Richard S. Castellano(1933-1988)

Actor

Richard S. Castellano in Le Parrain (1972)

Play trailer1:45

New York Connection (1980)

Bronx born, stocky Italian-American actor who only appeared in a handful of films, yet earned some degree of immortality for his role as the loyal Corleone capo Peter Clemenza teaching Al Pacino how to shoot a crooked police captain in the iconic gangster film Le Parrain (1972). He was originally a construction company manager, then he gained work with the New Yiddish Theatre, before breaking into film near his thirtieth birthday. However in 1970, in only his fourth film, Castellano received a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his performance in Lune de miel aux orties (1970) and came to the attention of casting agents for Le Parrain (1972). After his strong showing as a tough hoodlum in Le Parrain (1972), he became somewhat typecast as a screen criminal and appeared in further crime films including A pleins chargeurs (1973) and Gangster Wars (1981).

He died in December 1988 from a heart attack at the age of 55.

IMDbProStarmeter See rank

Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 4 nominations total

Photos5

Known for

Le Parrain

9.2

Clemenza(as Richard Castellano)

1972

Lune de miel aux orties

6.6

Frank(as Richard Castellano)

1970

Chronique des années 30

8.1

TV Mini Series

Giuseppe 'Joe the Boss' Masseria

Gangster Wars

6.7

Giuseppe "Joe the Boss" Masseria

1981

Credits

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IMDbPro

Actor

Dear Mr. Wonderful
4.6
- Agent
- 1982
Chronique des années 30
8.1
TV Mini Series
- Giuseppe 'Joe the Boss' Masseria
- 1981
Gangster Wars
6.7
- Giuseppe "Joe the Boss" Masseria
- 1981
New York Connection
6.6
- Lt. Tonelli (as Richard Castellano)
- 1980
Joe and Sons
6.7
TV Series
- Joe Vitale
- 1975–1976
A pleins chargeurs
5.2
TV Movie
- Frank Labruzzo
- 1973
Incident on a Dark Street
5.1
TV Movie
- Frank Romeo
- 1973
The Super
7.5
TV Series
- Joe Girelli
- 1972
Le Parrain
9.2
- Clemenza (as Richard Castellano)
- 1972
Lune de miel aux orties
6.6
- Frank (as Richard Castellano)
- 1970
The Choice
7.8
TV Movie
- 1969
N.Y.P.D.
7.4
TV Series
- Cheech
- Duval (as Richard Castellano)
- 1968–1969
Un détective à la dynamite
5.1
- Bartender (uncredited)
- 1968
Hawk, l'oiseau de nuit
6.9
TV Series
- Friend (as Richard Castellano)
- 1966
NET Playhouse
7.1
TV Series
- Burly Burglar
- 1966

Videos4

The Night of the Juggler

Trailer 1:45

Night of the Juggler - US restoration trailer

Personal details

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Alternative name
- Richard Castellano
Height
- 1.75 m
Born
- September 4, 1933
- The Bronx, New York City, New York, USA
Died
- December 10, 1988
- North Bergen, New Jersey, USA(heart attack)
Spouses
Other works
Active on Broadway in the following productions:
Publicity listings
- 3 Articles

Did you know

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Trivia
Nephew of Paul Castellano.

Quotes
[on why he was not in Le Parrain, 2ᵉ partie (1974)] I saw Clemenza as a teacher. He teaches how to make spaghetti, how to use the gun. [Coppola] can't tell me that Clemenza, after years of loyalty to the old man, would go in and testify against organized crime. Not unless you proved to me... that he had become a fearful man, that he had become a betrayer. The demands on me were impossible. I had settled on a price and everybody else's was settled upon mine. [Coppola] had me losing weight to play Clemenza as a young man. I was down to 194 pounds. When I received the script five minutes later, it had me rolling in at 300 pounds... The next thing, I saw Coppola quoted as saying that I asked for more money than anyone else, that I asked to rewrite the script. Once the lie gets out, the lie is told, and it takes.