- Best known for his roles as the ghostly bartender Lloyd in The Shining (1980), and Dr. Eldon Tyrell in Blade Runner (1982).
- A frequent collaborator with Stanley Kubrick, who cast him in three films--The Killing (1956), Paths of Glory (1957) and The Shining (1980). The only other actor to have worked with Kubrick that often was Philip Stone.
- Said in an interview in 2014 that Paths of Glory (1957) was his favorite of his own films.
- Joined the United States Army at age 17, serving Europe during World War II.
- Joseph Turkel passed away on June 27, 2022, only three weeks away from what would have been his 95th birthday on July 15.
- Retired from acting in 1998 after less than 50 years in the motion picture industry.
- Wrote a memoir, "The Misery of Success", scheduled for a 2022 release.
- His parents, Gazella (Goldfisher) and Benjamin Turkel, were Polish Jewish immigrants.
- Appeared in two films that were nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: Friendly Persuasion (1956) and The Sand Pebbles (1966).
- He has appeared in three films that have been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant": Paths of Glory (1957), The Shining (1980) and Blade Runner (1982).
- Supporter of the Occupy Wall Street movement and spoke at the Occupy Seattle rally.
- Supporter of the Democratic Party and has described himself as a ''Liberal Progressive''.
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