Actor Henry Silva, who appeared in “Ocean’s Eleven” and “A crime in the head”, died on Wednesday September 14 at the age of 95.
It was a day before his birthday that Henry Silva passed away at the Motion Picture and Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, Calif., as confirmed by his son Scott. Died of natural causes, he was 95 years old.
Recognized for his many villainous roles, the prolific comedian has appeared in a whole string of productions. Headliner of The Sicilian’s Revenge (1963) in the role of Johnny Cool, he notably played in A crime in the head (1962) by John Frankenheimer, alongside Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey and Janet Leigh, or even in Ocean’s Eleven (2001) – his last film appearance in 2001.
CARRIER START
Born in Brooklyn in 1929 to Sicilian and Spanish parents, Henry Silva decided at the age of 13 to drop out of school to dedicate himself to the theater by taking drama lessons while washing dishes in a hotel in New York in parallel. In 1952, he made his first uncredited film appearance in the film Viva Zapata! by Elia Kazan, alongside Marlon Brando.
20th Century Fox
Henry Silva and Marlon Brando in Viva Zapata! (1952)
In 1955, having become a waiter, Henry Silva decided to audition to join the Actor Studio. He passed the competition with four other suitors selected from 2,500 candidates. His career began on Broadway when the Studio offered him to play on stage in the play A Hatful of Rain by Michael V. Gazzo, along with colleagues such as Ben Gazzara, Shelley Winters, Harry Guardino and Anthony Franciosa.
MANAGEMENT HOLLYWOOD
Spotted by Hollywood, Henry Silva quickly began his film career by appearing in various films such as The Bravados by Henry King, Green Mansions by Mel Ferrer. But it was above all in 1963, with his role as Johnny Cool in The Sicilian’s Revenge by William Asher, alongside Sammy Davis Jr. and Elizabeth Montgomery, that he will impose himself on the screens and refine his character as a cold and cruel killer.
United Artists
Henry Silva and Elizabeth Montgomery in “Revenge of the Sicilian” (1963)
He is then often confined to the roles of bandits and villains. But when an Italian producer asked him to play a hero in the spaghetti western Du sang dans la montagne in 1966, he accepted without hesitation. Fate will prove him right since the film was a success at the Spanish, Italian, German and French box office.
INTERNATIONALLY
For Henry Silva then begins an important European career: he goes into exile in Italy to chain commercial films. It was during this period that he met Fernando Di Leo who essentially employed him in several mafia roles, notably in The Boss in 1973.
Elephant Classics Movies
Henry Silva in “The Boss” (1973)
He then returned to the United States in the 80s and accumulated genre and B series films while continuing to play in international productions.
FAREWELL TO THE STAGE
Over the next decade, in order to pay homage to him, new authors would offer him mobster roles in films such as Dick Tracy by Warren Beatty, The End of Violence by Wim Wenders and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai by Jim Jarmusch. .
Leemage/Bridgeman
Cliff Gorman and Henry Silva (right) in “Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai” (1999)
His last appearance was in Steven Soderbergh’s movie Ocean’s Eleven where he played himself. With more than 140 credits to his credit, the actor has therefore made his mark on the world of cinema.