‘The Godfather’ Star Abe Vigoda Dies at 94

The actor’s daughter confirmed to The Associated Press that he died Tuesday morning at home in New Jersey.

“Over the years, untimely celebrity deaths gave rise to my growing amazement that Abe Vigoda was outliving so many people”, said Olmeda, who took to honoring those celebrities with Vigoda-themed quotes. He of course played Phil Fish.

David Letterman and Conan O’Brien invited him onto their late-night shows to prove he was still alive, the Times reported.

He had his first role on stage at age 17 and, dropping the “H” from his last name along the way, had modest success in theater and on television through the 1960s.

Born in New York, Abraham Vigoda made appearances in very early television – episodes of “Suspense” and “Studio One in Hollywood” in 1949 and an episode of “All Star Revue” in 1951 – but then disappeared from the medium until he began guesting on series starting with “Dark Shadows” in 1969.

“We had some great memories together and he will really be missed”, Duvall said.

Vigoda was a regular on the show starring actor Hal Linden until 1977, when the network created a spin-off called Fish.

He embraced the decades-long legend of his premature demise, which stemmed from the 1982 wrap party to commemorate the final episode of “Barney Miller”.

How sad! Abe Vigoda, most famous for his role in ‘The Godfather, ‘ died on January 26 surrounded by his family. There was also, oddly, a punk rock group named Abe Vigoda. “Brando, Caan, Pacino, De Niro – you can imagine how I felt”, he told the New York Times in 2001.

Mr. Vigoda was Jewish, not Italian, but had a visage that Coppola apparently found authentic for a mafioso – and that also seemed to draw the curiosity of NY mob members who showed up on the set one day.

His other work included the films Good Burger, Joe Versus the Volcano, Look Who’s Talking and Cannonball Run.

Vigoda and Beatrice Schy, his wife from February 25, 1968, until her death April 30, 1992, had a daughter, Carol.