Hal Holbrook, Actor Who Channeled Mark Twain, Is Dead at 95 He carved out a substantial career in television and film but achieved the widest acclaim with his one-man stage show, playing Twain for more than six decades. Hal Holbrook on stage as Mark Twain in 2005. Mr. Holbrook was 29 when he started playing Twain at 70; as he grew older, he found he needed less and less makeup to look elderly.Credit...Sara Krulwich/The New York Times By Robert Berkvist Feb. 2, 2021 Hal Holbrook, who carved out a substantial acting career in television and film but who achieved his widest acclaim onstage, embodying Mark Twain in all his craggy splendor and vinegary wit in a one-man show seen around the world, died on Jan. 23 at his home in Beverly Hills, Calif. He was 95.