Henry Armetta(1888-1945)
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Sicilian-born character actor who appeared in scores of American films,
usually as an exuberant and demonstrative Italian. As a teenager in
1902, Armetta stowed away on a boat bound for New York. There he did
menial jobs until landing a position as a valet and presser at the
Lambs Club, the New York actors' club. One of the members took a liking
Armetta and arranged a small role for him in a Broadway show. Armetta
followed this with many stage roles both in New York and in stock. In
the early Twenties, he moved to California in search of work in movies,
of which he'd had a taste while in New York. In Hollywood, Armetta
slowly gained a name for himself as a character actor, and by the end
of the decade, he had carved a niche for himself as a portrayer of
humorous and sympathetic Italian immigrants, a position he maintained
into the 1940s. He died of heart failure at 57.
