1945
as Christopher Cross
MovieJourney Together
1945
as Dean McWilliams
MovieOur Vines Have Tender Grapes
1945
as Martinius Jacobson
MovieThe Woman in the Window
1944
as Professor Richard Wanley
MovieMr. Winkle Goes to War
1944
as Wilbert Winkle
MovieDouble Indemnity
1944
as Barton Keyes
MovieTampico
1944
as Capt. Bart Manson
TVGolden Globe Awards
1944
as Self - Presenter
MovieFlesh and Fantasy
1943
as Marshall Tyler (segment 2)
MovieDestroyer
1943
as Steven 'Boley' Boleslavski
MovieBreakdowns of 1942
1942
as Self
MovieTales of Manhattan
1942
as Larry Browne
MovieLarceny, Inc.
1942
as 'Pressure' Maxwell
MovieMoscow Strikes Back
1942
as Narrator (English version) (voice)
MovieBreakdowns of 1941
1941
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
MovieUnholy Partners
1941
as Bruce Corey
Polo with the Stars
1941
as Self - Watching Polo Match
MovieManpower
1941
as Hank McHenry
MovieThe Sea Wolf
1941
as 'Wolf' Larsen
MovieA Dispatch from Reuters
1940
as Paul Julius Reuter
MovieBrother Orchid
1940
as Little John T. 'Johnny' Sarto
MovieDr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet
1940
as Dr. Paul Ehrlich
MovieBreakdowns of 1939
1939
as Self
MovieBlackmail
1939
as John R. Ingram
MovieFrom the Ends of the Earth
1939
as Self
MovieConfessions of a Nazi Spy
1939
as Edward 'Ed' Renard
MovieI Am the Law
1938
as John Lindsay
MovieThe Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse
1938
as Dr. T.S. Clitterhouse
MovieA Slight Case of Murder
1938
as Remy Marko
MovieThe Last Gangster
1937
as Joe Krozac
MovieKid Galahad
1937
as Nick 'Nicky' Donati
MovieA Day at Santa Anita
1937
as Edward G. Robinson (uncredited)
MovieThunder in the City
1937
as Dan Armstrong
The First Gangster and the Last Gangster
1937
as Himself
MovieBreakdowns of 1936
1936
as Self
MovieScreen Snapshots (Series 16, No. 1)
1936
as Self
MovieBullets or Ballots
1936
as Johnny Blake
MovieBarbary Coast
1935
as Luis Chamalis
MovieThe Whole Town's Talking
1935
as Arthur Ferguson 'Jonesy' Jones / 'Killer' Mannion
MovieThe Man with Two Faces
1934
as Damon Welles / Jules Chautard
MovieDark Hazard
1934
as Jim 'Buck' Turner
MovieI Loved a Woman
1933
as John Mansfield Hayden
MovieThe Little Giant
1933
as James Francis 'Bugs' / 'Jim' Ahearn
MovieSilver Dollar
1932
as Yates Martin
MovieTiger Shark
1932
as Mike Mascarenhas
MovieTwo Seconds
1932
as John Allen
MovieThe Hatchet Man
1932
as Wong Low Get
MovieFive Star Final
1931
as Joseph W. Randall
MovieHow I Play Golf, by Bobby Jones No. 10: 'Trouble Shots'
1931
as Self - Golfer (uncredited)
MovieSmart Money
1931
as Nick 'The Barber' Venizelos
MovieRound About Hollywood
1931
as Self
MovieThe Stolen Jools
1931
as Gangster
MovieLittle Caesar
1931
as Caesar Enrico 'Rico' Bandello aka 'Little Caesar'
MovieThe Widow from Chicago
1930
as Dominic
MovieEast Is West
1930
as Charlie Yong
MovieOutside the Law
1930
as Cobra Collins
MovieAn Intimate Dinner in Celebration of Warner Bros. Silver Jubilee
1930
as Self
MovieEvery Woman's Longing
1930
as Tony
MovieA Lady to Love
1930
as Tony
MovieThe Night Ride
1930
as Tony Garotta
MovieThe Hole in the Wall
1929
as The Fox
MovieThe Bright Shawl
1923
as Domingo Escobar
MovieArms and the Woman
1916
as Factory Worker
