Overview (5)
| Born | in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA |
| Died | in Polizzi Generosa, Sicily, Italy (lung cancer) |
| Birth Name | Vincent Andrew Schiavelli |
| Nickname | The Man with the Sad Eyes |
| Height | 6' 4½" (1.95 m) |
Mini Bio (1)
Vincent Schiavelli, selected in 1997 by Vanity Fair as one of the best character actors in America, had made over 120 film and television appearances. He studied acting at NYU's Theatre Program. Aside from his acting career, Vincent was the author of three cookbooks, and has written numerous articles on food for magazines and newspapers. In 2001, he received the James Beard Journalism Award.
- IMDb Mini Biography By: Vincent Schiavelli
Family (2)
| Spouse |
Carol Mukhalian (23 October 1992 -
26 December 2005) (his death)
(1 child)
Allyce Beasley (4 August 1985 - 20 November 1988) (divorced) (1 child) |
| Children | Andrea Schiavelli |
Trade Mark (4)
Bald head and large droopy owl-like eyes
Often played Italian-American characters
Frequently cast in Milos Forman's films
Towering height and slender frame
Trivia (23)
His grandfather, whom he grew up with, was a cook for an Italian baron before moving to the United States. Vincent spoke Sicilian fluently.
Studied at the New York University School of the Arts in 1969 and 1970.
His character Peter Panama on The Corner Bar (1972) was the first sustained gay character on American network television.
[2001] Vincent directed a theater piece in Sicily based on nine traditional fables. Six of the eight actors were Sicilian, and everything was authentic down to the local dialect. After the production, Vincent went out on stage with the actors and was met with a five-minute storm of wild flowers from the audience.
During his high school years in Brooklyn (1962-1966), he was the star of all the Drama Society's presentations, and was a member of the National Honor Society.
Wrote three cookbooks and many food articles for magazines and newspapers, possibly inheriting his love for cooking from his grandfather who had been a cook for an Italian baron.
Appeared in two different, completely unrelated productions in which he played a hit man targeting a character played by Teri Hatcher: the television series MacGyver (1985) and Tomorrow Never Dies (1997).
Appeared in Batman Returns (1992) and the series episode Batman: The Animated Series: Zatanna (1993). He was the only actor from the Tim Burton/Michael Keaton Batman movies to voice a character on Batman: The Animated Series (1992).
Owed his distinctive appearance largely to Marfan syndrome, from which he suffered. He was an honorary co-chairman of the National Marfan Foundation until his death.
Made many guest appearances on local Sicilian television talk shows. Made himself very popular with the "locals", by speaking proper Sicilian during his interviews.
He was an alumnus of Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School in Brooklyn, as is former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Appeared in two different, completely unrelated productions in which he played opposite Pierce Brosnan: the television series Remington Steele (1982) and Tomorrow Never Dies (1997). Both men also worked with director Tim Burton: Schiavelli in Batman Returns (1992) and Brosnan in Mars Attacks! (1996).
Along with Ray Walston, he is one of only two actors to appear in both Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) and the subsequent television adaptation Fast Times (1986).
Is the only actor besides Christopher Walken to have played both Batman and Bond villains. Both appeared in Batman Returns (1992); Walken as Max Shreck and Schiavelli as The Organ Grinder. Walken played Max Zorin in A View to a Kill (1985) with Roger Moore and Schiavelli played Dr. Kauffman in Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) with Pierce Brosnan.
Schiavelli was one of two actors who were born in 1948, appeared in one of the Tim Burton/Michael Keaton Batman movies, and died in 2005. The other was William Hootkins, who played Lt. Eckhardt in Batman (1989).
Shared his November 11th birthday with his Ghost (1990) co-star Demi Moore. Ghost (1990) also starred Patrick Swayze, who, like Schiavelli, died of cancer at the age of 57.
Appeared in four films that were nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), An Unmarried Woman (1978), Amadeus (1984) and Ghost (1990). Of those, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) and Amadeus (1984) are winners in the category and both were directed by Milos Forman. Both films also won the Golden Globe Award for best drama and Milos Forman won the Golden Globe Award for best director for both films.
Was one of three actors from One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) to play a Batman villain in the Tim Burton/Michael Keaton Batman movies. The others of course being Jack Nicholson as The Joker in Batman (1989) and Danny DeVito as The Penguin in Batman Returns (1992). Schiavelli appeared in Batman Returns (1992) as The Organ Grinder (a villain who was working for The Penguin).
Had worked with director Milos Forman in six films: Taking Off (1971), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Amadeus (1984), Valmont (1989), The People vs. Larry Flynt (1996) and Man on the Moon (1999).
Had appeared with Danny DeVito in five films: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Johnny Dangerously (1984), Batman Returns (1992), Man on the Moon (1999) and Death to Smoochy (2002).
Had appeared with Christopher Lloyd in five films: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Butch and Sundance: The Early Days (1979), The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984), Man on the Moon (1999) and Hey Arnold! The Movie (2002).
Had appeared in three films that have been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant": One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) and Amadeus (1984).
