Ernest Borgnine, Oscar winner, has died at 95

Ernest Borgnine, who created an array of memorable characters over the years and won the best actor Oscar for his role in 1955’s “Marty,” has died. Borgnine was 95.

His longtime spokesman, Harry Flynn, said that Borgnine died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center with his family by his side.

As the cruel, vicious Sgt. Fatso Judson in 1953’s “From Here to Eternity,” the sweet, lonely butcher in 1955’s “Marty” and the carefree con artist in the 1962-66 ABC comedy series “McHale’s Navy,” Borgnine was among the most recognizable faces on both the big and small screens.

PHOTOS: Ernest Borgnine | 1917-2012

Borgnine began acting after serving in the Navy during World War II. He made his film debut in 1951’s “Whistle at Eaton Falls” and won the best actor Oscar for “Marty.” Over the years, he appeared in such acclaimed films as “Bad Day at Black Rock,” “Jubal,” “Flight of the Phoenix,” “The Dirty Dozen,””The Wild Bunch” and “The Poseidon Adventure.”

He was born Ermes Effron Borgnino on Jan. 24, 1917 in Hamden, Conn.

Borgnine became the oldest performer to receive a Golden Globe nomination when he was acknowledged for the 2007 television movie “A Grandpa for Christmas,” and in 2009, at age 92, he was nominated for an Emmy for his guest performance in the final season of “ER.”

Borgnine told The Times in 2008 that books helped to keep him young.

“I do an awful lot of reading,” he said. “It keeps me busy. I try to keep my mind going always. That is the thing that counts. You can have your body not feeling so good, but if your mind is working you got it made. That is the way I figured it out.”

Read more: Full obituary on Ernest Borgnine

ALSO:

Photos: Notable deaths of 2012

Ron Howard: What I learned from Andy Griffith

Want more coverage of iconic stars? Follow our Classic Hollywood Facebook page