Antonio was born Louis Demetrios Antoniou in Oklahoma City of English, French, and German descent on his mother's side and Greek on his father's side (the family name was originally Antoniou).[citation needed] During his teens, he worked as a sports reporter on the Daily Oklahoman.[2]Antonio attended the University of Oklahoma on a journalism scholarship and earned a degree in French.[2]"A Dog's Life for Lou", The Robesonian, May 1, 1977, p. 13.</ref> He also took college courses in acting and appeared on stage.[2] He later moved to New York City and studied acting Lee Strasberg, Curt Conway and Lonny Chapman.[2]
On Star Trek, he co-starred with Frank Gorshin in “Let That Be Your Last Battlefield” (1969),[3] which eventually became one of the most popular of the series. In 2016, The Hollywood Reporter rated “Let That Be Your Last Battlefield” the 11th best television episode of all Star Trek franchise television shows prior to Star Trek: Discovery including live-action and animated series but not counting the movies.[4] Also in 2016, SyFy ranked Antonio and Gorshin (as Bele and Lokai) as the 10th best guest stars on Star Trek: The Original Series.[5]
Antonio was married to fellow Actors Studio member, Lane Bradbury[6] and they had two daughters. The couple divorced in 1980.[6] Their daughter Elkin Antoniou is a writer, director[6] and award-winning documentarian.[7]
Antonio's elder brother, James Antonio,[8] and sister-in-law, Hilda Brawner,[9] are also actors.
^Treanor, Aline Jean (March 1, 1959). "It's A Sooner Show". The Daily Oklahoman. p. 3.
^Wincehell, Walter (April 29, 1965). "Stage Door". Wilkes-Barr Times Leader. p. 23. James Antonio of "Othello" and actress Hilda Brawner (wed at city hall last week)...