A large-nosed (he broke it twice as a high school football player) supporting player, typically as gruff, blunt or uncouth characters, Malden made his name in several outstanding movies of the 1950s and 60s. Raised in Gary, Indiana, he studied acting at the Goodman Theater School before moving to NYC to pursue a stage career. Malden made his debut in Clifford Odets' "Golden Boy" in 1937. He continued to work on stage throughout the 1940s and 50s, appearing in "Key Largo" (1939), "Winged Victory" (1943) and Arthur Miller's "All My Sons" (1947) before landing the role of Mitch in Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire" (also 1947). In the 50s, he played the lead in Ibsen's "Peer Gynt" (1951) and was featured in "Desperate Hours" (1955).
Malden made his feature acting debut in "They Knew What They Wanted" (1940) and recreated his stage role in the film version of "Winged Victory" (1944). Malden was memorable in three films under the direction of Elia Kazan: "A Streetcar Named Desire" (1951), winning an Oscar for reprising his stage role of Mitch, the lonely suitor to Blanche DuBois (Vivien Leigh); "On the Waterfront" (1954), as the militant priest, and, as the bridegroom to Carroll Baker's child bride, "Baby Doll" (1956). The actor offered effect support as the police investigator in Alfred Hitchcock's "I Confess" (1952), as Anthony Perkins' domineering father in "Fear Strikes Out" (1957) and as a tough sheriff with an outlaw past in Marlon Brando's "One-Eyed Jacks" (1961). In "Gypsy" (1962), he was believable as Rosalind Russell's agent and lover and he gave stolid support as General Omar Bradley to George C Scott's "Patton" (1970). His film work in the 1970s and 80s slowed and his last film appearance to date was as Barbra Streisand's sexually abusive stepfather in "Nuts" (1987). Malden directed one feature, the highly effective wartime courtroom drama "Time Limit" (1957).
While Malden's TV credits date back to the 1940s, from the early 70s through the 90s, he was a fixture on the small screen. Teamed with Michael Douglas (and later Richard Hatch), he portrayed Lieutenant Mike Stone, a dedicated veteran cop, in the TV crime drama "The Streets of San Francisco" (ABC, 1972-77). Malden also headlined the short-lived "Skag" (NBC, 1980), a realistic (and sometimes downbeat) look at life among steelworkers in Pittsburgh. In longforms, Malden has played everything from a crusty ship captain ("Captains Courageous", ABC 1977) to the coach of the American Olympic hockey team ("Miracle on Ice", ABC 1981) to the father of a murder victim ("Fatal Vision", NBC 1984) to the wheelchair-bound victim of a terrorist attack ("The Hijacking of the Achille Lauro", NBC, 1989).
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