Canadian-born stage and screen actor Joseph Wiseman, most famous for playing the archetypal James Bond villain Doctor No, has died at the age of 91, his daughter told US media on Wednesday.

Wiseman died on Monday at his home in Manhattan, his daughter Martha told The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times.

Born in Montreal in 1918, Wiseman moved to the United States as a child and starred in a succession of Broadway hits from 'Antony and Cleopatra' to 'King Lear' before turning his attention to Hollywood.

His breakthrough film role came alongside Marlon Brando in the 1952 hit 'Viva Zapata!' and he also starred notably opposite Burt Lancaster in 1960's 'The Unforgiven'.

Despite this success and a string of later television roles, Wiseman will forever be synonymous with Doctor Julius No — the sinister Bond villain with metal hands who is ultimately boiled alive.

The 1962 hit 'Dr. No' also starred Sean Connery as Ian Fleming's suave British agent and Ursula Andress as the quintessential Bond girl Honey Rider.

Preferring to be remembered for his stage work, Wiseman's final role was fittingly on Broadway in 2001 in an adaptation of 'Judgment At Nuremberg'.

AFP