Oscar-winning actor Martin Landau dies at 89

Martin Landau, the actor best known for his role in the Mission: Impossible TV series, has died aged 89.

Laundau’s publicist confirmed to Associated Press that the actor passed away in Los Angeles following a “short hospitalisation”.

Apart from his work in the TV spy series and 70s sci-fi show Space:1999, Landau was also known for his roles in blockbusters such as Cleopatra, Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest and Alone in the Dark. After a string of Oscar nominations – Tucker: The Man and His Dream, Crimes and Misdemeanors – Landau finally won an Academy Award for his role as ageing Dracula star Bela Lugosi, making a desperate comeback, in 1994’s Ed Wood.

Landau, who was originally a cartoonist for the New York Daily News before becoming an actor, was also fondly remembered for his role as Geppetto in a live-action version of The Adventures of Pinocchio.

Star Trek actor William Shatner was among those to pay tributes.

And Michael McKean...

My thoughts are with Martin Landau and his family at this time... a great talent who always made every performance his own. pic.twitter.com/aHl7lwzVhv

— Mark Mahon (@MarkMahon) July 17, 2017