US actor Karl Malden, best known for his roles in films such as A Streetcar Named Desire and On the Waterfront, has died at the age of 97.

Malden won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 1951, for his performance in A Streetcar Named Desire, and was nominated again in 1954.

His family said he had died of natural causes.

His film career flourished in the 1950s and '60s, with parts in movies such as Birdman of Alcatraz, How the West Was Won, Gypsy, The Cincinnati Kid and Patton.

He avoided moving into television for many years, but succumbed to the role of the gruff homicide detective Mike Stone in The Streets of San Francisco, which ran from 1972 to 1977.

Malden was nominated four consecutive times for an Emmy for The Streets of San Francisco. He finally won one in 1984, for the mini-series "Fatal Vision".

He was married to actress Mona Graham for more than 70 years, one of the longest partnerships in Hollywood history.