Abe Vigoda
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.
Acted in
Cutaways
2013
The Unknown Trilogy
2008
as Uncle Morty (segment "Frankie the Squirrel")
Farce of the Penguins
2006
as Penguin from Boca (voice)
Crime Spree
2003
as Angelo Giancarlo
TV Land Awards: A Celebration of Classic TV
2003
Tea Cakes or Cannoli
2000
Deadline
2000
as Joseph Spiaggio
Chump Change
2000
as The Frog
Norm
1999
Family Guy
1999
as Abe Vigoda (voice)
Witness to the Mob
1998
as Paul Castellano
Just the Ticket
1998
as Arty
A Brooklyn State of Mind
1998
as Uncle Guy
Good Burger
1997
as Otis
Farticus
1997
as Zeus
A Christmas Journey Home
1996
as Grandpa
Promised Land
1996
Underworld
1996
as Will Cassady
Love Is All There Is
1996
as Rudy
Jury Duty
1995
as Judge Powell
The Misery Brothers
1995
as Don Frito Layleone
Touched by an Angel
1994
as Receptionist Angel
North
1994
as Alaskan Grandpa
Weird Science
1994
Sugar Hill
1994
as Gus Molino
Home of Angels
1994
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
1993
as Salvatore Valestra (voice)
Diagnosis: Murder
1993
as Alfredo Bartolo / Al Bartell / Mr. Johnson
Me and the Kid
1993
as Pawn Broker
Fist of Honor
1993
as Victor Malucci
Mad About You
1992
as Kalman Wertzel
Lucky Luke
1992
as Judge Rinehart
The Adventures of the Black Stallion
1992
Law & Order
1990
as Detective Landis
Night of 100 Stars III
1990
as Self
Wings
1990
as Harry
Keaton's Cop
1990
as Louis Keaton
Joe Versus the Volcano
1990
as Chief of the Waponis
Prancer
1989
as Orel Benton
Look Who's Talking
1989
as Grandpa
B.L. Stryker
1989
Monsters
1988
Superboy
1988
Plain Clothes
1988
as Mr. Wiseman
Vasectomy: A Delicate Matter
1986
as Abe
MacGyver
1985
as Bill Cody
The Stuff
1985
as Stuff Commercial Spokesman
Murder, She Wrote
1984
as George
Tales from the Darkside
1984
as Jake Corelli
Cannonball Run II
1984
as Caesar
The Godfather 1901–1959: The Complete Epic
1981
as Salvatore "Sal" Tessio (uncredited)
The Big Stuffed Dog
1981
as Carnival Pitchman
Harper Valley
1981
Gridlock
1980
as Herb
The Littlest Hobo
1979
Death Car on the Freeway
1979
as Mr. Frisch
B. J. and the Bear
1979
Supertrain
1979
Sweepstakes
1979
How to Pick Up Girls!
1978
as Nathan Perlmutter
Vega$
1978
The Comedy Company
1978
as Jake
The Cheap Detective
1978
as Sergeant Rizzuto
Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television
1977
as Salvatore "Sal" Tessio (uncredited)
The Love Boat
1977
as Charlie Fletcher
Eight Is Enough
1977
Fish
1977
as Phil Fish
Dean Martin's Red Hot Scandals of 1926
1976
as Self
Having Babies
1976
as Al Schneider
The Captain and Tennille
1976
as Self
Joys
1976
as Self
The Bionic Woman
1976
Barney Miller
1975
as Philip Fish
Barney Miller
1975
as Det. Phil Fish (uncredited)
Barney Miller
1975
as Det. Phil Fish
The Godfather Part II
1974
as Salvatore 'Sal' Tessio
Tony Orlando and Dawn
1974
as Self
The Rockford Files
1974
as Phil 'The Dancer' Gabriel
The Rockford Files
1974
as Al Dancer
Newman's Law
1974
as John Dellanzia
The Story of Pretty Boy Floyd
1974
as Dominic Morrell
Tattletales
1974
The Don Is Dead
1973
as Don Talusso
Kojak
1973
as Kilty
Toma
1973
The Devil's Daughter
1973
as Alikhine
The Sandy Duncan Show
1972
The Rookies
1972
The Godfather
1972
as Sal Tessio
Cannon
1971
Love, American Style
1969
as Mr. Burdick (uncredited)
Hawaii Five-O
1968
as Abe Kemper
Mannix
1967
as Anton Valine
Dark Shadows
1966
Three Rooms in Manhattan
1965
as Waiter (uncredited)
Suspense
1949
Studio One
1948
as Old Train Passenger