1921-02-24 ( 104 years old ) in New York City, New York, USA
Tall, dour-faced and slouch-shouldered character actor Abraham Charles Vigoda (February 24, 1921 – January 26, 2016) proved himself in both gritty dramatic roles, and as an actor with wonderful comedic timing.
Vigoda was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Lena (Moses) and Samuel Vigoda, both Russian Jewish immigrants. His father was a tailor on the Lower East Side. He made his first stage appearance at the age of 17 and plodded away in small theater shows for over 20 years. For the majority of film-goers, Vigoda first came to prominence in The Godfather (1972) as the double-crossing Tessio, pleading with Robert Duvall to get him off the hook "for old times' sake." He also appeared in its sequel.
Vigoda had roles in a few nondescript TV films before landing the plum part of Sgt. Phil Fish on the brilliant sitcom Barney Miller (1974). Perhaps his best known role, Sgt. Fish proved popular enough to be spun off to his own (short-lived) series Fish (1977).
With his long face and unusual looks, Vigoda remained in high demand in mafioso-type roles, and for a while in the mid-1980s, he was mistakenly believed to have been dead, leading producers to remark, "I need an Abe Vigoda type actor," not realizing Vigoda was still alive and well. The 1990s and beyond became busy again for him, with appearances in North (1994), The Misery Brothers (1995), A Brooklyn State of Mind (1998), and Crime Spree (2003). He continued acting into his 90s, surprising audiences with his entertaining style.
Abe Vigoda died in his sleep on January 26, 2016 in Woodland Park, New Jersey.
Movies
Cutaways
2013-11-23
The Unknown Trilogy
2008-01-29
Farce of the Penguins
2006-12-01
Crime Spree
2003-04-16
Tea Cakes or Cannoli
2000-12-31
Chump Change
2000-01-01
Witness to the Mob
1998-05-10
Just the Ticket
1998-02-01
A Brooklyn State of Mind
1998-01-01
Good Burger
1997-07-25
Farticus
1997-01-01
A Christmas Journey Home
1996-12-01
Underworld
1996-06-01
Love Is All There Is
1996-05-10
Jury Duty
1995-04-12
The Misery Brothers
1995-01-01
North
1994-07-22
Sugar Hill
1994-02-25
Home of Angels
1994-01-01
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
1993-12-25
Me and the Kid
1993-10-22
Fist of Honor
1993-05-19
Night of 100 Stars III
1990-05-21
Keaton's Cop
1990-03-09
Joe Versus the Volcano
1990-03-09
Prancer
1989-11-17
Look Who's Talking
1989-10-12
Plain Clothes
1988-04-15
Vasectomy: A Delicate Matter
1986-01-01
The Stuff
1985-06-14
Cannonball Run II
1984-06-29
The Godfather 1901–1959: The Complete Epic
1981-03-24
The Big Stuffed Dog
1981-02-08
Gridlock
1980-10-02
Death Car on the Freeway
1979-09-24
How to Pick Up Girls!
1978-11-03
The Comedy Company
1978-07-21
The Cheap Detective
1978-06-23
Dean Martin's Red Hot Scandals of 1926
1976-11-08
Having Babies
1976-10-17
Joys
1976-03-05
The Godfather Part II
1974-12-20
Newman's Law
1974-08-21
The Story of Pretty Boy Floyd
1974-05-07
The Don Is Dead
1973-11-14
Toma
1973-03-21
The Devil's Daughter
1973-01-09
The Godfather
1972-03-14
Three Rooms in Manhattan
1965-11-10
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