Burton Armus


Burton S. Armus was an American police officer, actor, writer and television producer.

Life and career

Armus was born on December 11, 1934. His Hollywood career began when, while he was still serving as an NYPD detective assigned to the 48th Squad in the Bronx, he was hired to be the technical advisor on the TV series N.Y.P.D. in 1967. He also wrote the episode "Boys Night Out" for that series. Later, still a serving detective, he was picked by Telly Savalas to act as a technical adviser on the Kojak series. He also acted in three of the episodes, and wrote nine of them. Following his retirement from the police department he moved to Los Angeles and became a successful writer and producer. He later retired from this second career. Director Richard Donner, who directed three episodes of Kojak, named a detective in his blockbuster film Superman after Armus. The villain "Armus" in "Skin of Evil," an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, was named after Armus in a humorous slight from the writers.
Armus died on April 8, 2024, at the age of 89.

Awards

In 1994, Armus won a Humanitas Prize for 60 Minute Category, which was shared with David Milch. He received two Emmy Award nominations that same year, one for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Writing in a Drama Series and the other for Outstanding Drama Series. He garnered another Emmy nomination in 1995, for Outstanding Drama Series.

Filmography

Actor

Writer

Producer

Technical advisor