Steven Hill

Steven Hill, also known as Steve Hill, (born Solomon Krakovsky; Yiddish: שלמה קראַקאָווסקי; February 24, 1922 – August 23, 2016) was an American actor. He is best known for his television roles as district attorney Adam Schiff on the NBC television drama series Law & Order (1990–2000) and Dan Briggs on the CBS action television series Mission: Impossible (1966–1967). For the former, he received two nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

His film roles include The Goddess (1958), A Child Is Waiting (1963), The Slender Thread (1965), Yentl (1983), Legal Eagles (1986), Raw Deal (1986), Running on Empty (1988), Billy Bathgate (1991), and The Firm (1993).

Early life

Hill was born Solomon Krakovsky in Seattle, Washington, to Yiddish-speaking immigrants from the Russian Empire, Hillel Krakovsky (born Chrakovsky; 1888–1975) and Lena Rosen (1898–1999). His father, who owned a furniture store, emigrated from Dmytrivka, Ukraine. He had a brother, Charles, and two sisters, Ruth and Jo Ann. Known as Sol, he decided to become an actor at age six when he played the lead in The Pied Piper of Hamelin.

After graduating from Garfield High School in 1939, Hill attended the University of Washington and served four years in the United States Navy during World War II. He graduated from the University of Washington and moved first to Chicago and then to New York City to pursue an acting career.