Harris Yulin (born 5 November 1937; age 87) is the Emmy Award-nominated actor who played Aamin Marritza in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine first season episode "Duet" and appeared as Gul Darhe'el on a computer monitor in the same episode. In an acting career spanning over 55 years, Yulin has appeared in well over 100 different film and television projects. He has also performed in dozens of stage productions and is an accomplished stage director.
Yulin was born in Los Angeles, California. After college, he traveled throughout Europe and Israel and, while in Italy, he attempted to become a painter. It was while living in Tel Aviv in the 1960s that Yulin began acting and directing. He subsequently attended the University of California at Los Angeles, where he studied acting with Star Trek: The Original Series guest actor Jeff Corey.
Film work
Yulin has appeared in over 40 films since 1970. One of his earliest films was End of the Road (1970, featuring Star Trek: The Next Generation guest actor Graham Jarvis. Yulin then Wyatt Earp in Doc (1971), which focuses on Earp's friend, dentist turned gunfighter Doc Holliday. The role of outlaw cattle rustler Ike Clanton was played by Michael Witney, who appeared on The Original Series, while the role of Frank McLowery was played by James Greene.
"Errand of Mercy" director John Newland directed Yulin in the 1974 fantasy drama The Legend of Hillbilly John. Original Series guest actors Percy Rodriguez and Alfred Ryder had roles in this film, as well. Yulin next co-starred with Lawrence Dobkin, Ed Lauter, and Morgan Woodward in The Midnight Man (1974). The following year, Yulin had a supporting role in Night Moves, along with Kenneth Mars. This was followed by St. Ives (1976, with Elisha Cook).
Yulin acquired significant recognition with his role as the corrupt narcotics detective Mel Bernstein in Scarface (1984, featuring Star Trek: Insurrection actors F. Murray Abraham and Gregg Henry, as well as Next Generation guest actor Mark Margolis). In 1987, Yulin and Star Trek: Voyager guest actor Brad Dourif had supporting roles opposite Whoopi Goldberg in Fatal Beauty. In 1988, Yulin appeared in such films as Judgment in Berlin, which was directed by Leo Penn, and Another Woman, which also featured David Ogden Stiers.
In addition, Yulin can be seen as Judge Stephen Wexler, aka "The Hammer", in Ghostbusters II (1989, with Aaron Lustig and Christopher Neame. Yulin and Aaron Lustig later appeared together in Paramount Pictures' Clear and Present Danger (1994, with Vaughn Armstrong, Reg E. Cathey, Raymond Cruz, Elizabeth Dennehy, Ellen Geer, Ann Magnuson, John Putch, and Cameron Thor) and Stuart Saves His Family (1995, with Robert Curtis Brown, Erik Cord, Patrick Kerr, Dakin Matthews, Denver Mattson, Richard Riehle, and Jeremy Roberts). Also in 1995, Yulin appeared as Black Harry in Cutthroat Island, along with Frank Langella and Jimmie F. Skaggs.
In Multiplicity (1996), Yulin portrayed the scientist who clones Michael Keaton's character. Star Trek: Enterprise guest actress Ann Cusack and Q actor John de Lancie also had roles in this film. That same year, Yulin participated in Looking for Richard, as did Kevin Conway, Richard Cox, F. Murray Abraham, and Winona Ryder. In 1997, Yulin appeared in Murder at 1600, co-starring Daniel Benzali, Ronny Cox, Charles Rocket, and Tom Wright. That same year, Yulin appeared in Bean, along with David Doty, Larry Drake, Danny Goldring, April Grace, Peter Capaldi, Robert Curtis Brown and Dakin Matthews.
Yulin had supporting roles in The Hurricane (1999, featured Clancy Brown and David Paymer) and Training Day (2001, co-starring Yulin's fellow Deep Space Nine guest actor Raymond Cruz, who previously appeared with Yulin in Clear and Present Danger. Yulin also played Agent Sterling in Rush Hour 2 (2001, co-starring Lisa LoCicero and Saul Rubinek). In addition, Yulin was part of the ensemble cast of Perfume (2001, with Michelle Forbes, Robert Joy, Chris Sarandon, and Paul Sorvino.
In addition to the above, Yulin has worked with fellow Star Trek performers on numerous other films. They are as follows:
- American Raspberry (1977) with Joanna Cassidy and David Spielberg
- Steel (1979) with Richard Lynch
- Good to Go (1986) with Robert DoQui
- Bad Dreams (1988) with Richard Lynch, Julianna McCarthy, Randy Oglesby, Steven Anderson, Coleen Maloney, Tim Trella, Tony Cecere, and Louis Giambalvo
- Narrow Margin (1990) with James B. Sikking
- Final Analysis (1992) with Erick Avari, George Murdock, and Jack Shearer
- There Goes the Neighborhood (1992) with Lee Arenberg, Jonathan Banks, Leonard Kelly-Young, W. Morgan Sheppard, and Ron Taylor
- Clear and Present Danger (1994) with Raymond Cruz, and Vaughn Armstrong
- The Baby-Sitters Club (1995) with Bruce Davison and Scarlett Pomers
- Cradle Will Rock (1999) with Lee Arenberg
- 75 Degrees in July (2000) with Heidi Swedberg
- American Outlaws (2001) with Ronny Cox and Terry O'Quinn
- The Emperor's Club (2002) with Steven Culp
- Game 6 (2005) with Bebe Neuwirth
- The Treatment (2006) with Famke Janssen
Stage work
Yulin made his stage debut in an off-Broadway production of Next Time I'll Sing to You at the Phoenix Theatre in 1963. He later performed in the New York Shakespeare Festival at the Delacorte Theatre in 1966 and 1967, which included portraying the title role of King John. His co-stars in this production included fellow Star Trek guest actors David Clennon, James Sloyan, and Clarence Williams III.
In 1968, Yulin acted alongside Elim Garak actor Andrew Robinson in The Cannibals at the American Place Theatre. Five years later, Yulin worked with Jeff Corey and James Cromwell in a Center Theatre Group production of Hamlet. In 1979, Yulin co-starred with George Hearn in Watch on the Rhine at the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven. Yulin and Hearn continued acting in the play when it transferred to the John Golden Theatre on Broadway in January 1980. Yulin returned to Broadway later that year in the Tony Award-nominated play A Lesson From Aloes.
In 1982, Yulin worked with John Glover in The Doctor's Dilemma at the Long Wharf Theatre. His other stage productions during the 1980s included Uncle Vanya, Tartuffe, and another production of Hamlet as part of the New York Shakespeare Festival in 1986. In 1992, Yulin returned to Broadway in the Tony Award-nominated revival of The Visit. He then reunited with George Hearn in the 1997-98 Broadway production of The Diary of Anne Frank, for which Yulin earned a Drama Desk Award nomination as Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play. The Drama Desk Awards nominated Yulin in the same category for his performance in the Broadway revival of The Price.
From September 2001 through January 2002, Yulin performed in a Broadway revival of Hedda Gabler. In 2007, he worked alongside Peter Weller in the off-Broadway production Frank's Home. For his performance in this play, Yulin won an Obie Award and was nominated for a Lucille Lortel Award.
Yulin has also directed several stage productions. In 1982, he directed Bruce Davison in The Front Page at the Long Wharf Theater. The following year, he directed Cristine Rose in Witnerplay at the South Street Theatre in New York. In 1997, he directed and co-starred with Deep Space Nine's René Auberjonois in a production of Don Juan in Hell. Some of the other plays Yulin has directed include Baba Goya, This Lime Tree Bower, and The Trip to Bountiful.
Television work
Made-for-TV movies and mini-series
Before they worked together in Don Juan in Hell, Yulin and René Auberjonois starred in a 1973 PBS production of Arthur Miller's play Incident at Vichy. Lee Bergere and Andrew Robinson also had roles in this production, the latter having previously worked with Yulin on stage. Yulin then acted alongside Salome Jens in the 1974 short film Parker Adderson, Philosopher.
Yulin played J. Edgar Hoover in the 1974 CBS movie The F.B.I. Story: The FBI Versus Alvin Karpis, Public Enemy Number One, which was directed by Marvin Chomsky and which also featured Whit Bissell, Robert Foxworth, Lenore Kasdorf, and Gary Lockwood. Chomsky again directed Yulin, as well as Bibi Besch, Theodore Bikel, Stefan Gierasch, and Allan Miller, in the 1976 TV movie Victory at Entebbe. Yulin and Chomsky later worked together on the 1985 mini-series Robert Kennedy & His Times, which also featured Cliff DeYoung, Bruce French, Walter Gotell, Albert Hall, James Read, Mitch Ryan, William Wintersole, and Next Generation star Brent Spiner.
In addition, Yulin portrayed KGB Agent Alexander Fomin in The Missiles of October (1974, with Keene Curtis, Paul Lambert, Byron Morrow, Stewart Moss, Nehemiah Persoff, and Kenneth Tobey). Yulin's subsequent TV movie credits during the 1970s include:
- The Kansas City Massacre (1975) with Ike Eisenmann
- Dynasty (1976) with Granville Van Dusen, Gerrit Graham, and Ian Wolfe
- Roger & Harry: The Mitera _target (1977) with Vaughn Armstrong, Robert DoQui, Richard Lynch
- When Every Day Was the Fourth of July (1978) with Louise Sorel
- The Night Rider (1979) with Whit Bissell, Kim Cattrall, and Percy Rodriguez
- The Thirteenth Day: The Story of Esther (1979) with Nehemiah Persoff; directed by Leo Penn
Yulin was one of the many Star Trek performers to have a role in the 1978 limited series How the West Was Won. Also appearing in this series were William Boyett, Robert DoQui, Fionnula Flanagan, Richard Hale, Brian Keith, Richard Kiley, Ed Lauter, Ricardo Montalban, George D. Wallace, Morgan Woodward, and James T. Kirk actor William Shatner. One of the directors of How the West Was Won was Vincent McEveety.
Yulin has appeared with Star Trek alumni in many other TV movies over the years, including:
- Conspiracy: The Trial of the Chicago 8 (1987) with David Clennon and David Opatoshu
- Tailspin: Behind the Korean Airliner Tragedy (1989) with Gavan O'Herlihy and Chris Sarandon
- Face of a Stranger (1991) with Seymour Cassel
- Truman (1995) with Holmes R. Osborne
- If These Walls Could Talk (1996) with Vaughn Armstrong, Robin Gammell, Jack Kehler, and Aaron Lustig
- The Virginian (2000) with John Savage
Television series
Throughout the 1970s, Yulin has guest-starred on such television series as Kojak (directed by Leo Penn for the first of three times), Barnaby Jones (directed by Lawrence Dobkin and acting with Lee Meriwether and Fritz Weaver), Ironside (in an episode with Joan Pringle, Bert Remsen, and Warren Stevens), and Wonder Woman (with Alan Bergmann). He also appeared in the first episode of the cult crime drama Most Wanted, along with Ward Costello, Robert Mandan, and Allan Miller.
From 1984 through 1985, Yulin played Michael Christopher on the daytime soap opera As the World Turns. Mary-Linda Rapelye was also a cast member on the show at that time. During the 1990-91 television season, Yulin was a regular on the CBS drama WIOU, as were five other Star Trek alumni: Robin Gammell, Mariette Hartley, Wallace Langham, Kate McNeil, and Phil Morris.
In 1996, Yulin made a guest appearance on the hit sitcom Frasier, which starred Kelsey Grammer in the title role. For his performance on Frasier, Yulin received an Emmy Award nomination as Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. He later had a recurring role as Watchers' Council member Quentin Travers in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In his first appearance on the show, Yulin was directed by James A. Contner and acted with Jeff Kober and Star Trek: Enterprise regular Dominic Keating. Yulin's remaining two episodes also featured Kris Iyer.
In 2003, Yulin was seen in recurring roles on two shows. He played Senator Wilson in several episodes of Mister Sterling, during which time he worked with Jeff Allin, Vaughn Armstrong, Art Chudabala, David Doty, Nicole Forester, Bob Gunton, James W. Jansen, Stanley Kamel, Randy Oglesby, Ron Ostrow, Joel Polis, and George D. Wallace. Around the same time, Yulin was seen uncredited on the hit FOX series 24. Among the other actors appearing on the show at that time were Jude Ciccolella, Steven Culp, Alan Dale, John Eddins, Michelle Forbes, Daniel Dae Kim, Michael McGrady, Tracy Middendorf, Glenn Morshower, Robert Pine, John Rubinstein, Freda Foh Shen, and Faran Tahir. James Whitmore, Jr. directed two of Yulin's nine episodes.
Yulin has also made two appearance on the long-running crime drama Law & Order, first in 1994 (with Nancy Bell) and again in 2008 (with Armand Schultz). Yulin has appeared on many other shows, including Civil Wars (with Edward Laurence Albert, Mina Badie, Barbara Bosson, Claudette Nevins, Raphael Sbarge, and Constance Towers), Murphy Brown (with John Hostetter and S.A. Templeman), The X-Files, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Entourage, Damages (with Michael Nouri), Billions and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.