Jan Leighton

Jan Leighton (December 27, 1921 - November 16, 2009) was an American actor and model who appeared in more than 3,000 roles.

He specialized in portraying historic characters, but also worked as a voice actor and hand model.

He would later change his professional name to Jan Leighton in 1949 to de-emphasize his Jewish heritage in order to get more work.

[3] He maintained a prop and wardrobe collection arranged by character and period in his crammed Manhattan apartment; the collection included 121 pairs of shoes, 203 wigs, 197 hats, 71 pairs of glasses, 36 pipes, ten togas, and three inkwells.

[5] In 1988, Guinness credited him as the man with the most disguises, having played 1,200 famous people in television and print advertisements, and 1,800 more on radio.

[3] At a gathering of 32 Guinness record-holders in 1988, Leighton appeared in full costume as General George Patton.

In May 1989, New York magazine published a feature story on Leighton, calling him the "Man of a Thousand Faces.

His website noted 'If you call Jan Leighton at 10 in the morning from New York City, he can show up and play the person before lunch–in full costume!

[12] Leighton was married four times, including actress/Emmy Award-winning writer Lynda Myles, his co-star in The World Turned Upside Down.