Ross Martin (born "Martin Rosenblatt", March 22 1920) was an American actor of stage, screen and radio. He was best known for his role as Secret Service agent Artemus Gordon on the late 1960s television series The Wild Wild West. Columbo fans will remember him for his 1971 appearance as the murderer Dale Kingston in the Season 1 episode Suitable for Framing. On The Wild Wild West he starred opposite fellow Columbo killer Robert Conrad, who played Milo Janus in An Exercise in Fatality. In the 1999 Hollywood blockbuster adaptation of Wild Wild West, Martin's role was played by Kevin Kline.
Martin suffered a heart attack on July 3 1981, following a game of tennis in San Diego. He was pronounced dead upon arrival at a nearby hospital; he was 61 years old.