Lock Martin

Who was Lock Martin?

Lock Martin was the stage name of American actor Joseph Lockard Martin, Jr. He is best remembered for playing the robot Gort in The Day the Earth Stood Still.

He was from Pennsylvania and had a series of odd jobs before going into acting. He was working as a doorman at Grauman's Chinese Theater when he was hired for the role of Gort, although this was not his first acting job. He was reportedly 7 feet 7 inches tall; however Robert Wise, director of The Day The Earth Stood Still, states his height was 7 feet 1 inch in the DVD commentary. His great height did not translate into strength and he had difficulty managing his robot suit. For scenes where he was supposed to physically lift Patricia Neal and Michael Rennie, they were either held up by wires, a hidden dolly or replaced with lightweight dummies.

He was also in The Incredible Shrinking Man as a giant, but his scenes were deleted. He was nicknamed "the Gentle Giant" as he liked reading stories to children and for a time had a local show devoted to that.

Martin was married to Ethel Babcock.