Janos Prohaska

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Janos Prohaska

Janos Prohaska (Hungarian: János Prohászka) (10 October 1919 – 13 March 1974; age 54) was a Hungarian stunt man, actor, and animal imitator. Several of the Star Trek: The Original Series monsters and aliens were performed by Prohaska. Prohaska was brought into the series by Assistant Director Robert Justman, who already had worked with him on the classic science fiction series The Outer Limits. Justman was impressed by Prohaskas' ability to imbue the monster costumes he wore with a magical sense of animation. (Star Trek: The Magazine Volume 3, Issue 9, p. 71)

Prohaska filmed his scenes for "The Cage" on Friday 11 December 1964 and Wednesday 16 December 1964 at Desilu Culver Stage 15. He filmed his scenes as the Horta in "The Devil in the Dark" between Monday 16 January 1967 and Thursday 19 January 1967 and on Monday 23 January 1967 at Desilu Stage 10.

Career outside Star Trek

Often nicknamed "The Great Janos", he specialized in performing different out-of-this-world creatures and exotic animals, especially apes. He was employed in numerous television series and feature films during the 1960s and early 1970s. Among others, he worked for the aforementioned The Outer Limits; in particular the monster from "The Probe", the last Outer Limits episode, is similar in geometry and movement to the Horta. He also appeared in series such as The Munsters, Lost in Space, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, Gilligan's Island, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea and Land of the Giants; and movies such as Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971, with Ricardo Montalban, William Windom, Jason Evers and James B. Sikking). His most famous role was the "Cookie Bear", which he played on The Andy Williams Show between 1969 and 1971.

Prohaska's thick Hungarian accent prevented him from getting speaking roles. A plane crash claimed his life in 1974, while working on the ABC series Up from the Ape (aka Primal Man), which featured Anthony Zerbe. His only son, actor Robert, perished alongside his father.

Star Trek appearances

Humanoid bird
TOS: "The Cage"

Anthropoid ape
TOS: "The Cage", "The Menagerie, Part II"

Mother Horta
TOS: "The Devil in the Dark"

Mugato
TOS: "A Private Little War"

Yarnek
TOS: "The Savage Curtain"

Further reading

• "From the Wormhole: Money Business", Robert H. Justman, Star Trek: The Magazine Volume 3, Issue 9, January 2003, pp. 71-73

External links

• Template:IMDb-link
• Janos Prohaska at Wikipedia