Vincent Gardenia

Vincent Gardenia (born Vincenzo Scognamiglio; January 7, 1920 – December 9, 1992) was a stage, film and television actor of Italian-American origin. He received two Academy Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor for his roles in Bang the Drum Slowly (1973) and Moonstruck (1987). He notably starred as Det. Frank Ochoa in Death Wish (1974) and its sequel in 1982, as well as Mr. Mushnik in the musical film Little Shop of Horrors (1986). His other features include Murder Inc. (1960), The Hustler (1961), and The Front Page (1974). In 1990 he won the Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actor in a TV series or movie for the HBO production Age-Old Friends. He received further acclaim for his Broadway performances, earning a Tony Award in 1972 for The Prisoner of Second Avenue.

Born in Italy, at the age of three his family immigrated to the US and settled in Brooklyn, New York. His father established an acting troupe that presented Italian-language melodramas, in which Vincent performed from a young age. His first English-speaking role on Broadway began in 1960. Gardenia served in the U.S. Army during World War II. He broke into films with roles such as a Broadway pirate in his English-speaking debut in In April Once, and won two Obie Awards in 1960 and 1969. He is also recognized for his exceptional performances in popular TV shows such as The Twilight Zone, Mission: Impossible, and The Fugitive. Despite his successful career, Gardenia lived a solitary life without a spouse or children. He died of a heart attack in 1992 during a stage production in Philadelphia.