Emmy-Nominated Better Call Saul Star Mark Margolis Dies At 83

Mark Margolis, best known for playing Hector Salamanca in "Breaking Bad" and "Better Call Saul," died at the age of 83 on August 3, according to The Hollywood Reporter. His son, Morgan Margolis, who's also an actor as well as CEO of Knitting Factory Entertainment, announced he died at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City after a brief illness. He's survived by his son and daughter-in-law, Heide, and his wife, Jacqueline, whom he had been married to since June 1962. He has three grandsons — Ben, Aidan, and Henry. The family is asking that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

While many likely know Margolis for playing the silent, vindictive drug runner in the "Breaking Bad" universe for which he received an Emmy nomination for a standout performance in the Season 4 finale, "Face Off," he'd been acting since the 1970s. He has well over 150 credits to his name across film and television, including "Scarface," "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," and "The Thomas Crown Affair." Margolis loomed large in whatever role he played, and fans are no doubt heartbroken to hear of his passing.

Mark Margolis was born on November 26, 1939 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He briefly studied at Temple University before moving to New York City. While there, he was a student of acting legend Stella Adler and was later trained by Barbara Loden and Lee Strasberg. He began grabbing professional acting roles in movies in the 1970s and acted ever since. 

While he's worked with many directors over the years, he was a common fixture in the work of Darren Aronofsky, appearing in six of his films starting with a math teacher in 1998's "Pi." When asked by The Hollywood Reporter in 2012 how he keeps getting cast in Aronofsky's movies, Margolis said, "I started with him on his first movie, the $60,000 Pi when he was unknown. I chased him for three months because he kept lying to me about when I'd get my money. I finally threatened to call his mother, who was craft services on the film. Then he finally paid me."

He had many recurring roles in TV series, including playing Antonio Nappa in "Oz," many fans likely recognize him for Hector Salamanca in "Breaking Bad" and "Better Call Saul." It's all the more impressive, considering he wasn't supposed to stick around for long: "I was only coming onto Breaking Bad as far as I knew for that one episode, but there's no accounting for taste, and the fans took a fancy to me." Fans still fancy Margolis all this time later, and whenever they hear a bell ring, they'll think of the joy the actor brought to all their lives.