Steven Hill, who played ‘Law & Order’ DA Schiff, dies at 94

But his lead role in 1966’s “Mission: Impossible” series made him a star, and he was championed by fellow CBS headliner Lucille Ball; his luck didn’t last, though, and he was sacked from the series after only one season due to disagreements over the show’s shooting schedule (Hill was Jewish, and declined to work on the Sabbath).

Steven Hill, who for years played gruff District Attorney Adam Schiff on Law & Order, has died. If you would like to discuss another topic, look for a relevant article. “He is also the only actor I’ve known who consistently tried to cut his own lines”, series creator Dick Wolf said in a statement to the Associated Press. Hill, who got his start on Broadway, starred in NBC’s “Law & Order” for 10 years.

(Law and Order) “Take the rest of the week off”.

Later, he appeared on shows including “thirtysomething”, “The Fugitive”, “Rawhide”, “Ben Casey”, “Dr. Kildare”, “The Untouchables” and “Route 66”. He was only one the show for the first season and as the story goes, CBS decided not to pick up his contract for season two as they were never overly keen on the casting and because of producers having to work around his schedule so he could observe his religious traditions as an orthodox Jew. He was replaced by Peter Graves. His other movie credits include Yentl (1983), Brighton Beach Memoirs and Legal Eagles (both released in 1986), The Firm (1993), White Palace (1990). He also portrayed the father of Christine Lahti in “Running on Empty”, of Meryl Streep in “Heartburn” and Jill Clayburgh in “It’s My Turn”.

According to the New York Times, Steven Hill was born Solomon Krakowsky in 1922, in Seattle. He is survived by his wife, four daughters, five sons and his brother Charles.