Leonard Clarence Strong (August 12, 1908 – January 23, 1980) was an American character actor specializing in playing Asian roles.
Biography
Strong was born in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1908. Beginning with Little Tokyo, U.S.A in 1942, he played a gamut of roles as Japanese, Chinese, Koreans, Thais, etc. in films such as Dragon Seed (1944), Up in Arms (1944), Jack London (1943), Salute to the Marines (1943), Behind the Rising Sun (1943), Night Plane from Chungking (1943), Bombardier (1943), Underground Agent (1942), and Manila Calling (1942). He played the Thai interpreter in both Anna and the King of Siam and its musical remake The King and I. He played Clem in The Lone Ranger episode (1/16) "Cannonball McKay" (1949). Strong also appeared in the movie Shane (1953) as homesteader Ernie Wright.
Strong, c. 1953
Strong achieved some pop culture notoriety for his role on television as "The Claw" on Get Smart, where Agent Maxwell Smart (Don Adams) is unable to understand Strong as he announces his evil nickname of “The Claw”; confused, Smart calls the villain “The Craw”, causing the bad guy to continually, and with increasing irritation, correct him. Strong appeared as "The Claw" in two episodes:
"Diplomat's Daughter" (1965)
and "The Amazing Harry Hoo" (1966). Additionally, he played the role of Lin Chan
in "The Laser Blazer" (1968).
In "The Cure" (1960), a season-five episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents set deep in the Amazon jungle, Strong plays Luiz, a grimly faithful native manservant.
Another notable television role was his haunting and mostly silent portrayal of the title character in the original Twilight Zone episode "The Hitch-Hiker", often listed as one of the ten best episodes of the series.
