Italo Valentino Bisoglio (May 7, 1926 – October 18, 2021) was an American

character actor A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to ...

primarily known for his work on television.

Biography

Bisoglio was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, on May 7, 1926. He may be best known for his recurring role as

restaurateur A restaurateur is a person who opens and runs restaurants professionally. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who owns a restaurant, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspec ...

"Danny Tovo" in the popular

medical drama A medical drama is a television show or film in which events center upon a hospital, an ambulance staff, or any medical environment. Most recent medical drama (film and television), dramatic programming go beyond the events pertaining to the chara ...

television series '' Quincy, M.E.'' from 1976 to 1983. During his television acting career, Bisoglio appeared in numerous television programs during the 1960s and 1970s including. '' The Doctors'', '' McCloud'', ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker (auth ...

'' (three episodes), ''

All in the Family ''All in the Family'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS for nine seasons, from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. Afterwards, it was continued with the spin-off series '' Archie Bunker's Place'', which picked up where ''All in ...

'', ''

Barney Miller ''Barney Miller'' is an American sitcom television series set in a New York City Police Department police station on East 6th St in Greenwich Village. The series was broadcast on ABC Network from January 23, 1975, to May 20, 1982. It was created ...

'', ''

The Mary Tyler Moore Show ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (also known simply as ''Mary Tyler Moore'') is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns and starring actress Mary Tyler Moore. The show originally aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977. ...

'', ''

Roll Out ''Roll Out'' is an American sitcom that aired Friday evenings on CBS during the 1973-1974 television season. Starring nightclub comedian Stu Gilliam and Hilly Hicks, and featuring Ed Begley Jr. and Garrett Morris, the series was set in Franc ...

'', ''

Kojak ''Kojak'' is an American Action film, action Crime film, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theodopolis "Theo" Kojak. Tak ...

'', ''

Baretta ''Baretta'' is an American detective television series which ran on ABC from 1975 to 1978. The show was a revised and milder version of a 1973–1974 ABC series, ''Toma'', starring Tony Musante as chameleon-like, real-life New Jersey poli ...

'', ''

McMillan & Wife ''McMillan & Wife'' (known simply as ''McMillan'' from 1976–77) is an American police procedural television series that aired on NBC from September 17, 1971, to April 24, 1977. Starring Rock Hudson and Susan Saint James in the title roles, the ...

'', and ''

The Rockford Files ''The Rockford Files'' is an American detective drama television series starring James Garner that aired on the NBC network from September 13, 1974 to January 10, 1980, and remains in syndication. Garner portrays Los Angeles private investigat ...

''. In 1986, Bisoglio appeared on ''

Miami Vice ''Miami Vice'' is an American crime drama television series created by Anthony Yerkovich and produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series stars Don Johnson as James "Sonny" Crockett and Philip Michael Thomas as Ricardo "Rico" Tubbs, two Me ...

'' (3x11) in an episode titled "Forgive Us our Debts". In 2002, he appeared in his final television role as Murf Lupo in ''

The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based American Mafia, Italian-American mobster, portraying h ...

'', appearing in three episodes. From his work in film, Bisoglio is perhaps best known for his role as "Frank Manero Sr.", the volatile father of "Tony Manero" (

John Travolta John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing on the television sitcom '' Welcome Back, Kotter'' (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes ''Carrie'' (1 ...

) in the 1977 film ''

Saturday Night Fever ''Saturday Night Fever'' is a 1977 American Dance in film, dance Drama (film and television), drama film directed by John Badham and produced by Robert Stigwood. It stars John Travolta as Tony Manero, a young Italian-American man from the Brookl ...

''. His other film credits include an uncredited role in ''

Serpico ''Serpico'' is a 1973 American neo-noir biographical crime drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Al Pacino in the title role. The screenplay was adapted by Waldo Salt and Norman Wexler from the book of the same name written by P ...

'' (1973), as well as roles in '' No Way to Treat a Lady'' (1968), '' The Brotherhood'' (1968), ''

The Don Is Dead ''The Don Is Dead'' is a 1973 American crime film directed by Richard Fleischer and written by Christopher Trumbo, Michael Butler, and Marvin H. Albert, adapted from Albert's novel of the same name. It stars Anthony Quinn, Frederic Forrest, Robert ...

'' (1973), '' Linda Lovelace for President'' (1975), ''

The Hindenburg LZ 129 ''Hindenburg'' (; Registration: D-LZ 129) was a German commercial passenger-carrying rigid airship, the lead ship of the ''Hindenburg'' class, the longest class of flying machine and the largest airship by envelope volume. It was de ...

'' (1975), '' St. Ives'' (1976), and ''

The Frisco Kid ''The Frisco Kid'' is a 1979 American Western comedy film directed by Robert Aldrich, starring Gene Wilder as Avram Belinski, a Polish rabbi who is traveling to San Francisco, and Harrison Ford as a bank robber who befriends him. Plot Rabbi Av ...

'' (1979). Bisoglio died of

Lewy body dementia Lewy body dementias are two similar and common subtypes of dementia—dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD). Both are characterized by changes in thinking, movement, behavior, and mood. The two conditions have si ...

at the age of 95 at his home in Los Olivos, California, on October 18, 2021.

Filmography

References

External links

* * *
Off-Broadway Database entry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bisoglio, Val 1926 births 2021 deaths 20th-century American male actors Actors Studio alumni American male film actors American male stage actors American male television actors American people of Italian descent Male actors from New York City Deaths from dementia in California Deaths from Lewy body dementia