News

Henry Silva, who starred in Johnny Cool, fought Frank Sinatra in The Manchurian Candidate and was one of Sinatra’s fellow thieves in Ocean’s 11, among dozens of screen roles spanning a half-century, died Wednesday of natural causes at the Motion Picture and Television Fund Hospital in Woodland Hills, CA. He was 95.

An actor whose distinctive face often led to typecasting as the heavy, his 130-plus film and TV credits also include The Bravados, starring Gregory Peck (1958); Cinderfella, with Jerry Lewis (1960); the Rat Pack-led Western Sergeants 3 (1962); Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979); Love and Bullets with Charles Bronson, Jill Ireland and Rod Steiger (1979); the Burt Reynolds pics Sharky’s Machine (1981) and Cannonball Run II (1982); Warren Beatty’s Dick Tracy (1990); Steven Seagal’s first film Above the Law (1988); and Jim Jarmusch’s Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai with Forest Whitaker (1999).

Along with the title role opposite Elizabeth Montgomery in Johnny Cool...

Henry Silva, a character actor known for playing bad guys and gangsters in movies like “The Manchurian Candidate” and “Ocean’s 11,” has died.

Silva died Wednesday of natural causes at the Motion Picture Picture and Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California, his son Scott Silva confirmed to Variety. He was 95.

The stage and screen actor, whose career spanned 50 years and 140 TV and film credits, was also an honorary member of The Rat Pack. He starred alongside Frank Sinatra in both “Ocean’s 11” (1960) and “The Manchurian Candidate,” (1962) in which he played one of the 11 casino robbers in the classic caper film. Also in 1962, they both appeared in “Sergeants 3” and would go on to collaborate on the TV movie “Contract on Cherry Street” (1977) and “Cannonball Run II” (1984) with Dean Martin.

Also Read:

Henry Fuhrmann, Longtime LA Times Editor Who Championed Inclusive Writing in Journalism, Dies at 65

In the wake of the news,...

The inaugural London Action Festival had its opening night at the Royal Geographical Society (Rgs) on Thursday 28th July. The evening featured a screening of Die Hard (celebrating its 35th birthday) followed by an in-person interview with its director John McTiernan, and live music from actor/Die Hard co-star Robert Davi, who is also a professionally trained opera/jazz singer.

Davi performed four songs with his band, including Frank Sinatra’s That’s Life and You Make Me Feel So Young followed by Roger Miller’s King of the Road, before finishing with festive belter Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

After rousing the crowd, Davi was interviewed by film journalist Ian Nathan, during which he reminisced about his early acting days; appearing in his first film, Contract on Cherry Street (1977), with Frank Sinatra, and relocating to Florida after 45 years in LA.

Davi suggested to Richard Donner that his Goonies character,...

Jay Black, the musician who sang the most iconic version of the classic “This Magic Moment,” penned by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, as frontman for American rock group Jay and the Americans, has died. He was 82.

His passing was confirmed in a post published on Saturday to the band’s official Facebook page. “Today, we mourn the passing of David Blatt a/k/a Jay Black and we acknowledge the great successes we had with him both as a partner and as a lead singer,” a spokesperson wrote. “We shared both wonderful and very contentious times, and much like an ex-wife, we are so proud of the beautiful children we created. We’ll always remember The Voice.”

The artist born in Brooklyn on November 2, 1938 as David Blatt joined Jay and the Americans as lead singer in 1962, stepping into the role previously occupied by John “Jay” Traynor. With them, he...

Robert Davi turns in a killer performance in Ariel Vromen’s crime thriller, The Iceman, portraying Leo Marks, a character inspired by Anthony Gaggi, the captain of the Gambino crime family. Opening in theaters on May 3rd, The Iceman chronicles the life of notorious hitman Richard Kuklinski and stars Michael Shannon, Winona Ryder, Chris Evans and Ray Liotta. In powerful roles that range from a James Bond villain to an FBI profiler, Davi has made a career out of playing tough guys both on the big screen and on television, and he’s worked with some of the most respected actors in Hollywood. At a highly entertaining roundtable interview, Davi discussed his character, the appeal of the genre, getting his start in the business with Frank Sinatra in Contract on Cherry Street, the enduring ties between show business and organized crime, rubbing elbows with made men at Café Roma, and...