Dean Stockwell, a top Hollywood child actor who gained new success in middle age in the sci-fi series 鈥淨uantum Leap鈥� and in a string of indelible performances in film, including David Lynch鈥檚 鈥淏lue Velvet,鈥� Wim Wenders鈥� 鈥淧aris, Texas鈥� and Jonathan Demme鈥檚 鈥淢arried to the Mob,鈥� died this month. He was 85.

Stockwell was Oscar-nominated for his comic mafia kingpin in 鈥淢arried to the Mob鈥� and was four times an Emmy-nominee for 鈥淨uantum Leap.鈥� But in a career that spanned seven decades, Stockwell was a supreme character actor whose performances 鈥� lip-syncing Roy Orbison in a nightmarish party scene in 鈥淏lue Velvet,鈥� a desperate agent in Robert Altman鈥檚 鈥淭he Player,鈥� Howard Hughes in Francis Ford Coppola鈥檚 鈥淭ucker: The Man and His Dream鈥� 鈥� didn鈥檛 have to be lengthy to be mesmerizing.

Stockwell鈥檚 own relationship with acting, having started on Broadway at age 7, was complicated. In a peripatetic career, he quit show business several times, including at age 16 and again in the 1980s, when he moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico, to sell real estate.

鈥淒ean spent a lifetime yo-yoing back and forth between fame and anonymity,鈥� his family said in a statement. 鈥淏ecause of that, when he had a job, he was grateful. He never took the business for granted. He was a rebel, wildly talented and always a breath of fresh air.鈥�

The dark-haired Stockwell was a Hollywood veteran by the time he reached his teens. In his 20s, he starred on Broadway as a young killer in the play 鈥淐ompulsion鈥� and in prestigious films such as 鈥淪ons and Lovers.鈥� He was awarded best actor at the Cannes Film Festival twice, in 1959 for the big-screen version of 鈥淐ompulsion鈥� and in 1962 for Sidney Lumet鈥檚 adaptation of Eugene O鈥橬eill鈥檚 鈥淟ong Day鈥檚 Journey Into Night.鈥� While his career had some lean times, he reached his full stride in the 1980s.

鈥淢y way of working is still the same as it was in the beginning 鈥� totally intuitive and instinctive,鈥� he told The New York Times in 1987. 鈥淏ut as you live your life, you compile so many millions of experiences and bits of information that you become a richer vessel as a person. You draw on more experience.鈥�

His Oscar-nominated role as Tony 鈥淭he Tiger鈥� Russo, a flamboyant gangster, in the 1988 hit 鈥淢arried to the Mob鈥� led to his most notable TV role the following year, in NBC鈥檚 science fiction series 鈥淨uantum Leap.鈥� Both roles had strong comic elements.

鈥淚t鈥檚 the first time anyone鈥檚 offered me a series and the first time I鈥檝e ever wanted to do one,鈥� he said in 1989. 鈥淚f people hadn鈥檛 seen me in 鈥楳arried To the Mob鈥� they wouldn鈥檛 have realized I could do comedy.鈥�

Starring with Stockwell in 鈥淨uantum Leap鈥� was Scott Bakula, playing a scientist who assumes different identities in different eras after a time-travel experiment goes awry. As his colleague, 鈥淭he Observer,鈥� Stockwell lends his help but is seen only on a holographic computer image. The show lasted from 1989 to 1993.

鈥淭he only time he ever complained was when we called him on the golf course and told him we were ready for him to come to work,鈥� recalled Bakula. 鈥淗e used to announce his presence on the sound stage (if we hadn鈥檛 already caught a whiff of cigar smoke trailing in behind him), with a bellowed, 鈥楾he fun starts now!鈥� Truer words were never spoken.鈥�

He continued playing roles, big and small, in films and TV, into the 21st century, including a regular role in another science fiction series, 鈥淏attlestar Galactica.鈥�

Stockwell became an actor at an early age. His father, Harry Stockwell, voiced the role of Prince Charming in Disney鈥檚 鈥淪now White and the Seven Dwarfs鈥� and appeared in several Broadway musicals.

At age 7, Dean made his show business debut in the 1943 Broadway show 鈥淭he Innocent Voyage,鈥� the story of orphaned children entangled with pirates. His older brother, Guy, also was in the cast.

A producer at MGM was impressed by Dean and persuaded the studio to sign him. His first significant role was as Kathryn Grayson鈥檚 nephew in the 1945 musical 鈥淎nchors Aweigh,鈥� which starred Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra.

In the next few years, Stockwell appeared in such films as the Oscar-winning anti-Semitism drama 鈥淕entlemen鈥檚 Agreement,鈥� with Gregory Peck, as well as 鈥淪ong of the Thin Man,鈥� the last of the William Powell-Myrna Loy mystery series, with Stockwell playing their son.

He had the title roles in the 1948 anti-war film 鈥淭he Boy With Green Hair,鈥� about a war orphan whose hair changes color, and 鈥淜im,鈥� the 1950 version of the Rudyard Kipling tale, which starred Errol Flynn. Films in his youth also included 鈥淒own to the Sea in Ships,鈥� with Lionel Barrymore; 鈥淭he Secret Garden,鈥� with Margaret O鈥橞rien; and 鈥淪tars in My Crown鈥� with Joel McCrea.

鈥淚 was very lucky to have a loving and caring and sympathetic mother and not a stage mother,鈥� he said in 1989. Still, he stressed, it wasn鈥檛 always easy, and he dropped out of the business when he reached 16.

鈥淚 never really wanted to be an actor,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 found acting very difficult from the beginning. I worked long hours, six days a week. It wasn鈥檛 fun.鈥�

It wasn鈥檛 the only time he dropped out. But, he said: 鈥淚 came back each time because I had no other training.鈥�

Reviving his career after five years, Stockwell returned to New York where he co-starred with Roddy McDowall on Broadway in 鈥淐ompulsion,鈥� a 1957 drama based on the notorious Leopold-Loeb murder case in which two college students killed a 14-year-old boy for the thrill of it. The film version starred Orson Welles.

Stockwell had two more prestigious film roles in the early 1960s. He was the struggling son in D.H. Lawrence鈥檚 鈥淪ons and Lovers鈥� 鈥� an Oscar nominee for best picture 鈥� and the sensitive younger brother in 鈥淟ong Day鈥檚 Journey Into Night鈥� with Ralph Richardson and Katharine Hepburn.

He also tried his hand at theater directing, putting on a well-received program of Beckett and Ionesco plays in Los Angeles in 1961.

In 1960, Stockwell married Millie Perkins, best known for her starring turn as Anne in the 1959 film 鈥淭he Diary of Anne Frank.鈥� The marriage ended in divorce after only two years.

In the mid-60s, Stockwell dropped out of Hollywood and became a regular presence at the hippie enclave of Topanga Canyon. After the encouragement of Dennis Hopper, Stockwell wrote a screenplay that never got produced but inspired Neil Young鈥檚 1970 album 鈥淎fter the Gold Rush,鈥� which took its name from Stockwell鈥檚 script. Stockwell, long-time friends with Young, later co-directed and starred with Young on 1982鈥檚 鈥淗uman Highway.鈥� Stockwell also designed the cover of Young鈥檚 1977 album 鈥淎merican Stars 鈥檔 Bars.鈥�

In 1981, he married Joy Marchenko, a textile expert. When his career hit a down period, Stockwell decided to take his family to New Mexico. As soon as he left Hollywood, filmmakers started calling again.

He was cast as Harry Dean Stanton鈥檚 drifting brother in Wim Wenders鈥� acclaimed 1984 film 鈥淧aris, Texas鈥� and that same year as the evil Dr Yueh in Lynch鈥檚 鈥淒une.鈥�

He called his success from the 1980s onward his 鈥渢hird career.鈥� As for the Oscar nomination, he said in 1989 that it was 鈥渟omething I鈥檝e dreamed about for years ... It鈥檚 just one of the best feelings I鈥檝e ever had.鈥�

Like his long-time friend Hopper, a noted photographer as well as an actor, Stockwell was active in the visual arts. He made photo collages and what he called 鈥渄iceworks,鈥� sculptures made of dice. He often used his full name, Robert Dean Stockwell, in his art projects.

Stockwell is survived by his wife, Joy, and their two children, Austin Stockwell and Sophie Stockwell.